Easy Lemon Meringue Cupcakes Recipe

Instructions

Cupcakes:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Line cupcake pans with paper liners... give them a quick spritz with non-stick spray stuff to make sure the cupcakes come out in one piece.
• Put butter and sugar in a mixer bowl and beat until light and fluffy.
• Add Eggs... beat to combine.
• Add Yogurt, Lemon Zest and Lemon Juice, and beat until smooth.
• Combine Flour and Baking Powder, add the flour mixture to the Butter mixture. Beat until completely combined.
• Now, scoop batter into the cupcake liners, I use a medium ice cream scoop with a thumb trigger for this. It's neat, and gets less on your fingers than a spoon (although... I do love licking batter off my fingers, it's not tremendously sanitary).
• Put the pans in the oven and bake for 25 minutes.
• Cool in pans on a rack for 10 minutes. Then remove from the pans and let cool completely.

White Mountain Frosting:

• In the stand Mixer, beat Egg Whites on high speed until you have Stiff Peaks (not dried out... just stiff enough to hold their shape when you pull up the beater.) Leave them there to wait while you make the sugar syrup.
• In a medium saucepan, over medium heat, stir together Sugar, Corn Syrup, and Water until combined.
• Bring to rolling boil... stirring all the while with a wooden spoon.
• Wipe the side of the saucepan with a pastry brush dipped in ice water to get the sugar crystals off.
• Stick a candy thermometer to the side of saucepan
• Boil without stirring, until you hit 242 degrees F.
• Turn the mixer with the egg whites in it on again to medium speed.
• Pour hot sugar syrup SLOWLY in a thin stream into the egg whites.
• Add Vanilla.
• Beat at high speed for 10 minutes until stiff peaks form.
• Done!

Assembling the Cupcakes:

• Scoop a bit out of the top of the cupcake... I used a metal coffee scoop for this, but a spoon will do it)
• Fill the hole with Lemon Curd
• Using a pastry bag... or a knife, if that's what you have.... Frost the Cupcakes with White Mountain Frosting.
• Now.. .here's the tricky part.
• (And if it seems scary or dangerous... just eat the cupcakes as they are...maybe sprinkle them with some lemon zest. )
• If you have one of those fancy Creme Brulee torches, torch the top of each cupcake until it browns. DON"T SET THE PAPER ON FIRE. Turns out the cupcakes don't taste really good when they are charred...
• If you DON’T have a torch... heat up your broiler under the stove. Start off with only one or two cupcakes at a time (later you can do stunt work, but for now, let's start off easy). Put the cupcakes on a cookie sheet, and slide them under the flame. Don't shut the door. Just watch.
• I mean it ... you have to pay attention!
• In less than a minute, they should be brown-ish.
• Take them out... repeat with next ones.
• Now... as I do this, my confidence builds, and I start shifting the cupcakes around under the flame to get it evenly brown.
• Please Please Please... tie back your hair... roll up your sleeves... and whatever you do, don't set yourself on fire. (if you do? stop, drop and roll... sacrifice the cupcake)
• Actually, I exaggerate, it's not dangerous. You just have to pay attention that the cupcake isn't under the fire too long. Use an oven mitt to pull the sheet out. You'll be fine.
• Enjoy!