Sweet Saturdays ~ Take 5 Cupcakes

We have a list of cupcake flavors we'd like to try. And we finally got some free time to make up a batch. I let my Facebook fans choose which flavor they'd like to try the most and the cupcake chosen was a Take 5 Cupcake.
The Take 5 candy bar is a combination of pretzels, peanut butter, caramel, and chocolate. Can you say yum! I found a great looking cupcake recipe on pinterest and decided to give it a go. As with trying out any new recipe, I'm always leary of what I don't know. But these turned out great (though I made a few small alterations).

This recipe is from Jamie at My Baking Addiction

Take 5 Cupcakes

YIELD: 24 Cupcakes

PREP TIME: 30 minutes

COOK TIME: 22 minutes

INGREDIENTS:

For the Cupcakes

1 (18.25 ounce) package devil’s food cake mix (I use Betty Crocker Super Moist)
1 (5.9 ounce) package instant chocolate pudding mix
1 cup sour cream
1 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs, lightly beaten
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup warm water
24 Fun Size Take 5 Candy Bars; cut in half

For the Peanut Butter Butter Cream

3 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
2 pounds confectioners’ sugar, sifted
6-8 tablespoons heavy cream (if using milk, amount will be less)

Caramel Sauce (recipe here)

Crushed Pretzels

For the Chocolate Glaze 

4 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped into very small pieces
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS:

For the Cupcakes

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line muffin tin with paper liners or spray with non-stick cooking spray.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat together the cake and pudding mixes, sour cream, oil, eggs, vanilla and water. Beat for about two minutes on medium speed until well combined.

3. Using a large cookie scoop, distribute the batter between 24 muffin wells; about 3 tablespoons of batter per well. 

4. Bake in preheated oven for 20-24 minutes or until the tops of the cakes spring back when lightly touched.  Allow cupcakes to cool inside muffin tins for about 10 minutes.

5. Remove cupcakes from muffin tins and allow to fully cool on a wire rack. Once cupcakes are cool, prepare your frosting.

For the Peanut Butter Buttercream

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, cream butter and peanut butter on medium speed until fluffy. Turn your mixer down to low speed and slowly add in the confectioner’s sugar, and continue mixing until well blended.

2. Add vanilla and 4 tablespoons of heavy cream. Blend on low speed until moistened. Add an additional 1 to 4 tablespoons of heavy cream until you reach the desired consistency. Beat at high speed until frosting is smooth and fluffy

3. Pipe frosting onto cooled cupcakes. Prepare Chocolate Glaze.

For the Chocolate Glaze Assembly

1. In a small saucepan over medium heat, warm the heavy cream until very hot, but not boiling.

2. Place chocolate pieces in a heat safe bowl. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and allow it to sit for about 5 minutes. Whisk the cream and chocolate until smooth and thoroughly combined. Whisk in the honey, corn syrup, and vanilla. Allow to cool for about 15 minutes. Do not let the glaze sit for too long or it will harden up before you spoon it over the frosting.

Assembly

Sprinkle crushed pretzels onto the peanut butter buttercream. You may need to slightly press them into place. Spoon a heaping tablespoon of caramel sauce on top of the cupcake. You can use store bought caramel sauce but it won't be as thick. Top with another heaping tablespoon of chocolate ganache. Let set.

*Optional: sprinkling crushed peanuts onto chocolate ganache