Every once in a very great while, when my sister and I were little, my mom would bestow on us the mythical “surprise plate.” This usually occurred when we were watching cartoons (mostly Scooby Doo, if memory serves) and asked for a snack. This request usually elicited something more commonplace – apple slices or fruit snacks or those little crunchy breadstick things that you dipped in cheese. But sometimes, when we were least expecting it, we would get a Surprise Plate: a little round plastic plate with three different compartments. One would have chocolate chips in it, another mini-marshmallows, and the third would have sliced-up pieces of string cheese that we dipped in cinnamon and sugar with a toothpick. It’s really good, I promise.
Though not exactly a family recipe, this semi-traditional snack is such a nostalgic idea for me that I decided to try to transform it into a cupcake. How could I blend all of those disparate ingredients (whose separation into the compartments was kind of part of the point) into one cohesive treat? I set out to find the answer.
My first attempt was, frankly, a failure. I learned two things from the experience: don’t try to bake things with mini-marshmallows in them.
The marshmallows melt and leave sad little craters in your cupcakes
And whole milk is not an appropriate substitute for whipping cream in a frosting recipe.
Sad, flat, non-pipeable frosting
This is the main reason for my inexcusably long hiatus from this blog; I was fairly discouraged after Surprise Plate Cupcakes attempt #1. But eventually, I felt recovered enough to try version two, which luckily was much more successful!
To transform the surprise plate into a cupcake, I decided to make a vanilla cupcake with chocolate chips, fill it with marshmallow creme, and top it with this cinnamon mascarpone frosting. The mascarpone takes the place of the string cheese – it’s similar to cream cheese but lighter and more subtle in flavor. I think I might be obsessed with this frosting; it’s super light, almost like whipped cream but with the added richness of the cheese, and it pipes beautifully. I will probably be trying other flavors of it in the future.
The Original
Chocolate chips, mini marshmallows, and string cheese with cinnamon-sugar dip in a plastic plate watching Scooby Doo.
The Re-interpretation
A chocolate chip vanilla cupcake, filled with marshmallow creme, topped with cinnamon mascarpone frosting. (Note: I based the cupcake recipe on this vanilla cupcake recipe, with a few of my own tweaks.)
Ingredients:
1 cup granulated sugar
1 3/4 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup butter
2 eggs
1/3 cup vanilla yogurt
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
2/3 cup buttermilk
1 cup chocolate chips
1 jar marshmallow creme
Frosting
1 cup heavy cream
8 ounces mascarpone cheese
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In large mixing bowl, combine first five ingredients.
3. Add butter and mix until you achieve a crumb-like texture.
Crumb-like texture
4. In a separate bowl, mix eggs, yogurt, oil, and vanilla extract. Add to flour mixture and mix until just combined.
5. Add milk gradually until just combined. The batter will be very liquid.
Very liquidy batter
6. Fold in chocolate chips.
7. Prepare a cupcake tin with liners. Fill liners three-quarters full.
8. Bake for 14 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
9. Let cupcakes cool completely.
10. Prepare a piping bag with the long round tip used for filling cupcakes. Fill with marshmallow creme and pipe into each cupcake.
Piping bag
Full of marshmallowy goodness
11. Make the frosting:
- Beat heavy cream with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together remaining ingredients until smooth.
- Fold whipped cream into mascarpone mixture.
12. Prepare another piping bag with a large star tip. Fill with frosting and frost cupcakes.
13. Enjoy!
My Grandmother's Pantry 