Banana Split Cupcakes

My mother is obsessed with all things banana, so when I saw these on Pinterest, I knew I had to make them for her when she came for a visit. They were DELISH. So delicious that my coworkers gobbled them out without bitching. (They always eat every last cupcake I bring in, but there's usually much teeth gnashing about diets.)

This is how they come out, as done by a non-professional, impatient baker. My cupcakes, while delicious, usually look like they were decorated by a drunk three year old. These look like at least they were done by a drunk five year old.

Cupcakes
Preheat oven to 325F (I use dark cupcake pans, go up to 350F if you're not)

1.5 c self-rising flour
1.5 c all purpose flour
2 sticks of UNSALTED butter, room temperature
4 large eggs, room temperature
2 c sugar
1 c milk
1 c of mashed banana
1 t of vanilla extract

1. Combine both flours in a bowl and whisk to combine.
2. In a separate bowl, cream the butter on medium  speed. Add the sugar gradually until it is fluffy. Add each egg one at a time, beating well in between. This is the bowl you will add everything to in the next step.
3. In another bowl add milk, mashed banana and vanilla extract and whisk to combine.
4. Alternate adding the dry ingredients and the milk/bananaa mixture to the egg mixture. Mix well in between each addition but do not overbeat.
5. Fill cupcake liners 3/4 full and bake for 15-25 minutes. It's better to test early than overbake.
6. Cool completely before frosting

Banana Cream Custard Filling
1.5 bananas
1 c milk
1 c heavy cream
1/4 c corn starch
1/2 c + 2 T sugar
1 T vanilla
1/4 t salt

1. Combine all ingredients together in a blender or food processor.
2. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly. Cook until it bubbles and thickens, approximately 7 minutes.
3. Let cool

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
5 large egg whites
1.5 c sugar
4 sticks of UNSALTED butter, diced, room tempature
1/4 t salt
1.5 t vanilla extract

1. Combine egg whites and sugar in a bowl placed over simmering water- basically, a double boiler.
2. Whisk constantly until you reach 150F.
3. Use the whisk attachement of a stand mixer to beat the mixture  on medium speed until it doubles in volume.
4. Add butter one piece at a time, mixing well after each addition.
5. Add salt and vanilla and mix until it comes together.

Chocolate Dipping Sauce
*Make this last, since the sauce needs to be warm to dip the cupcakes in.

2/3 c dark chocolate (such as a bar of Lindt dark chocolate)
2 T heavy cream
4 T powdered sugar
5-8 T water, WARM

1. Place chocolate and heavy cream in a bowl over simmering water (the double boiler). Let sit for 2-3 minutes without touching it.
2. Slowly combine mixture and add powder sugar gradually.
3. Add water one tablespoon at a time until desired consistency is reached.

Cupcakes Assemble!
1. Dig out a well in each cupcake. They make special tools for this, but a knife works just as well. But if you use a cupcake corer, you'll have a nice collection of cupcake balls, like Dunkin Donuts munchkins.
2. Fill with banana custard
3. Frost each cupcake with the vanilla buttercream frosting in a thin layer. You can use a large round tip on a pastry bag, or Walmart has available a frosting squeegee. It comes with several different tips and you squeeze the accordion bottle to dispense the frosting. I didn't have it when I made these, and it makes frosting so much easier.
4. Freeze the cupcakes for about 20 minutes to prevent the buttercream from melting.
5. Dip each cupcake in the warm chocolate sauce then rim with the nonpareils (Place the nonpareils on a saucer and roll on the outside of the cupcake on it.)
6. Freeze cupcakes one more time to allow chocolate to set, about 5 minutes.
7. Pipe the remaining buttercream frosting on top. You can top with a maraschino cherry to make it look like a real sundae, but I hate the taste and think they infect the cupcakes so I left them off.

Here's the corer and froster:

Here's where the magic happens