Yellow Buttermilk Cupcakes with Vanilla Frosting

Photo by Katie Kay

I'm not going to lie, I've had better.  But I've also had worse.  These were actually okay if you LIKE vanilla cupcakes.  Which I don't.  Booorrrring.  I put some pink dye in the frosting because all this white was making my eyes bleed. As usual, Martha's recipe made an obscene number of cupcakes.  This made over 30 cupcakes.  To be quite honest, these were my least favorite out of the Martha cupcakes I've made so far.  I actually ate 3 fresh out of the oven and they were warm and fantastic, but once they cooled I thought they were just average. Granted, I don't care for plain vanilla.  But if you do, stuff these in your face while they're fresh out of the oven.  Then throw the rest away.

Photo by Katie Kay

Yellow Buttermilk Cupcakes by Martha Stewart
3 cups cake flour 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 3/4 tsp baking soda 2 1/4 tsp baking powder 1 1/2 tsp salt 1 cup plus 2 Tbsp unsalted butter, room temp 2 1/4 dups sugar 5 large whole eggs plus 3 egg yolks, room temp 2 cups buttermilk, room temp 2 tsp vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350.  Line muffin tins with paper liners.  Sift together flours, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
Cream butter and sugar until fluffy.  Add eggs and yolks.  Beat until combined.   Add flour in 3 batches, alternating with 2 additions of buttermilk.  Beat in vanilla.
Fill muffin tins 3/4 full.  Bake about 20 minutes.  Cool before frosting.

Fluffy Vanilla Frosting by Martha Stewart
3 sticks unsalted butter, room temp 4 cups powdered sugar 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Beat butter for 2 minutes.  Add powdered sugar, beating well to combine (about 5 minutes total.)  Add vanilla and beat until smooth.  Add desired food gel or dye.