Enjoy this decadent dessert made with brown butter in the frosting topped with candied roasted pecans. Brown Butter Pecan Cupcakes are easy to make, but they taste deliciously complicated.
There is a uniquely elevated quality about the flavor of brown butter, yet it’s very easy to make. The cupcakes are made from a Betty Crocker cake mix, so that’s about as easy as that part gets. That leaves the candied toasted pecans, and that’s pretty easy, too.
Then there’s the frosting. That’s the best part, because you get to lick the beaters.
Ok, let’s get started.
Making the pecan cupcakes
Buy yourself a box of Betty Crocker Super Moist Butter Pecan cake mix.
Make the cupcakes according to the box directions; adding the water, eggs, and vegetable oil.
Bake for the recommended time of 12-17 minutes, and then let them cool.
Toasting candied pecans for topping
Chop your pecans to desired size, although I recommend chopping them on the smaller side if you want to sprinkle them on top.
I kept a few pecan halves for topping some of the cupcakes, which you can see above. Some of the pecans are chopped and that one in the back right has only the half pecan on top.
What can I say, I like to mix it up.
Any-who…mix up the pecans with the melted butter and brown sugar.
Spread them on a baking sheet and bake them for about 6-8 minutes, then set them aside to cool.
Making the brown butter frosting
If you have one, use a light colored pan for browning the butter. This way you have a better visual for when it starts to brown. I use a copper non-stick pan.
Melt the butter on medium heat, stirring often. The butter will foam up, but that’s good. You will notice brown bits, but that’s also a part of it’s charm.
Once the butter has turned a toasty brown, remove it from the heat and pour it into a bowl for cooling in the refrigerator.
The goal here is to bring the brown butter back to room temperature. Once that is accomplished, mix the browned butter with the remaining frosting ingredients and you’ll have some amazing frosting.
Check out the picture below of the frosting without pecans sprinkled on top. See the brown specs? Yummy!
In addition to Brown Butter Pecan Cupcakes…
Looking for some other cupcake ideas? Try these: French Toast Cupcakes, which are perfect for that special brunch any time of year. Also, my personal favorite.
Here’s a great cupcake using fresh strawberries in the frosting: Easy Strawberry Cupcakes.
Or, you might prefer Lemon Raspberry Cookie Cupcakes made with Lemon Oreos on the bottom and a fruity raspberry filling in the center.
Another fun recipe is my Caramel Apple Spice Cupcakes. So good, and the frosting has caramel streaks. How cool is that?!
Brown Butter Pecan Cupcakes
Materials
For Cupcakes
- 1 box Betty Crocker Super Moist Butter Pecan cake mix
- 1 cup water
- 3 eggs
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
For Toasted Candied Pecans
- 1 Tbsp. butter, melted
- 1/2 cup pecans, finely chopped
- 1 Tbsp. brown sugar
For Frosting
- 1 cup butter, room temperature
- 1/2 cup vegetable shortening
- 6 cups confectioners sugar
- 3 Tbsp. water or milk
Instructions
For Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 350°. Make and bake cupcakes per directions on box. Cool before frosting.
For Toasted Candied Pecans
- Mix the melted butter, chopped pecans, and brown sugar in small bowl, toss to evenly coat. Spread evenly on a cookie sheet in single layer and bake for 6-8 minutes at 350°. Set pecans aside to cool.
For Frosting
- Melt butter in a sauce pan over medium heat. Stir often. Cook the butter until it turns a toasty brown color. Remove from heat and pour into a bowl to cool in the refrigerator. Bring the butter back to room temperature.
- In a large bowl, add browned butter and shortening, beat until thoroughly mixed. Add the confectioners sugar and water alternately until it's smooth and you have desired consistency.
- Frost the cupcakes and sprinkle with the toasted pecans. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Just a reminder to pin one of these pictures to your Pinterest board. If you make these, I hope you’ll leave your picture on Pinterest and rate the recipe. I love hearing from my readers, which makes it all so much fun. Have a blessed day and happy baking.
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Yummy ! ☺