Spiced Coconut Cupcakes with Cranberry Chutney

Posted by Bake & Destroy on October 31st, 2009. Filed under: cupcake recipes.
IMG_2489These cupcakes went through a lot of stages. From a curry-spiced dark chocolate cake with cranberry chutney filling and ganache on top to this more Thai-influenced spicy coconut cake with ginger cream cheese frosting and (not Thai at all) cranberry chutney on top. No, it’s not another attempt at a weirdo cupcake, it’s my way of capturing all the things I love about my neighborhood and sharing them the best way I know how – in cupcake form.
My neighborhood is an awesome mix of Middle Eastern, Mexican, Thai, Korean and Polish. It’s one of the only neighborhoods in Chicago where you can’t quite put your finger on the ethnic mix. Everyone knows Humboldt Park is Puerto Rican, Pilsen is Mexican, and the Ukranian Village is… yeah, Polish. But Albany Park is a little bit of everything – with some pasty white people like Tony and I mixed in. It makes for a pretty peaceful existence – not a lot of Polish/Middle Eastern gang violence  - and it means our cheap eats and grocery stores are unbeatable. Why, at Andy’s Fruit Ranch alone you’ll find Greek cheeses, freshly-baked pita bread, Polish candies, a whole deli case full of fake meat, an entire isle of just tahini and honey and then, randomly, 7-Up cake in the bakery section.
So I took some hints from my Thai and Indian neighbors this time and came up with something I think you’ll like. And you can easily swap out the dairy ingredients for your favorite vegan ones (including coconut milk for the buttermilk – yum.) It’s not for everyone, and it’s not at all what I expected to be baking on Halloween, but I love it almost as much as I love Albany Park.
You’ll need:
  • 3/4 cup unsalted butter
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 3 eggs
  • 3/4 teaspoon vanilla
  • 3/4 teaspoon almond
  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 tsp ground clove
  • 1/2 cup buttermilk
  • 7 oz sweetened, shredded coconut

Then you:

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees, line your pan with paper liners. In a stand mixer, cream butter and sugar on high until light & fluffy. With mixer on low, add eggs 1 at a time. Then add vanilla & almond and mix well.

In a separate bowl, sift together the dry ingredients. In three parts, alternate adding the dry mix and the buttermilk to the batter, ending with dry ingredients. Mix just until combined and fold in coconut.

Fill cupcakes 2/3 full and bake 25-30 mins or until tops are golden brown. Cool in pan 10-15 minutes, remove from pan to cool completely.

Pipe a ring of Ginger Cream Cheese Frosting around the top of each cooled cupcake. Scoop your favorite Sweet Cranberry Chutney in the middle. (Trader Joe’s makes a tasty one too.)

IMG_2484PS Teno made me this cute, cute pumpkin cookie with his cookie cutters from AnnClark. They’ve generously offered my readers 10% off orders until 2010 when you enter BLGA3!

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4 Responses to Spiced Coconut Cupcakes with Cranberry Chutney

  1. VeggieGirl
    October 31st, 2009 at 12:18 pm

    HAPPY HALLOWEEN!! :)

  2. anna
    November 2nd, 2009 at 2:01 pm

    Those sound really good! I am a fan of coconut, spices and cranberry. Oh yes.

  3. Stephanie
    November 8th, 2009 at 6:46 pm

    I live in Albany Park also. Great neighborhood indeed!

  4. betty
    November 12th, 2009 at 4:35 pm

    chutney + cupcake
    now thats a first :)