So, it’s been a little quiet on my blog lately after having a sweet little baby girl earlier last month but I am slowly but surely returning to the oven! Emphasis on slowly… I sure do have my hands full right now but I just cannot stop baking. No way. Just look at these gorgeous little white chocolate cupcakes, and the beautiful light green buttercream, yum! The cupcakes are divine and taste so much of white chocolate, you almost don’t even need the pistachio buttercream. Almost.
I am also so excited about these cute cupcake wrappers from Bella Cupcake Couture! I used the black and white stripe cupcake wrappers, which go so well with the green pistachio buttercream. Check them out, they got tons of different designs!
White Chocolate Cupcakes with Pistachio Buttercream
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
Author: Melina Thompson
Serves: 12
INGREDIENTS
- FOR THE CUPCAKES:
- 5 ounces white chocolate, finely chopped
- 1.5 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- ⅔ cup granulated sugar
- 4 tablespoons butter, room temperature
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- FOR THE BUTTERCREAM:
- 2 sticks butter, room temperature
- 2 egg whites, room temperature
- ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup pistachios, very finely ground (almost paste-like)
- 2 drops green food coloring
INSTRUCTIONS
- Make the cupcakes: Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a muffin pan with paper liners.
- Slowly melt the white chocolate over a double boiler.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.
- Stir together the milk and vanilla.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the sugar and butter on high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in the chocolate. Reduce the speed to low and beat in the flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with the milk mixture in 2 additions, and mix until smooth.
- Scoop the batter into the prepared cups.
- Bake until a wooden toothpick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes.
- Make the buttercream: Beat the egg whites until foamy, add the cream of tartar. Beat on medium speed until soft peaks form, then add the granulated sugar. On high speed, beat the egg whites until stiff and glossy, about 2-3 minutes.
- With the paddle attachment and the mixer on medium speed, add the butter a few tablespoons at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add the powdered sugar and turn the mixer on high speed. Beat the buttercream until light and fluffy, then add the pistachios and food color and keep beating for another 1-2 minutes.
These are beyond beautiful! Plus, I adore white chocolate and pistachio together. Congratulations on the new addition! I can’t even imagine how you can make such gorgeous creations with a newborn!
Thank you Rachael! Haha yea I got my hands full but somehow I always find the time to bake 😉
Looks delish!! Found your blog on Foodgawker. The cupcakes were calling my name.
Thank you!
they look delish!
Thanks Dina!
Those look amazing!!! Thank you so much for testing out our Bella Cupcake Couture cupcake wrappers. You did such a beautiful job and the recipe sounds delicious! Thank you for sharing with your readers.
Carrie, Owner of Bella Cupcake Couture
“Fashion for Cupcakes”
http://www.bellacupcakecouture.com
By the way, would you mind if we share this with a link back to you on our site?
Hi Carrie, of course! Feel free to share 😉 And thanks again for the wrappers!
Hi Carrie, of course! Feel free to share 😉 And thanks again for the wrappers!
Hello! Thank you for this recipe! I just finished making it! I’m eating it right now actually. 😛
I didn’t realize how finely the pistachios had to be ground until I piped it…they got stuck in the piping tips! So I had to slather it on top. Yours look so much prettier.
Have a sweet day!
Oh no! That is right, you have to grind them until they become almost a paste. I am so sorry! But I hope they still tasted good 😉 I guess I should put that in the recipe… thanks for the hint!
No worries! Brought them to a party and everyone said it was delish! I did have to bring three back because so many other people brought (store bought) dessert.
At the last minute, I decided to sprinkle a teeeny bit of sea salt on top, to enhance the flavor just a little bit. It was actually pretty good! It was the first time I’ve ever done something like that…have you ever done that before?
that sounds interesting! I never used sea salt with pistachios before but definitely sounds good!
Hello! This looks great, can you please be kind enough to advise the exact conversation for the ⅔ cup granulated sugar in grams or ounces? Don’t want to err on my first attempt :)! Thanks.
When do I add in the meringue mixture? Also, once I am done making the meringue, do I put it into another bowl while mixing the butter cream?
Don’t you need to cook the egg whites in a double broiler so you don’t run the risk of salmonella?
Hi Melina! Do you think these cupcakes would pair well with the frosting from your strawberry milkshake cake? Thanks!
Absolutely! Great idea 🙂
Hi. I was so exited to try white chocolate cupcakes. I didn’t have chocolate bark so I used Hershey’s white chocolate chips. These buggers didn’t melt. I tried the microwave method and nothing, I tried the double boiler method.. nada. These chips got stiff and dried out.. I googled and found out these chips don’t melt and you need bark. That sucks. It’s hard to find chocolate bar here in Trinidad and if you do it’s ridiculously expensive. So, like a trooper I threw them in the cupcake batter and hoped for the best. My cupcakes came out dense and I didn’t taste white chocolate.. sigh. Anyway, just sharing my experience.
Hy Melina is it possible to use instant puding powder instead of creme tartar ?
Hi Melina,
what is the purpose of the cream of tartar?
Thank you
Hi Connie, it stabilizes the egg white and helps them increase in volume. Not sure about the EXACT science behind it but its always recommended to add to egg whites when you whip them 🙂