Rich, buttery vanilla cupcake with a hint of coconut and a fresh mango buttercream.
So, this is my first Fiesta Friday post! I’m super excited to be joining the party and looking forward to mingling with all of you. As I was deciding what special dessert I should bring to the occasion, I was thinking about how much I’ve been enjoying the summer weather now that it’s finally here. My husband, the boys and I have been really enjoying our walks around our neighborhood and catching up with our neighbors. We’ve all been hibernating with the extreme cold winter we’ve had and it’s nice to see everyone out and about.
To celebrate the beautiful weather, I decided to make something using flavors that symbolize summer. While I was at the supermarket, I noticed some gorgeous mangos on sale, perfect! I love mangos, they’re such a sweet and fragrant fruit. Mangos are also a tropical fruit, so I wanted to carry that theme into my recipe. Then I came across some coconut flavored yogurt and it just came together for me. To be honest, I’ve never baked with yogurt before, I usually use sour cream, but no better time than the present to try something new.
These vanilla cupcakes are rich, buttery, moist, and have a hint of coconut from adding the coconut yogurt to the batter. The buttercream tastes fresh and sweet, and is bursting with mango flavor. I was super happy when I was whipping up the buttercream, the smell of fresh mangos filled my kitchen and the gorgeous color made it look like a bowl of sunshine.
The buttery vanilla, sweet mango, and light taste of coconut is a perfect combination. However, if you’re not a coconut fan, french vanilla yogurt is quite lovely with the mango flavor too.
I brought some unfrosted cupcakes to my grandmother’s house as I know she’s not a buttercream fan. As she was complimenting on how good they were, she told me that what she likes to do with mini cakes is to chill them in the fridge, cut them in half, then pan fry them with butter so they’re crispy. Pan fried cupcakes? Has anyone else heard of that or is it just a #myweirdgrandma thing? Please let me know as I’m really curious about this. I laugh just thinking about it because I’ve never heard such a thing before. That’s my grandma and I love her. 🙂
Thank you Jhuls@TheNotSoCreativeCook for the invite and thank you Angie@TheNoviceGardener for hosting such a wonderful party!
Tropical Mango Vanilla Cupcakes
Ingredients
1 & 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 cup sugar
1 large egg
1/4 cup coconut flavored yogurt (or vanilla)
3/4 cup milk (I used whole milk)
1 tsp vanilla
Buttercream ingredients
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup mango puree (using a handheld or stand blender, puree a generous 1/2 cup of diced mangos until smooth)
3-4 cups icing sugar
Instructions
1) Preheat oven to 350°F and line a muffin pan with 12 paper liners.
2) In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
3) Add the sugar, egg, yogurt, milk and vanilla to the melted butter. Whisk together, then gently pour into the dry ingredients. Mix until smooth and try not to over mix.
4) Fill the paper liners about 3/4’s full with batter and bake for about 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean. Let cupcakes cool completely before frosting.
5) To make the buttercream, whip the butter until light and fluffy. Add the mango puree, mix until somewhat incorporated. Add the 3 cups of icing sugar, one at a time, mixing well in between. Add the 4th cup if needed for desired consistency.
The cupcakes can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Best served at room temperature.
Recipe by Little Sweet Baker
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How would this recipe work as a layer cake?
Hi Cheryl, you would have to double the recipe for a 2-layer 8″ or 9″ round cake and bake for about 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. As for the buttercream, the recipe makes enough to cover a layer cake if you are just simply spreading it onto the cake. Enjoy and thank you for your question:)
I tried these and they are great! So I will pin.
Thank you for your feedback Chris and thanks for pinning. I greatly appreciate it:)
I whipped and whipped the icing but it just wouldn’t come together. What did i do wrong?
Try adding more powdered sugar to thicken the icing and it should come together, start with 1/2 cup to 1 cup.
I used 1/4 cup butter, 1/4 cup mango puree and i have got about 2&1/2 cups of icing sugar in it so far (because I wanted to half the icing recipe). It looks watery with speckles of icing sugar. …..keep adding sugar?
Also, my mango didn’t blend smooth. ….I wonder if that is where I went wrong….
Yes, if your mango didn’t purée smooth to an applesauce consistency that could cause the icing to be thin. Also try sifting you powdered sugar in, so you don’t get clumps. I hope it all works out for you, let me know:)
Love mangoes and the buttercream on that cupcake looks mouthwatering delicious. Pinned
Thanks Chichi, hugs:)
Summer is almost over here and that is not going to stop me from making these. They sound so yummy!! Will substitute vanilla for coconut though since dear hubby and I both dislike coconut. Thank you for sharing! Look forward to making these and of course tasting them. 🙂
You’re welcome and I hope you enjoy them as much as I do. Thanks for stopping by and I appreciate your comment:)
Hi, May I Know the heating temperature is using fahrenheit or celcius?
Hi Renee, my baking temperatures are in Fahrenheit, thank you for your question, I will specify from now on.
How much butter?
1/2 cup melted butter for the cupcakes and 1/2 cup softened butter for the buttercream, enjoy and thanks for shopping by:)
So glad I found your blog through Pinterest. I love these cupcakes and will definitely be making them sometime soon. I’m glad they have mango since it’s one of my favorite fruits but I’ve not used it very often in recipes. BTW, I think your grandma is onto something – sounds good to me!
Wonderful! Let me know what you think when you make them and email me a picture if you can. And yes, my grandma is a genius, I actually pan-fried the next batch and they were pretty darn delicious. Thank you for stopping by:)
These cupcakes look gorgeous, love the bright colours! Pinned 🙂
Thanks, see you again!
This looks so delicious! I’ve never baked with mango before and after seeing this recipe, I think I need to fix that 🙂
Thanks, mangos are so delicious in every way, you can’t go wrong with it:)
I totally agree! I think that’s why they never actually make it to the bowl…I end up eating them raw most of the time lol
The hue of the buttercream is so gorgeous! I can almost smell and taste them from my screen. 🙂
I know, I actually got excited over buttercream, thanks for stopping by:)
These look so cute and delish! What a wonderful way to celebrate summer in style! BTW: I love your blog…Follow!!
Thanks Kloe for stopping by and introducing yourself and your blog, like your molasses cookie recipe, can’t wait to make it! Follow back:)
Firstly, mango vanilla cupcakes will be very popular in my house! Might have to use frozen mango because we are entering winter here 🙂
Secondly, I love using yoghurt in baking it leaves cakes so moist and I can only imagine the awesome flavour the coconut yoghurt imparts to the batter.
Lastly, I think your Grandma might be a genius. Yummy panfried cupcakes, I think you’d need some ice cream to finish them off though 😉
I was thinking the exact same thing, pan fried cupcakes with ice cream and maybe some fresh berries. I’m going to give it a try next time I make cupcakes. Will let you know. Thanks for visiting Amy:)
These look beautiful and tasty! I love your pictures! They are so colorful! Love it!
Blessings,
Morgan
Thanks for the compliment Morgan and nice chatting with you too:)
Beautiful!!! Love the yellow color:)
Thank you, so do I, nice chatting with you:)
OMG these look and sound amazing. My mouth is watering just looking at the photos! Thanks for bringing these to FF! 🙂
You’re welcome and nice meeting you:)
I’ve never heard of pan fried cupcakes, but now I’m curious!! Awesome cupcakes, I’ll have some with the mango buttercream icing, thanks! 😀
I am going to pan fry my cupcakes the next time I make them and I will let you know. Thanks for the chat:)
Lily, welcome to Fiesta Friday! And haven’t you arrived in style with these beauties…I love the combination of mango and coconut. Your grandmother could be onto something fairly genius there with the crispy fried cakes – have you ever tried it? Thanks to Jhuls (aka Bubbles) for inviting you and I hope to see you here regularly! Happy 1st Fiesta Friday!
Thanks for the welcome Selma, I think pan fried cupcakes is going to have to be a post….stay tuned:)
These cupcakes are so pretty. And I love anything tropical and mango. Thanks for bringing them to Fiesta Friday! =)
You’re welcome and nice chatting with you:)
It’s nice to meet you, Lily! =)
Your cupcakes are simply gorgeous!! But wait a minute…is that Jhuls? I just saw her slipping a few in her purse! Oh that naughty Jhuls….:/
You’re funny lol, thanks for chatting and for the compliment:)
Welcome to Fiesta Friday, Lily! You’re a pro at baking, aren’t you? These look like the ones sold in bakeries. Except of course you won’t find mango cupcakes. You’ll have to make them yourself. So, thank you for the recipe. I happen to love mangoes. 🙂
Hey Angie, thank you for the compliment, it means a lot coming from you and thanks again for hosting, such a wonderful idea and great way to end a week!
I’ve never considered putting mango puree in my buttercream- genius!! yummy 🙂 Super pretty too!
It is sweet mango heaven, thanks for stopping by:)
I love mango anything! These sound so good!! 🙂 thanks! Love your blog!
These look amazing and delicious!
Oh my… they look way to pretty to eat! Silly me! I’m ready to gobble them down. 😉 So summery… Happy Fiesta Friday!
Thanks, I find when your food looks pretty, it is more delicious to eat, happy FF to you too!
So pretty and they sound just delish!
Thanks for the compliment Arlene, see you again:)
These are soooo beautiful!
Yes to mangoes in cupcakes! I bet they were really good 🙂
Its a perfect summer dessert. Thanks for stopping by:)
These look amazing!! Welcome to Fiesta Friday 🙂
Thanks, I enjoy your brownie recipes:)
I love these flavors, Lily! I can’t wait to get my hands on some mangos this summer! Such pretty, bright presentation, too. That’s funny your grandma fries cupcakes in butter, lol. Why not, right? Have a great weekend!
Thanks Ngan, my grandma ate 4 pan fried cupcakes in 2 days, must be that good, I am going to give it a try next time I make these, it could be the next big thing:)
So glad you are joining us for Fiesta Friday Lily! If you hadn’t we would have sooo missed out on these cupcakes! Mango buttercream! How creative!
wow this is art in itself let alone food, the colours oh my totally stunning! You deserve two glasses of bubbly, i hope your enjoying the party and thank you for sharing. Justine, co host with mr Fritz xxx
Thanks Justine, I’m mingling with a glass in hand lol. Thanks for chatting:)
Oh a pleasure I hope your glass is getting replenished a plenty xx
Did I just die?? These tropical treats of yours are perfect for summer and perfect for FF18. I am glad that you are here today, Lily! And thank you for the mention. Don’t be shy to mingle with others, okay? 😀
Btw, if I am not mistaken, did you link up your blog address (littlesweetbaker.com) instead of the direct link to the cupcakes post? Anyway, I think Angie wouldn’t mind for now. 🙂
You’re funny Jhuls and I did link to my homepage instead of this post, opps rookie mistake. I’ll know for next week. Thanks for the visit!
It’s my pleasure, Lily! I am glad you are loving FF. 🙂
Lily, these cupcakes look amazing! They really do look like summer 🙂 I wish I could actually taste one. But I’ll just have to taste them virtually 😉 Love the pictures! p.s. I don’t think I’ve ever heard of pan frying cupcakes either. Although I can imagine my grandmother doing so..
Happy Fiesta Friday! xx
Thanks Sarah for the compliment and Happy FF to you too:)
Mango icing looks delicious.. Recent days I couldn’t think anything other tan mangoes.. Ur cup cake tempt me to prepare
Mangos are one of my favorite fruits. Thanks for visiting!