Sweet Potato Cupcakes with Toasted Marshmallow Frosting

You read it right. These are Sweet Potato Cupcakes with Toasted Marshmallow Frosting. And they're the best cupcakes I've made to date. This is your favorite sweet potato casserole in cupcake form. I'm not the only one who loves sweet potato casserole am I?

The warm sweet potatoes lying under a gooey, toasty layer of marshmallows...mmm! It's the best part of Thanksgiving, after the stuffing, of course. 

I asked my sweet-potato-hating-boyfriend what he thought about the idea of these cupcakes, and he said in the most grossed out voice he could muster "EWH".

"Okay, pretend like you like to eat that at Thanksgiving. Now what do you think about them?"

He thought they could be "interesting". But he didn't sound convinced.

So when I brought him a cupcake to taste, scared he wouldn't even want to try it, I couldn't believe his reaction.  I don't think I have ever seen his eyes light up so much! He may or may not have cussed while telling me how good they were. And it didn't even have the frosting on yet.

If I can convert Paul onto the sweet potato side with these cupcakes, my work is done. Simply put, these were amazing! The cupcakes are fluffy, moist, and the perfect texture. They're full of brown sugar and spice. The frosting is made from scratch, and the frosted cupcakes are toasted to perfection in the broiler. 

The recipe makes 15 cupcakes, and the marshmallow recipe makes enough to generously frost them all, with maybe a few spoonfuls left to eat straight out of the bowl. We dare not waste precious home made marshmallow fluff.

Don't let the idea of the from-scratch marshmallow fluff scare you! It's so easy. You just mix the egg whites, sugar, and cream of tartar in a (heat-proof) bowl that sits on top of a pot of simmering water. You whisk it until the sugar dissolves, and then transfer the liquid to your mixer to whip it into shinning shimmering splendor. 

Did I just quote Aladdin? I sure did. And then I went on Youtube to find the video of that song, to which I shamelessly belted the whole thing out. 

But really, these cupcakes will show you a whole new world. Excuse me while I go watch Disney movies and eat the rest of these cupcakes!

Sweet Potato Cupcakes

Makes 15 cupcakes

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 c. flour
• 1 tea. baking powder
• 1/2 tea. salt
• 1 tea. cinnamon
• 1/8 tea. nutmeg
• 1/8 tea. cloves
• 1/2 c. butter, room temperature
• 2 eggs
• 1 c. brown sugar
• 1/2 c. mashed sweet potatoes (canned)
• 1/2 c. milk
• 1 tea. vanilla

Cooking Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Prepare cupcake tin with liners.
2. Beat butter and brown sugar for 5 minutes, until light and fluffy.
3. Mix in eggs, on at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition.
4. Mix in vanilla, then mashed sweet potatoes.
5. Combine flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, salt, and baking powder together.
6. Slowly mix in 1/2 of the flour mixture, then the milk, and then the remaining flour mixture. Do not over mix.
7. Spoon batter into cupcake liners, no more than 3/4 full.
8. Bake at 350 F for 16-18 minutes, until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
9. Let cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to cool completely.
10. Let cool completely before frosting.

Toasted Marshmallow Frosting

Ingredients

• 4 egg whites
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 tea. cream of tartar
• 1 tea. vanilla

Cooking Directions

1. In a heatproof bowl set atop a pot of simmering water, whisk egg whites, cream of tartar, and sugar together until sugar is dissolved and egg whites are warm to the touch. About 4 minutes.
2. Transfer the mixture to a stand mixer, or using a handheld mixer, beat egg whites on high for 5-7 minutes until fluff is shiny and holds stiff peaks.
3. Then mix in vanilla.
4. Transfer to a piping bag, and pipe frosting atop cupcakes.
5. To toast, place frosted cupcakes on a cookie sheet, and put in the oven under the broiler for 50-60 seconds. *Time may vary among ovens, so keep a close eye on them until they reach your toasted preference.