Gluten Free White Cupcakes with Buttercream Frosting

Gluten Free Cupcakes

I'm not even sure what to say about this recipe. It's just a white cake recipe where I subbed Better Batter GF flour for cake flour. Maybe it's the cake enhancer that pushed them over the edge, but they're not quite what I was going for.
The cupcakes taste good according to me and my gluten limited son. The texture, though, is somewhat strange to me (and to him, although I don't think he could quite articulate it). It's almost as if they are too moist. Moist is desirable in a cupcake most of the time, but when you chew these cupcakes, they almost taste underdone. The tops and bottoms are well-browned and it looks well baked, but it is so moist and soft that it turns a little doughy in your mouth. I think some people like that, but I am not one of them.
We'll have to see if Max chooses to eat any more of these. That will be the true test. For now, I'm really not sure what I'm going to do with all of these cupcakes. 

Gluten Free White Cupcakes

Ingredients:

• 2 3/4 cup Better Batter Gluten Free All Purpose Flour
• 2 tablespoons King Arthur Flour Cake Enhancer (optional)
• 1 2/3 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup butter, softened
• 2 large eggs, whole
• 3 large egg whites
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 batch buttercream frosting (recipe below)
• sprinkles (optional)

Instructions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line 26-28 muffin cups with cupcake liners.
• In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, mix all of the dry ingredients on low speed. Add the soft butter and mix until it all looks like wet sand.
• Add the egg whites, one at a time, and then the whole eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl after each addition.
• In a small bowl, whisk the milk with the vanilla. Add this mixture, 1/3 at a time, to the batter. Beat 1-2 minutes after each addition, until fluffy. Scrape down sides and bottom of the bowl.
• Transfer batter to a large zip top bag. Carefully seal the top and twist a top corner so that the batter is forced into the opposite bottom corner. Cut about 1/2 inch off the corner. Squeeze batter into each muffin cup to within 1/2 inch of the top. Do not overfill. With a wet fingertip, smooth out the top of the cupcake a little so it doesn't bake with a point on top. Get out another pan and put some liners in even if it's only for one or two extra cupcakes.
• Bake at 350 degrees for 15-18 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in a center cupcake comes out clean.
• Remove from oven and allow to cool in the pan for a few minutes. Then with a butter knife or offset spatula, remove cupcakes to a wire rack to finish cooling.
• While cupcakes cool, prepare the frosting.
• Frost cupcakes however you want and sprinkle with sprinkles, if desired.

Makes about 26-28 cupcakes

Buttercream Frosting

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup vegetable shortening
• 4 cups powdered sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 4-6 tablespoons milk

Directions:

In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter and vegetable shortening to combine. Add powdered sugar, vanilla, and 4 tablespoons milk. Mix on low until sugar is incorporated. Then beat on high until well blended and fluffy. If the frosting seems too stiff, add more milk, a tablespoon and then a teaspoon at a time until you reach the desired consistency.

GF Cupcake right out of the oven--it's puffy

GF Cupcake after cooling--kind of shriveled