these adorable tiramisu cupcakes.

I love this dessert idea

because they have all the flavor of a traditional tiramisu,

but I find them to be easier to make.

They're also so fun and festive

that they would be a great dessert to bring to a potluck

if someone has asked you to bring dessert.

Let me show you how to put 'em together.

So, we're first gonna make our vanilla cupcake base.

So, in a large bowl you wanna add two eggs,

3/4 cup of sugar,

a 1/2 a cup of either canola oil or vegetable oil,

a 1/2 a cup of water,

and one teaspoon of vanilla extract.

You can whisk that all together until combined,

and then in a smaller bowl

you wanna add 1 1/2 cups of flour,

1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder,

and 1/4 teaspoon of salt, and you can whisk that together.

Then you wanna slowly add your dry ingredients

into the wet ingredients,

whisking all the while, until everything is incorporated.

Then you wanna fill your muffin tin.

You can use any cupcake papers you like.

I found these really cute little brown ones

that have a gold interior,

that I thought looked extra fancy,

so I'll leave you a link in the description

if you wanna know where to find them.

So, you just wanna fill these with an ice cream scoop,

I wouldn't go all the way to the top,

so probably about 2/3 of the way full.

And then you're gonna bake at 350 degrees fahrenheit

for anywhere from 15 to 17 minutes.

And then while your cupcakes are cooling,

you can create the coffee rum bath,

so this is what we're gonna actually brush

on top of our cupcakes.

So it really just takes about 1/4 cup of any strong coffee.

I like to use espresso,

just because we have an espresso machine here,

and it's easy to do,

but you could also just use regular strong coffee,

or instant espresso would work, too.

And into to that I also like to add

one teaspoon of rum-flavored extract,

just to kind of give that flavor of a tiramisu.

You could use real rum if you wanted to,

but I find that you get a lot more flavor

from the rum extract.

Then you wanna take a fork

and just poke some holes in the top of your cupcakes,

and this will allow this coffee mixture

to seep through the cupcake.

And then working with a pastry brush,

you're gonna go over and brush each cupcake

about two to three times

just to allow that coffee to seep into the cupcake.

And you can keep them there on your counter

while you prepare the frosting.

So for our frosting, we're gonna add two cups of heavy cream

into the bowl of an electric mixture,

five tablespoons of powdered sugar,

and one teaspoon of vanilla extract.

You're gonna whip that up on high

until stiff peaks form.

Then once your whipped cream is fully whipped,

you can set that side,

and in a large bowl you're going to add

eight ounces of mascarpone cheese,

and then you slowly are gonna add

the whipped cream to the cheese,

just a little at a time, lightening the cheese,

so basically, folding it in.

And sometimes I find it's easy to take your spatula

and just rub it alongside the edge of the bowl,

just pressing it and lightening it at the same time.

That will help that cheese incorporate,

and you have a nice, fluffy mixture.

Then you can transfer your frosting into a pastry bag

fitted with a small round tip,

because when I pipe the frosting on the cupcakes,

I like to give them almost like a coiled effect,

starting from the outside and working your way in.

And then once all your cupcakes are frosted,

you can dust them with some unsweetened cocoa powder,

and that will also give you that tiramisu effect,

and it looks really pretty as the cocoa powder

kind of sticks to each coil.

And then we also wanna add

some freshly-grated bittersweet chocolate on top.

And when you cut into them,

you'll see how that coffee has seeped into the cake.

You've got that lightly-flavored

whipped cream and mascarpone cheese.

It is just the best way

to eat tiramisu in a single serving. (laughing)

I hope you guys give this one a try,

and let me know what you think,

and I will see you back here next week,

with another easy and delicious recipe.