Light and fluffy with a pillowy and decadent meringue topping. Perfect for Spring, Summer, and Fall. Now step aside, banana bread - there's a new dessert in town.
SPECIAL EQIPMENT:
Piping bag
3 x 4 cupcake pan
hand mixer or stand mixer
(optional) reusable silicone cupcake liners
food scale
food thermometer
food safe butane torch
INGREDIENTS:
For the cupcakes
1/2 cup heavy cream or half and half + 2 tsp red wine vinegar
1 stick butter, room temperature
1/2 c granulated sugar
1/2 c light brown sugar
2 eggs, room temperature
1 medium very ripe banana, mashed
1 tsp almond flavor
1 tsp vanilla flavor
1/3 c mayo
2 cups AP flour or cake flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
For the Swiss Meringue
vinegar, as needed
4 egg whites
4 cups granulated sugar
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
pinch of salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
For garnish
Sweet banana chip or sweet plantain chip or dehydrated banana chip
Add vinegar to cream, stir, and set aside. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. To a mixing bowl, add butter and sugars. Beat until fluffy and incorporated, about 3 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time. Add mashed banana, almond flavor, vanilla extract, and mayo. Mix. While mixing, add cream slowly. Place a sifter over the bowl. Sift the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg into the bowl. Beat mixture on low speed until about 50% combined. Using a spatula, finish mixing the batter until just combined, making sure to scrape up the bottom and sides of the bowl. Measure 50g of batter in each cupcake liner. Bake for 15-18 minutes or until a toothpick comes out with minimal crumbs. Let cool in pan for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool.
While the cupcakes are baking and cooling, wash the mixer blades well with soap and water. Wipe the blades, and a glass or stainless-steel bowl down with a paper towel dipped vinegar to removed excess oil and impurities. Add egg whites, salt, sugar, and cream of tartar to the bowl. Place over a double boiler (see note below) and bring the water to a boil. While the water comes to a boil, whisk the egg whites by hand using one of the blender blades to melt the sugar. Mixture is done when it measures at 160-175 degrees F. Remove the bowl from the heat and beat on high speed with a mixer until medium peaks. Add vanilla. Beat until stiff peaks. Add meringue to a pastry bag with a wide tip. Pipe meringue on to all cupcakes, starting from the center and working outward. Using a butane torch set to a low flame, gently toast the meringue with a circular sweeping motion about 4 inches away. Stick a sweet banana chip in each and enjoy.
Prep time = 15 min | Cook time = about 15 -18 minutes | Yields 17 cupcakes
Pro tips:
You can swap the vinegar and cream for buttermilk. I like doing it the way I wrote in the recipe because buttermilk tends to be more expensive and I find it much easier to use up a bottle of cream than a bottle of buttermilk, but to each their own.
You'll need to use a double boiler - A.K.A. bain marie - to cook the eggs. Essentially, this is when you have a bowl sitting on the mouth of a pot with about 2-3 inches of boiling water. (or enough to cover the bottom of the pot) The bottom of the bowl does NOT touch the water, hence while you need very little water. This is a very gentle cooking method for Swiss meringue or tempering chocolate as the heat the food it exposed to is indirect.
If you want the flavor to be more Autumnal, add a 1/4 tsp of clove, and a 1/4 tsp of allspice.
Inspired by Sally's Baking Addiction.
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