Sweet Potato Pie Bourbon Cupcakes

Hello Friends,

Long time - I know, but I'm sort of back. However, I could not let this season slip through my fingers without adding this fun - and very cute - cupcake I plan to make for my family for Thanksgiving.  My mom is still ill, and now her sister is as well, so this will be a nice treat for them too!

Sweet Potato Pie Bourbon Cupcakes

Spice Cake Mix
3 Large Eggs
¼ Cup Oil
1/3 C Bourbon
¼ C Light Brown Sugar
16 oz. Canned Sweet Potatoes (candied yams is good too)
¾ C Buttermilk

Pie Crust – I don’t make a good, flaky pie crust, but a famous baking company does, and the little dough boy suggested I buy the kind that comes refrigerated and is already rolled out.

Now for the fun part – yes, the fun part comes first - tear your pie crust into pieces large enough to form ping-pong size balls, and place one in each section of a muffin tin that has been sprayed with butter flavor cooking spray. Press each ball into its muffin cup to form a small (tart-like) pie shell. It does not have to be neat – rustic is better – and easier. The shell should be fairly thin, but not transparent where you can see the tin through it. Pierce each shell once with a fork, then bake for 10 minutes in a 350 degree F oven. Do not over bake! Set aside.

Mash the sweet potatoes in a large bowl with a fork – or use your hand mixer; I don’t use one, preferring to beat my cakes by hand – kind of like “putting your foot into it,” only I don’t cook with my feet. Add eggs, and brown sugar and cream with the sweet potatoes.

In another large bowl, add the spice cake mix, oil, buttermilk and bourbon, mix well. Fold the sweet potato mixture into the cake batter.

Pour your batter into the pie shells about ¾ full. Bake an additional 20 minutes until they look like perfect bran muffins – only they aren’t bran muffins; they’re Sweet Potato Bourbon Cupcakes. Let the cupcakes cool on a rack in the pan. Once they’re cool, remove them from the pan (do not turn them out upside down on the pan because they are so moist, they will leave those cooling rack lines on them, and that’s ugly). Let them cool a bit longer.

At this point, I usually frost the cupcakes with a cheap caramel store bought frosting, but of course, it’s doctored up – with a splash (a splash to me is a tablespoon) of bourbon. Top each cupcake with a nice homemade praline.

Pralines:
1 1/4 cups of sugar
3/4 cups of brown sugar
1/2 cup of evaporated milk
4 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups pecans

Put sugars & milk in heavy bottom pan & cook to soft ball stage*. Take off fire & add frozen butter, vanilla ; pecans & stir until shine leaves mixture; then spoon on waxed paper.

*Soft Ball Stage: This candy temperature starts at 234°. What Soft Ball Stage means is that a small amount of syrup from the pan, dropped into chilled water forms a ball, but flattens when picked up with fingers

This picture is BEFORE icing - simply because I've eaten all 11 other cupcakes, and there's no point in icing the last one!