🧁 Salted Caramel Cream Cheese Cupcakes
Moist vanilla cupcakes filled with gooey caramel and topped with rich cream cheese frosting and a drizzle of salted caramel. Perfect for sweet cravings or special occasions!
📝 Ingredients
For the Vanilla Cupcakes:
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temp
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ cup sour cream or buttermilk
- ¼ cup milk
For the Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 8 oz cream cheese, softened
- ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
- 2 ½–3 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
For the Caramel Filling & Drizzle:
- 1 cup soft caramels (or ¾ cup caramel sauce)
- 2 tbsp heavy cream
- Flaky sea salt (optional)
👩🍳 Instructions
- Make the Cupcakes: Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C) and line a 12-cup muffin tin. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.
- In another bowl, beat butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, then vanilla.
- Alternate adding dry ingredients and milk/sour cream to the butter mixture. Mix until smooth.
- Divide batter into liners (¾ full). Bake 18–20 minutes until toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely.
- Fill the Cupcakes: Core the center of each cupcake. Melt caramels with cream until smooth. Cool slightly, then fill each cupcake with 1–2 tsp caramel.
- Make the Frosting: Beat cream cheese and butter until smooth. Add sugar, vanilla, and salt. Beat until fluffy. Pipe onto cupcakes.
- Finish: Drizzle with caramel and sprinkle with sea salt if desired.