Recipe: Melanie Karmazin's Eggnog Cupcakes

the appetizer:

Cookies For Kids' Cancer Best Bake Sale Cookbook by Gretchen Holt-Witt with Sally Sampson, includes recipes like Adina's Classic Black-And-White Cookies; Melanie Karmazin's Eggnog Cupcakes; and Dark Rich Mocha-Glazed Brownies.

Melanie Karmazin's Eggnog Cupcakes

Yield: 2 dozen cupcakes

Since you'll need store-bought eggnog for these adult-only cupcakes, be sure to keep an extra container in your fridge. On the other hand, if you love these as much as we do, you can buy eggnog when it is in season and freeze it in one-cup portions to defrost later.

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 cups granulated sugar
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup eggnog
3 tablespoons bourbon
Eggnog Buttercream (recipe below) or whipped cream for topping
Freshly grated nutmeg

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place paper liners in 24 cupcake/muffin tins.

Place the flour, baking powder, and baking soda in a bowl and mix well. Set aside.

Place the butter and sugar in the bowl of a mixer fitted with a paddle ond beat until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl occasionally.

Add one-third of the flour mixture to the egg mixture and beat. Add half the eggnog and beat. Beat in another third of the flour mixture and then beat in the remaining eggnog. Finish with the remaining dry ingredients. Stir in the bourbon. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.

Using a 2-ounce ice cream scoop or a heaping tablespoon, fill the prepared tins. Transfer to the oven and bake until the cupcakes spring back when touched, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer cupcakes to a wire rack and set aside to cool.

Top with Eggnog Buttercream, or if you're having these at home, top with whipped cream and sprinkle with freshly grated nutmeg.

Eggnog Buttercream

4 large egg whites, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
2 sticks (1/2 pound) unsalted butter, at room temperature
and cut up into 1-inch pieces
4 tablespoons dark rum (optional)
1 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)

Place the egg whites and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer. Place the bowl over a double boiler and whisk constantly, by hand, until the mixture is just hot to the touch, 4 to 5 minutes. Carefully transfer the bowl to a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and whisk until fluffy and cool to the touch, 4 to 5 minutes.

Switch to the paddle attachment and add the butter, 2 tablespoons at a time, mixing until smooth. Add the rum and cinnamon, if using, and mix again until smooth. Cover and set aside until ready to use.

Bake Sale Tip

Bring The Community Together: Bake sales bring everyone in the community together because who doesn't love a good cookie and a chance to give back? When planning your event, make sure to invite members of your local fire and police departments to stop by and have a cookie. Kids will be thrilled to see the firefighters pull up in the hook and ladder truck or police officers flash the lights in their cruisers. The men and women of these departments who serve the community every day often serve as heroes to kids, the same kids who you are raising money for who are our heroes.