Nutella Cupcakes with Triple Cream Cheese Frosting

I'm not one to try a whole lot of new recipes- I usually let Em try it first and then do it when she says it successful or not. But when I saw these on this blog, I couldn't stop drooling and was determined to try them myself! Not only did they look beautiful, but delicious as well...and better yet... made with NUTELLA! I love Nutella so much. It makes me happy. It makes baby happy too (or at least she kicks a lot when I eat it...)

This was one of the first cupcake recipes I've made from scratch (and despite the fact that I almost ruined them by completely forgetting to add the butter) and they were soooo good! Beware- this recipes makes 3 dozen cucpcakes- so don't make them unless you are really in the mood for nutella cupcakes or you have some friends to give them to.

Here's the recipe and I'm also linking the blog where she details how to do the tripple cream cheese frosting, swirled. She didn't list what size bags she used- but I used 3 12 in. disposable decorating bags and one big 18 in. bag. It worked great!

Chocolate Cupcakes with Nutella, Peanut Butter, and Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting

For the Cupcakes:
2/3 cup Nutella
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups cake flour
1 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup butter, softened
2 1/2 cups buttermilk

Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting
8 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature
5 tablespoons butter, softened to room temperature
1 pound powdered sugar (about 3 3/4 cups), sifted
2 teaspoons clear vanilla extract -only necessary if you want your cream cheese frosting to stay white

Nutella Cream Cheese Frosting
6 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup Nutella
1 pound confectioners’ sugar (about 3 3/4 cups), sifted
1 teaspoons vanilla extract
black and brown food coloring, optional

Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
6 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup Almond Butter or Peanut Butter
1 pound confectioners’ sugar (about 3 3/4 cups), sifted
1 teaspoons vanilla extract

For the Cupcakes
Line 3 dozen muffin cups with cupcake liners or grease using non-stick spray. Set aside. Preheat oven to 350 F.

In medium sized bowl, sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl, beat the eggs and sugar for 5 minutes, until it is pale and thick. Add in the butter. don't forget the butter...I almost did. It would be sad to ruin 3 dozen cupcakes. ;) Mix until combined. Add in the nutella. Next add the buttermilk. Beat until well incorporated.

Add the flour mixture in 3 increments and beat until smooth. Divide batter into the cupcake tins. Bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Remove from oven and let cool completely before frosting.

For the Frostings
Cream the butter and cream cheese in medium sized bowl. Add the vanilla. Add the nutella or PB. Slowly incorporate the powdered sugar as you continue to cream. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Beat on high speed until fluffy and smooth, adding milk or additional sugar (if needed) to reach desired consistency.

Once you have the three frostings ready, put each in a 12 in. decorating bag (ziplock bags won't work here- believe me- I tried it and it was a ROYAL disaster!) Then take a large 18 in. decorating bag and attach the coupling ring and the tip you'd like to use. Place all three frosting bags inside the large bag and begin piping. For more detailed instructions, see this post.

Seriously- these were sooooo good and I was so pleased with myself that I actually got the frosting to work right. And I love this nutella frosting so much, that I think I will use it again, and again and again...and maybe even just eat it plain. :)

Recipe source: Good Life Eats