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Angel Food Cupcakes with Kahlua Frosting

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Recipe for Angel Food Cupcakes with Kahlua Mocha Frosting and Candied Almonds

What was the cake or dessert that you always chose, or still choose, for your birthday or special meal? When I was growing up, my all-time favorite birthday dessert was an Angel Food Cake with a Chocolatey/Kahlua Frosting and then sprinkled all over with candied almonds.

I’ve queried my mom as to the origins of this cake and she doesn’t quite remember the specifics, but did let me in on a little family secret…my mom and grandma, who I’ve held as pillars of the ‘make it from scratch’ movement actually would buy the Angel Food Cake from the grocery store! I’m aghast and that’s just one of those dark little secrets I never needed to hear and yet, will never be able to un-hear.

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With my impending birthday, my tastebuds started tingling for that dessert but with mom out of the country it fell to Kate and I to whip it up. And… because I found these ‘oh so fancy’ cupcake holders a while back and haven’t had an opportunity to use them, my Angel Food Cake quickly morphed into Angel Food Cupcakes.

 Angel Food Cupcakes with Kahlua Mocha Frosting and Candied Almonds

The Candied Almonds are the perfect topping for my Angel Food Cupcakes with Kahlua Mocha Frosting.

And while mom and grandma used Cool Whip back in the day, that is a food type which I just can’t let past my lips anymore. In fact…if all desserts contained Cool Whip, my weight would never be an issue. Cool Whip and regular M&M’s…they could sit on my counter day in and day out and I wouldn’t be tempted once. But I digress.

For ‘my’ version of ‘my special dessert’ I made a stabilized whipped cream frosting and added Kahlua and cocoa to get that flavor I remember so vividly.

These Angel Food Cupcakes...
These Angle Food Cupcakes with Kahlua Frosting and Candied Almonds...my perfect birthday treat.

Recipe for Angel Food Cupcakes with Kahlua Mocha Frosting and Candied Almonds; the perfect treat for everyday and special occasions.

Angel Food Cupcakes with Kahlua Mocha Frosting and Candied Almonds

Yield: 12 cupcakes
Prep Time: 50 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour

Kahlua Mocha Frosting and Candied Almonds dress up Angel Food Cupcakes.

Ingredients

Angel Food Cupcakes

  • 3/4 cups egg whites, at room temperature, from 5-6 large eggs
  • 1/2 TBS warm water
  • 1/2 cup sifted cake flour, not self-rising, sift before measuring
  • 1/2 + 1/8 cup superfine sugar, divided, run your granulated sugar through your food processor if you don't have superfine sugar
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp cream of tartar
  • 1 tsp vanilla

Kahlua Mocha Frosting

  • 1 cup heavy cream, cold
  • 3 TBS sifted confectioners sugar
  • 2 tsp cocoa
  • 2 tsp Kahlua
  • 1 TBS water
  • 1 tsp gelatin

Candied Almonds

  • 2 1/2 ounces slivered almonds
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 4 tsp water

Instructions

For Cupcakes

  1. Preheat oven to 375'
  2. Put egg whites and water in a very clean large metal bowl and swirl it over simmering water until barely warm.  
  3. Sift together flour and 1/8 cup of sugar. When you think you've sifted enough, sift it one more time.
  4. Beat whites in a standing electric mixer on medium speed until frothy. Add vanilla, cream of tartar, and salt.  Increase speed to medium-high and beat just until soft peaks begin to form.
  5. Gradually beat in the remaining 1/2 cup of sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, occasionally scraping down the side of the bowl. Increase speed to high and beat until stiff, glossy peaks form. DO NOT OVERBEAT.
  6. Sift 1/3 of the flour mixture over the whites.  Beat on low speed until just blended and then sift and beat in the remaining flour in 2 more batches.
  7. Gently spoon the batter into liners inside a muffin tin and smooth the tops. Run a spatula or knife through the batter to eliminate any large air bubbles.
  8. Bake in the lower third of oven until golden and a tester comes out clean, 15-18 minutes. Let cool before frosting

Kahlua Mocha Frosting

  1. Adapted from a variety of recipes
  2. Place your metal mixing bowl and wire beater in the freezer for a good 30 minutes.  Keep your cream in the refrigerator until you add it to the bowl as well.
  3. In a small, microwave-safe bowl mix gelatin and cold water and let it sit until thickened. Zap it in the microwave in 7-10 second intervals until it is liquid and then let it cool.  If it firms up again before you use it, just zap it for 3-5 seconds until it liquifies
  4. Mix confectioners sugar and cocoa and set aside.
  5. Add confectioners sugar/cocoa mix and cream to chilled mixer bowl and beat until soft peaks form. 
  6. With the mixer on, drizzle in the gelatin and the Kahlua. Beat just until stiff peaks form.
  7. Keep cool until ready to use.

Candied Almonds

  1. Preheat oven to 350'
  2. Combine water and sugar and cook over low heat until sugar is dissolved.
  3. Add the almonds and stir until well coated
  4. Remove from the heat and spread on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and bake for 7-10 minutes until golden brown

To Assemble Cupcakes

  1. Pipe frosting over the cupcakes. I use a ziplock bag with a hole cut in the end for my Wilton 1M Open Star Piping Tip.
  2. Sprinkle Candied Almonds
  3. Enjoy! Will keep in the fridge for 2-3 days although nuts will get soft towards the end.

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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 210Total Fat: 13gSaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 115mgSodium: 116mgCarbohydrates: 17gFiber: 1gSugar: 11gProtein: 7g

Did you make this recipe?

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© Adapted from Epicurious
Angel Food cake gets a bad rap in terms of being ‘difficult’ to make, but the cupcake form is much more forgiving…no need to hang the cake over a bottle for any length of time. And then there’s whole challenge of slicing the cake…no need to worry about that with a cupcake either.

That being said…feel free to go the cake route for this dessert…I think you’d just need to double the frosting.

I used a Wilton 1M Open Star Piping Tip to pipe the frosting on the cupcake.

Piping the perfect Kahlua Mocha frosting on the Angle Food Cupcakes.
Do you love Angel Food Cake but not the hassle of making it? Well these Angel Food Cupcakes wit Kahlua Mocha Frosting and Candied Almonds are the dessert recipe you need. Perfect for entertaining or for everyday treats.

If you think you might want to make this recipe for Angel Food Cupcakes, make sure you bookmark this page or pin it for your future reference.

Looking for another delicious dessert? Check out these individual pavlovas that are SO EASY to make!

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14 Comments

  1. My husband always asks for angel food cake for his birthday…and, it’s coming up soon! These would be a fun surprise! Can’t wait to try them!

    Reply

  5. These sounds amazing! I’ve never had Kahlua frosting, but I think I need it in my life. My husband and kids always request angel food cake so this is going on my list for our next party.

    Reply

    1. Oh good Sarah…and yes, you do need Kahlua frosting in your world…it makes everything just that much better! Hope you and your family enjoy!

      Hugs, Lynn

      Reply

  6. This looks so delicious and I love your story about your mom and grandmother using store bought cake! Also, super cool that this is an old family recipe!

    Reply

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