GATEAU JOIE: Cereal Milk Cupcakes....Oh yes I did!

This post is a tribute to my BFF and her love of food. It's this love for yummy things that brought us together 12+ years ago and since then our friendship has grown so much that I can't really explain with words. All I can say is that I love her to death. I am also giving all credit for this post to her because she, in her genius-ness, gave me the idea to come up with a CEREAL MILK flavored cupcake.
My BFF currently resides in California but before that she lived in New York, before that, went to school at Princeton, and in the midst of living in all these places, she has also been to Africa, Thailand, and a bunch of other places, too many to list. Needless to say, she is quite the traveler. She has probably eaten in more restaurants and tried more kinds of ethnically diverse foods than a normal person ever could or would in a lifetime. If you are a foodie, you probably know the cereal milk sensation started from a restaurant in New York called Momofoku. I've never been there myself, I've never even tried their cereal milk ice cream or cookies but I appreciate their creativity. I mean, seriously, Cereal milk! That unapologetically milky-sweet, creamy goodness left over at the bottom of the cereal bowl- turned into a flavor for a dessert! GENIUS. I must give due credit to Mr. Jenk at Cafe Fernando for it is on his food blog that I found his genius (I know, I'm using this word a lot today) recipe for making cereal milk. I tweaked it just a little to yield more. Yes, making it was a process and I recommend you do the milk thing a head of time but TRUST ME, it is well worth the labor! The end product was so yummy, it will brought tears to my eyes when I bit into it!

Cereal Milk

Good old fashion corn flakes

2 cups cornflakes
1/4 cup of nonfat dry milk
4 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 stick of unsalted butter melted
3 cups of whole or 2% milk

This stuff does wonders in baking!

1. preheat 275 degrees
2. crush flakes then add melted butter, mix well.
3. combine sugar, powder milk, and salt first then add to flakes
4.spread out evenly on 2 baking sheets on parchment or foil and bake about 35min.
5. Reserve about 1/4 cup for garnish later. Steep in 3 cups of milk for about 2 hours then strain. Double strain if you want a cleaner milk but this doesnt really matter. *warning: do not drink cereal milk because you may not have enough for the recipe!
6. Refridg. covered if not using right away.

What the cereal mixture looks like after it is baked. I reserve some for garnishing. Very crunchy!

After you steep in milk and drain. I double strained mine....

...to get this beauty. Took all the strength in me not to gulp this whole thing down!

Cereal Milk Cupcake:
1 3/4 cup of flour
2 tsps Baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 cup cereal milk
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup of veg. oil OR melted unsalted butter
1 cup sugar

*preheat 350 degrees
1. Sift all dry ingredients except sugar in a bowl and set aside
2. Combine eggs and sugar in mixer and beat until fluffy.
3. Add oil OR butter and mix well scraping down sides w/ spatula
4. Add flour mixture and cereal milk in 3 additions alternating starting and ending with flour with mixer on low.
5. Scrape down sides and mix on medium speed until just combined. Do not over mix!
6. Load into prepped liners and bake about 15 to 18 min. Check for doneness at 15min.
7. Cool completely before frosting.
8. Frost these babies up, eat and have a party in your mouth.

Cereal Milk Buttercream

4 egg whites
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
1 1/4 cup of sugar
2 to 2 1/2 sticks of unsalted butter at room temp.
1/4 cup of water
1/2 tsp vanilla
pinch of salt
1/4 cup of cereal milk

1. Combine sugar and water in a pan fitted with thermometer and bring to 248 degrees. Have heatproof measure nearby so you can transfer as soon as it hits 248 degrees.
2. Combine egg whites and cream of tartar in mixer and mix well.
3. Once sugar hits 248 degrees, transfer to measure (I just pour directly into the eggs but then again I've done this a gazillion times). Drizzle slowly into egg whites in a steady stream with mixer on low. Aim for side of the bowl.
4. Once sugar is all in, mix on high until temp of meringue is between 75 and 80 degrees.
5. Add butter 2 tbsp at a time and mix on high until buttercream consistency is achieved (should be pretty stiff). Add vanilla and cereal milk. You can add more to taste little by little until you are happy with the flavor. I find that between 1/4 cup and 1/2 cup is enough. Adding too much can ruin your buttercream so proceed with caution after 1/4 cup.
6. Garnish with reserved cornflakes or cereal of choice!