Nutella Swirl Cupcakes

I wasn't planning on baking anything for NYE this year ... which seems to be a repeat-habit of mine.
I scrolled back through Tea, Cake & Create's photos on Facebook looking for an I'm-not-baking-anything-this-year-but-here's-something-from-a-previous-year picture to post, and couldn't find anything from the past four years.
So, I baked.
Nutella swirl cupcakes with Nutella icing.

You're welcome.
;o)

Happy 2017!

Nutella Swirl Cupcakes 
Recipe by Tea, Cake & Create

Preheat the oven to 180'C
Line a muffin pan with cupcake cases.
Makes 12-15 large cupcakes

Ingredients
250g flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda (bicarb) 
1/2 tsp salt 
200g caster sugar
180g butter at room temp. 
4 large eggs
250ml buttermilk or sour cream 
1 tsp vanilla extract
* I also added a few drops of Vanilla Girl hazelnut extract. 
200g Nutella


Method
Sift together the flour, raising agents and salt in a bowl, and set aside. 

Cream together the butter and sugar with an electric mixer. 
Add the eggs, one at a time, with the mixer on low speed. Scrape down the bowl between additions. 
Beat in the vanilla extract, and hazelnut extract if you're using it. 

With the mixer on low speed, alternately beat in the sifted dry ingredients and the buttermilk or sour cream -  begin and end with the dry ingredients. 
Beat until just combined. 

Spoon a large dollop of the batter into the base of each cupcake case  (the case should be about 1/4 -1/3 full).
Follow with a generous teaspoon-ful of Nutella  (it's easier to use the Nutella if you heat it slightly). 
Repeat with another dollop of batter. The Nutella should be covered by the cake batter. 

Bake at 180'C for 20min, or until the cupcakes spring back when touched. 

Nutella Icing

Recipe by Tea, Cake & Create

(Enough for  approx. 15 rosette-type swirls)  

100g butter, at room temp
250g cream cheese (use a dense medium or full fat cream cheese like the Woolworths brand or Lancewood.) 
90g sifted icing sugar 
50g sifted unsweetened cocoa powder

100g Nutella

1 tsp vanilla extract

Use an electric mixer to beat the butter until pale and soft before adding the icing sugar.

Beat the icing sugar and butter together. 

Add in the cream cheese, vanilla and cocoa. Beat well. 

Mix in the Nutella. 

Ice onto the cooled cupcakes. 

Some of the Nutella will stay as a lovely gooey blob in the centre and some of it will ooze out towards the edges.

(Oooo-oh! There go those New Year's resolutions!)  

Happy baking in 2017!

xxM