These cupcakes are red and white for Canada Day! Prepared with a vanilla base and a delicious homemade ermine frosting, these are going to be a hit! They are big, puffy, moist, and most certainly delicious!
RED AND WHITE CANADA DAY CUPCAKES
I’m not trying to toot my own horn or anything. But, without a doubt, these are the most moist and delicious cupcakes you’ll ever eat! In fact, these were so good, I made a batch last week and another batch this week! Yes, Dear Reader, Red and White Canada Day Cupcakes are really that good!
This is one of those recipes that make people a little skeptical at first. When you read through the ingredient list and instructions you’ll see why. First of all, yes, there is most certainly three tablespoons of baking powder in this batter. Don’t doubt the insanity of that. It works!
Secondly, the milk is added at the end. The flour mixture is added first and beaten into the egg and butter mixture. Milk is the last item. It’s odd, because usually the dry ingredients are added to the wet ingredients at the end. But, for some reason the milk comes last. Again, don’t doubt it. It works!
THE TYPE OF FROSTING MATTERS
Remember when I said I made two batches of these cupcakes? Yes, they’re delicious, but the second batch was so much better. It wasn’t that the cupcake recipe had improved. It was the frosting.
The first batch I frosted with a vanilla buttercream frosting. I think everyone loves buttercream frosting and I’m no exception. However, the buttercream frosting completely blindsided the cupcake. The deliciousness of the moist and light cupcake disappeared under the heaviness of the buttercream frosting.
This time around, I used a frosting that my mom always made. It’s called ermine frosting, which sounds weird, but it is my favourite vanilla frosting of all time! It’s made with flour, which is also weird, but it works and you’ll love it! In fact, it’s so good, I’m going to devote a whole section of this post to it.
ERMINE FROSTING – JUST WHAT IS IT?
This frosting is known by a million names. I’m exaggerating of course! But, I did find many names for this frosting, so you might know it as something else completely.
My mom just called it icing. But the internet calls it either ermine frosting or ermine buttercream. It’s also called boiled milk frosting, roux frosting, or flour icing.
The Pioneer Woman has the recipe on her blog and she calls it “that’s the best frosting I’ve ever had.” Those are her exact words. And, love her or hate her, she knows a thing or two about feeding people food they will love!
During my research, I found the Wilton website to have the best description. If you’re looking for a not-so-sweet alternative to traditional icing, try ermine frosting. It is a French-inspired icing from the early 20th-century. The recipe has been rediscovered by bakers who want to add a deliciously nostalgic taste to their baked goods.
Ermine frosting is firm enough to hold its shape when used with a decorating bag and tip. The frosting is very light and airy, yet can stand up to warmer temperatures. That makes this icing perfect for any cake or cupcake that needs to be transported outside. Especially these Red and White Canada Day Cupcakes!
RED AND WHITE ORIGINS
So, happy Canada Day, folks! For my non-Canadian readers, Canada Day is the national day of Canada. It is a federal statutory holiday which celebrates the anniversary of July 1, 1867. That was the date of the Constitution Act which united the three separate colonies of the Province of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick into a single Dominion within the British Empire called Canada.
Originally, the day was called Dominion Day, but was renamed in 1982, the year the Canada Act was passed. Canada Day is celebrated on July 1. I wanted to share some Canadian fun facts with you – are you up for it?
CANADIAN TRIVIA
Our most popular phrase is I’m sorry! We apologize a lot. When someone bumps into us, we say sorry. It’s very common. When you come to Canada, don’t worry about offending anyone; if you do, a Canadian will apologize for you.
Canadians love beer. On Canada Day weekend, we drink 1.2 million litres of beer while saying ‘eh’ a lot!
Canada and the United States celebrates the first weekend of July together. Canada Day and Independence Day are both celebrated at Niagara Falls with a huge fireworks display on July 1 and July 4.
Canada’s National Symbol is the Beaver. It might look cute and cuddly, but they can be vicious. Beavers have been known to attack humans and there have been reported deaths by beaver.
Canada is influenced by both the US and Britain. Canada is on the Metric System but most people weigh themselves in pounds and measure themselves in feet and inches. Our temperature is in Celcius and our speed limits are measured in kilometres. We follow the British way of writing by using the “u” in words like colour and neighbour. Canadians flip the “er” with “re” in words like theatre and metre. It’s acres not hectares and our apartments and homes come in square feet not metres. We really have no idea what rules we’re following!
Red and White Canada Day Cupcakes
Ingredients
For the Cupcakes:
- 1 cup butter, room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups white sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 3/4 cups all purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup milk
- red food colouring
For the Frosting:
- 10 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 2 cups milk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 cups butter
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup sprinkles
Instructions
For the Cupcakes:
- Preheat oven to 350°
- Line cupcake tins with paper liners. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
- Add the eggs one at a time and beat well into the sugar and butter mixture.
- Next, add the vanilla and the red food colouring. Beat into the batter.
- Scrape down the bowl and add the following ingredients in this order: flour, baking powder, and salt. With the mixer on low speed, gently blend the baking powder and salt into the flour – just a few seconds.
- Now, increase the speed on the mixer to medium and blend the flour into the batter just until the flour is incorporated.
- Add the milk and fully incorporate.
- Divide the batter into the prepared cupcake tins.
- Bake for 18 minutes.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes. Remove cupcakes from tin and place on wire cooling rack to finish cooling.
For the Frosting:
- Add the flour and milk to sauce pan. Cook over medium heat, whisking continually. It's important to slowly whisk to prevent the flour from clumping at the bottom of the sauce pan and to prevent the mixture from burning.
- Allow the mixture to cook until it becomes very thick. It should look like a gloppy mess! Set it aside to completely cool.
- Once cooled, whisk in the vanilla extract.
- Next, in a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Don't take any shortcuts – beat until the sugar is dissolved into the butter.
- Transfer all of the flour and milk mixture into the butter mixture and beat until well combined. Beat until the mixture looks like whipped cream.
- At this point, you can use a small spatula to frost the cupcakes, or transfer the frosting to a piping bag with your tip of choice. Once the frosting is applied, top with sprinkles.
- Please note, this frosting does not harden. It will continue to stay soft, so do not stack the cupcakes when storing.
Notes
Nutrition
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