Tres Leches Cupcakes!!!

Monday was Ben's birthday and to celebrate I made him his current favorite dessert, tres leches!  Instead of the standard cake, however, I decided to go with cupcakes (easier to bring to work the next day!!)  After lots of looking, I decided to go with a recipe by one of my favorite chefs and TV personalities - Alton Brown (he has a great, cheesy show called "Good Eats," that combines science, anthropology and food...it appeals to many sides of my personality!)  The one hard part about this recipe is that he measures things by weight instead of by volume.  With a little figuring, though, we were very happy with the outcome!!  Here is my version of this tasty recipe - yum!!!


You will need:
(For the cupcakes) 
- Vegetable oil 
- 3/4 cup cake flour, plus extra for pan 
- 1 teaspoon baking powder 
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 
- 1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature 
- 1 cup sugar 
- 5 whole eggs 
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract 

(For the glaze)
- 1 (12-ounce) can evaporated milk 
- 1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk 
- 1 cup half-and-half 

(For the topping)
- 2 cups heavy cream 
- 1 cup sugar 
- 1 teaspoon (and a touch more) vanilla extract


Stats:
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 25 minutes
Servings: 16 to 20 cupcakes


What to do: 
(For the cupcakes)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Line some cupcake pans or, if you're brave, you can also try to make mini-bunt-cakes (in which case you will need to lightly butter the pan and dust with flour)!

Whisk together the cake flour, baking powder and salt in a medium mixing bowl and set aside.  Place the butter into the bowl of a stand mixer. Using the paddle attachment, beat on medium speed until fluffy, approximately 1 minute. Decrease the speed to low and with the mixer still running, gradually add the sugar over 1 minute. Stop to scrape down the sides of the bowl, if necessary. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, and mix to thoroughly combine. Add the vanilla extract and mix to combine. Add the flour mixture to the batter in 3 batches and mix just until combined. 

Transfer the batter to the prepared cups and divide evenly - fill about 2/3rds full.  Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until the cake is lightly golden.

Remove the cake pan to a cooling rack and allow to cool for 30 minutes. Poke the top of the cupcakes all over with a skewer or fork. 

(For the glaze:)  
Whisk together the evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk and the half-and-half in a 1-quart measuring cup. Once combined, pour the glaze over the cupcakes.  You will notice that it pools on the top, give them a bit of time to let the glaze seep in and then pour on some more.  Refrigerate the cupcakes overnight.

(Topping:)  
Place the heavy cream, sugar and vanilla into the bowl of a stand mixer. Using the whisk attachment, whisk together on low until stiff peaks are formed. Change to medium speed and whisk until thick. Top the cupcakes and allow to chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve.