Fab Recipe: Sweet Potato Cupcakes

One of the joys of being a food blogger is connecting with other fellow bloggers who share the same passion for food. With our shared love for pastries, it was only natural for me to team up with the multi-talented chef/blogger/entrepreneur, Nicole Tingwall (Windy City Dinner Fairy), to make sweet potato cupcakes for my first collaboration.

Born in Brazil and raised in Chicago, her passion for food began during her early teens when she would frequently help her mom in the kitchen. Great memories of her family gathering around her mom’s delicious and healthy home cooked meals were what prompted her to pursue her craft.

She enrolled in culinary school at the Cooking and Hospitality Institute of Chicago in 2003. After graduation, she worked in a small restaurant in Naperville. But soon after, she realized there weren’t enough benefits to working in a kitchen. Nicole then decided to take a desk job during the week, while working in the kitchen during the weekends. Eventually, she got burnt out and quit cooking all together.

After a few years, her brother encouraged her to get back into the kitchen by starting her own blog and Windy City Dinner Fairy was born in 2010. Nicole and her brother make a great team. He is an excellent photographer so he takes the pictures while Nicole cooks and blogs.

Windy City Dinner Fairy’s food blog focuses on paleo and gluten-free recipes. Her site is filled with mouthwatering, healthy, and easy recipes for cooks of all levels, such as this smoky sweet potato bisque with roasted pepitas.

Smoky Sweet Potato Bisque with Roasted Pepitas // Photo: @windycitydinnerfairy

Inspired by her blog, Nicole turned Windy City Dinner Fairy into a small catering business in 2011, creating custom desserts for her clients. That same year, she married her lovely wife, Allison. Nicole made her own desserts for the wedding. The event coordinator was so impressed by her work, she put her on their preferred vendor list for the sweets table. She took a leap of faith and decided to focus on her growing pastry business.

Nicole was recently featured on Windy City Live for her maple and bacon spiced cake in honor of this year’s Beer and Bacon Classic at Soldier Field. She certainly knows a thing or two about balancing her very busy lifestyle. She works a 9 to 5 job as an underwriter for an insurance company while running her dessert catering business. I admire individuals who are extremely passionate and highly driven. Nicole is definitely an inspiration to me.

As a self-proclaimed #dessertqueen, I was so excited to hear that Nicole wanted to share her special sweet potato cupcakes with marshmallow buttercream recipe with Fab Food Chicago.

Sweet Potato Cupcakes with Marshmallow Buttercream // Photo: @chelsias

It’s a recipe inspired by the love of her life, Allison. When they first started dating, Nicole asked Allison what her favorite dessert was. She replied, sweet potato pie. Nicole never considered sweet potato as a dessert so she thought it was a ridiculous answer. Nicole agreed to it anyways and created something special for her. It turned out to be one of her favorite pies of all time. She ended up loving it so much, Nicole continues to experiment different recipes with sweet potatoes.

It was a gloomy fall day when we got together and make these scrumptious cupcakes. My day quickly turned brighter as soon as I met her. She was outgoing and hilarious. Her attention to detail was obvious as soon as we began to bake which is the true sign of a passionate individual. I had so much fun learning from her and getting to know her as a person.

The cupcakes are easy to make and don’t be surprised if you end up eating most of them right away. Shameless confession here, I took the majority of the cupcakes home and devoured them. Surprisingly I had a few leftovers and brought them to work. Needless to say, they were gone in a few minutes. I am positive that this recipe will quickly become part of your repertoire.

Nicole Tingwall of Windy City Dinner Fairy // Photo: @sherriesavorsthecity

Fab Food Chicago and Windy City Dinner Fairy Collaboration

Let’s start baking!!!

Sweet Potato Cupcakes with Marshmallow Frosting

 

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Prep time

1 hour 30 mins

Cook time

45 mins

Total time

2 hours 15 mins

 

Author: Nicole Tingwall

Recipe type: Dessert

Serves: 24

Ingredients

• 
  For the Sweet Potato Cupcakes:
  
• 1 lb. sweet potato, roasted, peeled and mashed (see detailed instructions below)
• 3 Tablespoon real maple syrup
• 4 eggs
• 1 cup oil
• 1 cup granulated white sugar
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon ground ginger
• ½ teaspoon ground allspice
• pinch of ground nutmeg
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 
  For the Marshmallow Buttercream:
  
• 16 ounces unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
• 6 cups powdered sugar
• 2 Tablespoons vanilla extract
• 1 jar (7.5 ounces) Marshmallow Creme or Fluff
• Trader Joe's Cinnamon Sugar Grinder for topping
• 

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Have 2 (12-cup) Baker's Secret muffin pans ready to go.
3. Line with paper cupcake liners.
4. Set aside.

How to roast the Sweet Potatoes:

1. Wrap the whole skinned sweet potatoes completely in aluminum foil.
2. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
3. Roast the sweet potatoes for 1.5 hours at 400 degrees F or until you can easily pierce it with a fork.
4. Take it out of the oven and let it cool completely.
5. Refrigerate overnight.
6. The next morning, easily peel off the sweet potato skin.
7. Slice it into huge chunks.
8. You can either put it in a food processor to make a puree, or break it up using a mixer with a whip attachment until smooth.

For the Sweet Potato Cupcakes:

FAB TIP: You can use a stand mixer or do this by hand.

1. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together sweet potato puree and real maple syrup.
2. Add the whole eggs and mix to combine.
3. Add the oil and continue to whisk until blended.

FAB TIP: Sift both the sugars together to ensure that there is no lumps in the batter.

1. Add the sifted granulated white sugar and brown sugar.
2. Then, add all the spices: ground cinnamon, ginger, allspice, and nutmeg.
3. Sift over the all purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
4. Gently whisk together until well combine.
5. Using an ice cream scooper or ¼ cup dry measuring cup, fill the prepared muffin pan with ¾ full each.
6. Place inside the preheated oven.
7. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes or until the sides are light golden brown in color.
8. You can also use a cake tester, insert right in the center of the cupcake and it should come out clean.
9. Let cool completely before icing with frosting.

For the Marshmallow Buttercream:

1. Using a stand mixer, sift the powdered sugar over the mixing bowl.
2. Add the softened butter.
3. Start mixing on low speed until well blended.
4. Increase speed to high and mix for 5 minutes. Mixture will be very white and fluffy.

FAB TIP: It is very important to follow this step and mix it at the suggested time. Nicole believes that this additional step changes the texture and flavor of the frosting, making it smooth and creamy.

1. Add the vanilla and marshmallow creme or fluff.
   
2. Mix for another minute.

To finish the cupcakes:

1. Place the marshmallow buttercream in a piping bag fitted with a medium star tip.
2. Pipe over cooled cupcakes.
3. Nicole likes to top the cupcakes with Trader Joe's Cinnamon Sugar Grinder.
4. Enjoy!!!

3.5.3208

Sweet Potato Cupcakes with Marshmallow Frosting // Photo: @chelsias

Huge thanks to Nicole Tingwall for sharing this scrumptious cupcake recipe with us! I hope you will give it a try. It’s the perfect fall dessert that will surely bring a smile to your face. Make sure to check out Windy City Dinner Fairy’s food blog (awesome recipes), catering business (customized desserts), and Etsy shop (cupcake and cake toppers). Follow Nicole on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram.

By the way, we used our Baker’s Secret 12-piece Bakeware Set.

Baker’s Secret 12-piece Bakeware set includes:

• 4-piece colored measuring cups (1/4, 1/3, 1/2 and 1-cup)
• 5-piece colored measuring spoons (1/4 tsp, 1/2 tsp, 1 tsp, 1/2 tbsp and 1 tbsp)
• Essentials 12-cup muffin
• Essentials medium cookie sheet
• Essentials large cookie sheet

Check out Baker’s Secret for more recipe inspirations on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram!

Savor Every Moment,
Sherrie