White Velvet Vanilla Bean Cupcakes for a Green Bay Packers Party!

This is going to be a short post... I just wanted to quickly share with you the biggest, most elaborate display I have made for an order!  My husband's boss ordered cupcakes from me for their daughters 7th birthday party and they are HUGE Green Bay Packers fans and wanted everything to be Packers themed!

Here's what I came up with...

A football field made from 10x14 cake boards covered in astroturf paper and custom endzones and 50 yard line logo
Custom handmade toppers/picks
Green and gold foil liners
Yard line cupcakes topped with a football pick
Green and yellow swirled cupcakes
Green and yellow sugar crystals lined cupcakes with hand piped birthday message

The recipe I've used for these cupcakes I've made before... but this time, I spiced things up a bit with the milk and vanilla.  I really think that steeping the milk in the vanilla bean and adding it warm to the batter and buttercream make such a HUGE difference in the outcome!!!  So here's the updated recipe for you!

JavaCupcake's White Velvet Vanilla Bean Cupcakes with Vanilla Bean Buttercream
Makes approx. 24 cupcakes

1 cup skim milk
¼ cup sour cream
½ teaspoon pure vanilla
1 vanilla bean

12 tablespoon (1 ½ sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature
1½ cups sugar
4 liquid oz of egg whites (approx 3 jumbo or 4 large egg whites)

3 cups sifted cake flour
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt

¼ cup skim milk

1. Preheat oven to 375F and line cupcake pans with liners.
2. Prep vanilla bean by scoring the bean down one side and scraping the inside of the bean out. In a small sauce pan, add 1 cup milk, sour cream, vanilla, vanilla bean and inside scrapings.  Cook on medium high heat until the milk starts to steam and bubbles begin to form around the outer edge of the milk, whisking occasionally.  Remove from heat immediately and let cool for 5-10 minutes.  You want warm but not scalding hot milk.  Remove the vanilla bean shell before adding to the batter.
3. In a large bowl, combine cake flour, baking powder and salt and mix together to blend.  Set aside.
4. In the bowl of an electric mixer with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
5. Add the eggs and mix on high just until they start to whip up like frosting.  You want them to be light, but not too whipped.
6. In thirds, slowly add the flour mixture.  In between each addition, slowly add half the milk/vanilla mixture.  Begin and end with the flour. Make sure to scrape the sides of the bowl and thoroughly incorporate (without over mixing) the batter with each addition.
7. By hand, fold in remaining ¼ cup milk.
8. Fill each cupcake liner using an ice cream scoop with batter, about ⅔ full.
9. Bake 15-18 minutes.  After 10 minutes of baking, rotate pan 180 degrees to ensure even baking.
10. Let the cupcakes cool in the pan for 5-10 minutes before removing to a wire wrack to cool completely.

JavaCupcake's Vanilla Bean Buttercream

1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2 lbs (approx 6 cups) sifted powdered sugar
½ cup milk
1 vanilla bean
½ teaspoon pure vanilla

1. Using the same procedure in the batter recipe above, prepare the milk and the vanilla.  (Don't add sour cream to this mixture and use only ½ cup milk.)  Set milk aside to cool.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer with the paddle attachment, cream the butter until soft and fluffy. About 3 minutes.
3. One cup at a time, add the sifted powdered sugar, scraping the sides of the bowl after each addition.
4. After the 2nd cup, add a few table spoons of milk.  Continue adding a little more milk after each addition of sugar until all the sugar and milk are in the butter.
5. Mix on high for 2 minutes.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix for 2 more minutes on high.
6. If your buttercream is too soft, put it in the freezer for 5-7 minutes before piping onto your cupcakes.