I’m a huge chai drinker, and have been ever since college. My dear friend Rach turned me on to the spiced beverage 13 years ago … holy crap how time flies.

Ray was never much for chai, but since I began making my own concentrate at home, he’s begun to like it. Now that he works out of our local coffee shop regularly, he’s taken a liking to having a cup of “dirty chai” which is chai with espresso. Yum.

This was the second of two birthday cupcakes I baked for his little surprise happy hour, and according to Ray, his favorite—but only by a slim margin.

Instead of using my homemade chai concentrate, I opted to use Tipu’s Chai Now, since it worked so well in the pumpkin chai latte cupcakes I baked in October. I was able to mix some into the milk, add the rest to the dry ingredients, and even sprinkle some on top as a garnish. I love multi-use ingredients!

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Dirty chai cupcakes

Yield: 14 cupcakes

Ingredients

Cupcake Ingredients
1 1/4 cups cake flour
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp instant espresso
2 1/2 tsp Tipu's Chai Now, divided
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup oil
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla

Vanilla Buttercream
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup confectioners sugar
1 tbsp vanilla
1-2 tsp of heavy cream (as needed)

Espresso Chai Sprinkle
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp instant espresso
1/2 tsp Tipu's Chai Now

Directions

Heat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and position the racks toward the center. Line cupcake pans with papers.

Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt together. Add the instant espresso and 1 1/2 tsp of Tipu's Chai Now and stir to combine. Set aside.

Beat the egg for 1 minute, then add the sugar and beat an additional 1-2 minutes until thick and frothy.

Warm the milk slightly (it helps the chai powder to dissolve) and add the remaining 1 tsp of Tipu's Chai Now, stirring well to combine. Set aside to cool slightly.

Add the oil and vanilla, and beat until combined.

Alternate the flour mixture and milk mixture and beat until combined.

Divide the batter between wrappers in cupcake tins and bake for 20 minutes.

For the frosting, beat the butter until light and fluffy. Add 1/2 cup of sugar, beating until combined. Add the vanilla. Finally, add the remaining sugar gradually and whip until light and fluffy, adding 1-2 tsp of heavy cream as needed to improve the texture. Whip on medium-high for 3-4 minutes for maximum fluffiness.

To assemble, fit a piping bag with an extra large round tip and pipe a dollop of frosting onto each cupcake.

In a small bowl, mix together the sugar, instant espresso and Tipu's Chai Now to combine.

Sprinkle this mixture on top of the cupcakes.

https://cupcakefridayproject.com/2013/11/dirty-chai-cupcakes/

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