Banoffee Cupcakes with Salted Caramel Sauce

. August, 2016
Photography by India Essuah.
Banoffee Cupcakes with Salted Caramel Sauce

These beautiful, moist banana cupcakes are studded with chunks of toffee, topped with a whipped cream cheese icing and drizzled with caramel sauce. A great one to bake for SPCA Cupcake Day!

INGREDIENTS

2 cups plain flour
1 cup light muscovado sugar (I used Billington's)
¾ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon sea salt
100 grams brittle toffees, roughly chopped (I used Werther's Originals)
⅓ cup rice bran oil
2 x #7 eggs (large), lightly beaten
2 cups mashed, very ripe bananas (about 4)
¼ cup sour cream or yoghurt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Cream cheese icing
125 grams butter at room temperature
250 grams cream cheese at room temperature
1 cup icing sugar, sifted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
To assemble
Salted caramel sauce, recipe below
¼ cup chopped pecan nuts


Salted Caramel Sauce
¾ cup caster sugar
2 tablespoons water
½ cup cream
pinch sea salt
75 grams diced butter at room temperature

METHOD

Line 12 holes of ½ cup capacity muffin tins with cupcake liners. 

Preheat the oven to 160°C fan bake

Cakes: Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and the toffees in a large bowl. Whisk the oil, eggs, bananas, sour cream and the vanilla together. Pour into the flour mixture and fold together to combine, ensuring there are no pockets of flour in the batter. 

Spoon into the cupcake cases and bake for about 25 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool.

Icing: Beat the butter for a couple of minutes then add the cream cheese and beat until light and fluffy. Add the icing sugar and vanilla extract and beat for 2 minutes.

To assemble: Pipe or spoon the icing onto the cupcakes. Drizzle with salted caramel and a sprinkle of pecans. Cupcakes will keep for 3 days in an airtight container. Makes 12.


Salted Caramel Sauce

This makes more sauce than you need for drizzling over the cakes but it will keep for 2 weeks in the refrigerator. 

Put the sugar and water in a medium saucepan and slowly bring to the boil, making sure all the sugar has dissolved before it boils. Wipe down any stray grains of sugar from the sides of the pan with a pastry brush dipped in water. 

Cook until the sugar turns a deep golden colour, gently swirling the pan so it colours evenly. Take off the heat and immediately add the cream, taking great care as it will bubble up furiously.

Add the salt and stir until smooth then leave to cool for 10 minutes. Whisk in the butter a few pieces at a time until the sauce is thick and glossy. Transfer to a bowl and cool.