Snickerdoodle Cookie Cupcakes

 I'M GOING PRO.

This is my big moment as a baker -- I'm getting paid to make treatssss. I'm making a dessert spread for a neighbor's party, and I'm starting to test recipes to make sure they're perfect.

This recipe is a crowd-pleaser; the cookie crust at the bottom really brings out the snickerdoodle vibe. I'm still working on the texture of the cake itself, because altitude can seriously cause some problems. But the taste of this recipe is excellent, excellent.

These cupcakes are lovely. We've really come a long way from this, huh... Those cupcakes prompted my mother to say, "Hannah, people are expecting those to taste bad." 

DON'T MAKE THAT DISGUSTED FACE

ONLY GOD CAN JUDGE ME

#YOLO

Recipe:

Slightly adapted from How Sweet Eats.


Snickerdoodle Cookie Cupcakes
makes 12-14 cupcakes
cookie layer
1/4 cup butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cups all-purpose flour
pinch of salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoons cinnamon
1 tablespoon milk, if needed

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Beat butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer until smooth. Add egg and vanilla, mixing well until combine, about 2 minutes. Stir in flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Mix until dough comes together. Add in milk 1 tsp at a time until dough comes together.
Refrigerate dough while you make cupcake batter.

cake layer
1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 whole eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/3 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Cream butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs and vanilla and beat until combined.
Combine dry ingredients in a bowl. Add half of the dry ingredients, mixing until just combined. Add the milk. Once mixed, add remaining dry ingredients.
Line muffin tins with cupcake liners and add about 1 1/2 tablespoons of cookie dough in the bottom of the liner. Even out the dough with the back of a non-stick sprayed spoon. Using an ice cream scoop, drop batter (about 2 heaping tablespoons worth) on top of cookie dough mixture. Bake cupcakes for 15-18 minutes.

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
8 oz cream cheese, at room temperature
3 cups powdered sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 tbsp cinnamon

Add butter and cream cheese in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat until fluffy and combined. Gradually add in powdered sugar and vanilla, mixing on medium speed and scraping down the sides of the bowl. Add cinnamon and mix until combined.

I amped up the cinnamon in the frosting from the original recipe for a nice kick of flavor. For me, frosting is a preference kind of thing -- add ingredients until the texture and taste are just right. Be careful not to add too much cinnamon, however, or it'll get chalky.