mini brown butter funfetti cupcakes + brown sugar buttercream

Five years! This week marks five whole years since I first pressed “publish” on a post on Girl Versus Dough. INSANE.

In some ways, that feels like forever and ever ago; in others, it feels like yesterday (cliche, I know, but the truth). Never in the wildest of my wildest dreams did I think, when I first pressed “publish” then, that now I’d be sitting here, doing what I love full time — that is to say, making things like mini brown butter funfetti cupcakes and chatting you up about them (because OMG, we have to talk about these). Is this real life? I still pinch myself sometimes to make sure.

Recently I’ve found myself hooked on “America’s Got Talent” (I promise this segue is going somewhere), which is SO STRANGE because apart from the melodramedy/train wreck that is “The Bachelor/Bachelorette,” I am not much of a reality TV watcher. But for some reason, this show has me hooked. Maybe it has to do with people doing crazy things like bending their bodies over their heads and flipping like a million feet in the air and performing magic tricks that make it look like they sliced their middles in half. In any case, now you know what I’m watching Tuesday and Wednesday nights — if you were wondering.

All of that to say, I’ve been trying to figure out what my talent would be if I went on the show, and I finally figured it out: Not eating these all of these cupcakes in one sitting. You think I’m kidding. But when you have brown butter, rainbow sprinkles, cake and brown sugar buttercream involved, it’s darn near impossible to avoid mass consumption. Give them a try and you’ll understand (and get your fat pants ready).

I thought this triple threat of a combo — that is, brown butter + funfetti + brown sugar — would be a perfect way to not only celebrate five years o’ blogging, but to sport these adorable push pops I received from Laguna Wholesale, a dessert tool/catering supply company. Aren’t they fun? They come in four different shapes and sizes, are BPA-free and they’re washable and reusable. I foresee a lot of push poppin’ in my future — not just with cupcakes, but also with fruit, or candy, or stacks of crackers and cheese for Avery’s school lunches when she is older.

Mini Brown Butter Funfetti Cupcakes with Brown Sugar Buttercream

• Author: Girl Versus Dough
• Prep Time: 4 hours 25 mins
• Cook Time: 15 mins
• Total Time: 4 hours 40 mins
• Yield: About 48 mini cupcakes 1x

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Ingredients

For the cupcakes:

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
• 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons cake flour
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 cup rainbow-colored sprinkles, plus more for topping

For the buttercream frosting:

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 1/2 to 3 cups powdered sugar

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Instructions

1. In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Continue to cook butter, stirring constantly, until brown bits form and butter turns a golden, caramel color. Remove from heat. Pour butter into a small bowl or cup. Cover and chill in fridge at least 4 hours until hardened again. When ready to make cupcakes, remove butter from fridge and bring to room temperature. Cut into small cubes.
2. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease two 24-cup mini muffin tins with baking spray.
3. In a large bowl or bowl of a stand mixer, whisk flours, sugar, baking powder and salt (with paddle attachment, if using a stand mixer) until well combined. Gradually add the cubed butter and stir 1 to 2 minutes until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
4. Add eggs, milk and vanilla; stir until just combined. Increase speed to medium and beat 2 minutes, scraping sides of bowl occasionally, until mixture is light and smooth. Fold in sprinkles.
5. Fill prepared muffin tin cups 2/3 full with batter. Bake 15 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool cupcakes 10 minutes in pan, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.
6. To make the buttercream: Cream butter and brown sugar in a stand mixer (or in a large bowl using an electric hand mixer). Add vanilla; stir to combine. Gradually add enough powdered sugar until a stiff but smooth frosting forms. Transfer frosting to a piping bag.
7. Pipe frosting on top of fully cooled cupcakes. Sprinkle tops with extra sprinkles. If using push pops, stack two mini cupcakes on top of each other and carefully place inside a push pop. Repeat with remaining cupcakes/push pops.

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Disclosure: I received compensation from Laguna Wholesale for recipe development purposes. All opinions are my own.