West Egg Cupcakes on the Cheap

My first two blogs have been spent dining out which were extremely fun and easy so I figured I would invest a little more time and effort and make a recipe.  So for this installment of For Frugal Foodies I will be making Peppermint Cupcakes with White Chocolate Buttercream from a recipe from West Egg Cafe in Atlanta.  In addition to having a breakfast/brunch style cafe, they also have a bakery known for their sweet treats.  According to their website, it will set you back $27 for a baker's dozen of said cupcakes that I will be making for around 59 cents a piece.  This recipe is not an approximation of what I think would closely match their cupcakes but it came straight from their email promotion that I received on New Years so I figured that would be the best template to follow:

West Egg Cafe's
Peppermint Cupcakes with White Chocolate Buttercream

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons peppermint extract
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon red food coloring
• 1 1/2 cups whole milk

1.) Mix flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Set aside.

2.) Mix peppermint extract and sour cream in another bowl. Set aside.

3.) Cream together the butter and the sugar until light and fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl often.

3.) Cream together the butter and the sugar until light and fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl often.

4.) Add half the flour mixture and beat on low speed until well combined. Add half the sour cream mixture and do the same.

4.) Add half the flour mixture and beat on low speed until well combined. Add half the sour cream mixture and do the same.

5.) Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

5.) Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

6.) Finally, add the red food coloring.

6.) Finally, add the red food coloring.

7.) Add the whole milk and blend well.

8.) Pour batter into prepared muffin tins, filling ¾ full.

Bake at 350° for 12 minutes, or until tops are a light golden brown. Cool completely before frosting with white chocolate buttercream. Before frosting sets, garnish with bits of candy canes or starlite mints (we recommend a Ziploc bag and a hammer for this!). Yields 2 dozen regular size cupcakes.

White Chocolate Buttercream

• 4 sticks (1 pound) unsalted butter, softened
• 24 ounces white chocolate, melted and cooled slightly
• 2 cups confectioner's sugar
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• candy canes or starlite mints for garnish

*I used Junior Mints as garnish instead of hard peppermint candies.*

Beat the butter at medium speed until creamy. Add the melted chocolate and beat on low speed until fully incorporated. Add the confectioner's sugar and beat at low speed until incorporated, then gradually increase the speed to high and beat until light and fluffy.

The final product wasn't quite what I was expecting.  The cupcakes were a little on the dense side and I'm not 100% sure if that was because I made a mistake in the recipe assembly or if they were supposed to taste like that and I am just more accustomed to light and fluffy cupcakes.  Regardless, I fed them to my co-workers and they seemed to be a success.  Whether they were just being polite or they were just hungry, I don't know, but they were eaten so I say it was a win.  They did turn out an adorable pink and the frosting is spectacular.  I will definitely use the recipe again for other cupcake recipes of my own.  I promise to share my failures as well as my successes in this blog.  Not every cooking venture turns out well.  We all stumble and fall flat on our faces from time to time and it's reassuring when others share their failures instead of all their brilliant successful creations in high resolution pictures.  Gag.   The best part about this recipe venture, though, was the budget break down.  When I bought all the ingredients for the cupcakes, I broke it down by servings into a spread sheet that I will share at the bottom so you can see how much it cost me to make this entire batch.  If you wanted to buy this same thing at West Egg Cafe, it cost a little most than $2 a cupcake but my recipe cost around 59 cents per cupcake. It all boils down to whether or not you are the kind of person that wants to send the money or put in the effort.  Sometimes, I can go either way but I think it's always fun to at least try doing it for yourself once.  If it doesn't go so well, then you can rightfully splurge on someone else's expertise. Happy New Year! 2 cups AP flour                             0.3                20 cups in a 5 lb bag for $3 2 tsp baking powder                    0.066            6 tsp per oz of powder 10 oz $1.99 1 tsp salt                                        N/A               ---- 2 tsp peppermint extract               0.66             6 tsp per oz. 1 cup sour cream                           1.69             8 oz container 5 1/2 sticks unsalted butter           3.74             .68 cents per stick of butter 1 cup sugar                                    0.25            8 cups of sugar in a 4 lb bag for $2 2 large eggs                                   0.2              12 large eggs for $1.20 1/2 tsp red food coloring               0.15             6 tsp per oz 1 1/2 cup milk                               0.53             1 gallon milk $5.69 has 16 cups 24 oz. white choc.                         4.98             ---- 2 cups powdered sugar                 0.43             8 cups of powd sug for $1.70 2 tsp vanilla extract                       0.04              8oz. vanilla cost $1, 6tsp per oz. box of Junior Mints                      1.16              ---- total spent                                 14.196    cost per cupcake                      0.5915    West Egg Cafe  1100 Howell Mill Road Write a review -  - Atlanta, GA 30318 Get Directions (404) 872-3973