Fabulous Filled Coconut Cupcakes

I love cupcakes!   A little bit of cake, a little bit of frosting, a few bites and pure heaven!   My  husband is gone on a fishing trip and I've got a house full of girls!   We are very girly and these cupcakes are completely in-line with our home manicures, white wine and ridiculous romantic movies!   Enjoy!

Fabulous Filled Coconut Cupcakes

Ingredients:

• 2 sticks butter, room temperature
• 1 1/4 C sugar
• 4 large eggs, room temperature
• 1/2 t. vanilla
• 2 t. coconut extract
• 2 1/2 C cake flour
• 2 t. baking powder
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1 C. buttermilk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and use cupcake liners in your cupcake pan.   Cream butter with sugar until fluffy.  Add eggs, vanilla, and coconut extract.   In a separate bowl, sift together your cake flour, baking powder and salt.   At low speed, add a scoop of flour mixture to the butter/sugar mixture, then mix at medium until incorporated.   Continue until batter is very thick, then add half the buttermilk, then the last bit of flour, then the rest of the buttermilk and blend well.   Spoon into cupcake cups (about 2/3 full) and bake for 22 minutes.

While the cupcakes are baking, make the coconut filling.

• 1 pkg vanilla instant pudding
• 1 C. milk
• 2/3 C. half and half
• 1 T coconut extract

Mix all ingredients and keep in the refrigerator until set and ready to fill into cool cupcakes.

Frosting:

• store bought butter cream frosting
• organic unsweetened coconut shavings

In a separate bowl, mix a little coconut extract with store bought butter cream frosting. Set aside until ready to assemble.

Once the cupcakes have cooled completely - it's time to assemble.   Fill a pastry bag with the coconut filling and a large open tip.   Stuff the tip into the top of each cupcake and fill as much as you can.  Some of the filling will ooze out, but that's perfectly fine.   Frost each cupcake with the coconut laced butter cream.   Then, I roll them in organic and unsweetened shaved coconut!   It adds a level of chewiness to the soft cupcake and the unsweetened version plays well with the sweet frosting.   Then serve and watch out - they will be gone!