Acai Bowl Cupcakes

About the Recipe

This açaí bowl cupcake celebrates how dualities can come together to achieve something delicious, both in a cupcake and in life :) With the recipe, I’ve added healthy Brazilian açaí powder & puree to a traditional American buttercream & white cake recipe, achieving dual aims of a healthy body & a healthy soul (let’s be honest, cupcakes feed the soul).

The cupcake also combines the mainstream and aspirational. In Brazil, açaí is a padaria staple while cupcakes are intriguing novelties, with the converse being true in America. So eaters in both countries can feel nostalgic & exotic at the same time.

Finally, this cupcake embodies a personal story for me. I learned to bake from my mother, who showed me you can be both a chemical engineer leading teams of men on an offshore platform in Nigeria, as well as a loving mother of two who stays up late architecting a rollercoaster birthday cake.

Both my Brazilian all-male startup team and my American Sex & The City girl squad love these cupcakes and I hope you do too.

Ingredients

Makes 24 cupcakes

Cake

• 2.5 cups (285g) cake flour 

• 1 & ⅔ cup (240g) acai powder (like this one)

• 2 teaspoons baking powder

• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 12.5 Tbsp (177g) unsalted butter

• 1.75 cups (350g) granulated sugar

• 5 large egg whites

• 1/3 cup (75g) plain yogurt

• 1/2 cup (120g) acai puree (like this one)

Frosting

• 1 cup unsalted butter

• 4 cups confectioners' sugar

• 4 tbsp acai pure

• 6 tsp (18g) acai powder

• 3 drops purple food coloring, as needed (Optional)

Directions

Make the cake

• Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C).

• Hand mix dry ingredients in one bowl: Mix the flour, acai powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together.

• Beat wet ingredients (except the acai puree) in a separate bowl:

  • Beat the butter and sugar together on high speed for 1 minute.

  • Then beat in the egg whites on high speed for 1 minute. 

  • Then beat in yogurt. 

• Add the dry ingredients into the wet mixture, beating on low. Then add in the acai puree. 

• Pour into 24 cupcake liners and bake for 20-22 minutes or until cake is baked through

Make the frosting

• Cream butter in the bowl of a stand mixer until smooth and fluffy.

• Gradually beat in confectionary' sugar and acai powder until fully incorporated.

• Add acai puree and beat for an additional 3 minutes.

• Add a few drops of purple food coloring and beat for 30 more seconds. 

Garnish with fresh fruit

• Chop up your fruit(s) of choice - banana, kiwi, dragonfruit, mango, strawberry are my top choices

• Sprinkle with a little bit of lemon juice to help preserve their color and flavor

• Then garnish the cupcakes to your liking - you can do groups of fruits in a circle like an acai bowl or choose just 1 piece of each to put on one side

See the highlight on Magnolia Bakery's website here :)