It’s here, it’s finally here! After a year of cupcake blogging, SUGAR RUSH, the first book in The Cupcake Club Romance series is finally here! Woo hoo! Or…better yet…Whoopie!

Yep, to celebrate Big Release Day, we’re making Whoopie Pie Cupcakes! Thanks to CakeSpy for the great recipe (and photo!)

Ingredients:: For the cupcakes and cookie tops:
2 1/4 cups flour
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup butter
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup milk

Steps:
1: Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare two baking sheets: one muffin tin and one cookie tray. Line the muffin tin with cupcake liners, and the cookie tray with a sheet of parchment.
2: Sift together the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt into a medium-sized mixing bowl. Set aside.
3: With an electric mixer, cream the butter, eggs, and vanilla together in a large mixing bowl until light and lemon-hued. Add the dry ingredients bit by bit, alternating with the milk until your batter is smooth.
4: Using either a cookie scoop or by heaping teaspoons, drop 12 rounds of cookie dough on the cookie sheet, leaving about an inch and a half around each mound of dough. Try to size them so that they are slightly smaller than the circumference of the cupcake cups you are using.
5: With the remaining cookie dough, fill the cupcake cups. This should be enough batter to fill each cupcake cup about 2/3 full.
6: Bake until lightly browned around the edges (these are a lighter cocoa color than some whoopie pies so you will see light browning). For the cookie tops, this will be 8-10 minutes; for the cupcakes, this will be about 15-20 minutes (a toothpick inserted in the cake should come out clean). I baked both at the same time, simply taking out the tops sooner and leaving the cupcakes to bake a bit longer.
7: Let the cupcakes and cookie tops cool completely.

Ingredients: For the filling:
1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
1 1/2 cups marshmallow fluff
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Steps:
1: Beat butter and marshmallow fluff together until smooth
2: Stir in vanilla until well blended.
3: Scoop filling on top of cooled cupcakes, then top with the cookie tops.

Inhale.

A big, hearty thank you to all the bakers and readers out there who have followed my adventures in the kitchen this past year. I look forward to sharing many more cupcake recipes with you in 2012!

Tags: Writing //