vanilla cupcakes with honey-vanillabean buttercream

hello everybody! i hope everyone is enjoying their three day weekend, and for anyone who wasn't off today, sorry :) anyways... here's a delicious little cupcake that i had to share...

for a while i have been looking around for a new go to vanilla cake recipe... don't get me wrong, i love the one i've been using, but i'm looking for something that takes a little less time to prep...

i decided to try a brilliant cake recipe but in cupcake form... i've made this cake before, and it is just heavenly... i'm talking about dorie greenspan's "perfect party cake"... this cake is just down right awesome... it bakes up perfect every time, and holds it own against any variety of frosting you throw at it...

dorie greenspan'sn perfect party cake:
ingredients:
2 1/4 cups cake flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups whole milk or buttermilk
4 large egg whites
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 teaspoon pure lemon extract

directions:
1. preheat the oven to 350, and prep cupcake pans with liners
2. sift together the flour, baking powder and salt
3. whisk together the milk and egg whites in a medium bowl
4. put the sugar and lemon zest in a mixer bowl or another large bowl and rub them together with your fingers until the sugar is moist and fragrant
5. add the butter and, working with the paddle or whisk attachment, beat at medium speed for a full 3 minutes, until the butter and sugar are very light... beat in the extract, then add one-third of the flour mixture, still beating on medium speed
6. beat in half of the milk-egg mixture, then beat in half of the remaining dry ingredients until incorporated, add the rest of the milk and eggs, beating until the batter is homogeneous, then add the last of the dry ingredients
7. finally, give the batter a good 2-minute beating to ensure that it is thoroughly mixed and well aerated, then divide the batter evenly into cupcake tins
8. bake for about 20 minutes, or until the cupcakes are well risen and springy to the tough – a toothpick inserted into the centers should come out clean, transfer to cooling racks and cool for about 5 minutes, then remove from tins

i decided to top these little beauties with a delicious, yet a little tedious buttercream that i have been aching to try... i'm talking about baked's honey-vanilla buttercream... it takes a while to make, but i was sooooo pleased with the outcome... just plain delicious... smooth and buttery that leaves just a slight honey finish on your tongue...

honey vanillabean buttercream
ingredients:
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups whole milk
1/3 cup heavy cream
24 Tbsp. (3 sticks) unsalted butter , softened
3 Tbsp. honey
1 tsp. vanilla extract (i used vanilla bean paste

directions:
1. in a heavy, medium saucepan, whisk sugar and flour until well blended
2. add milk and cream and whisk until smooth
3. set pan over medium heat and cook, stirring constantly with a heatproof rubber spatula, until mixture thickens and comes to a boil, about 12 minutes
4. reduce heat to low and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes, then pour into a bowl and let cool completely, about 1 hour
5. in a stand mixer with paddle attachment, beat butter on medium speed until fluffy
6. gradually beat in cream-flour mixture, about 1/3 cup at a time, beating until blended with butter
7. beat on medium-high speed until fluffy and smooth, about 1 minute, beat in honey and vanilla
8. refrigerate until buttercream holds its shape and is thick enough to spread, about 20 minutes
9. pipe your cupcakes to your hearts desire... then devour each tasty crumb :)

happy cupcakin' everybody!