I distinctly remember the moment when I fell in love with Mawa Cupcakes. The year was 1998. I was sold by the spongy, cardamom flavored cupcake instantly. Ever since that day, I buy a packet of 6 muffins almost every time I go out to the market. But not until a few months back, I realized that maybe there’s Mawa / Khoya (also known as Khoa) in these Cupcakes!! (Mawa is the cheese obtained by reducing milk.)Of course, once I realized that, I wasted no time in getting together all simple ingredients needed for making this Indian cupcake. I’m not sure about elsewhere, but in India, Khoya / Mawa is easily available at the local diary or supermarkets. And if you cannot get your hands on this incredibly creamy cheese, then you can make it at home. (yep, you’ve got no excuse!) Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to make mava at home.
There is something about the ‘creaming sugar & adding flour’ routine that gives me immense pleasure. Cupcakes are far more cuter than a normal cake. Well, at least I think so.  Creaming the sugar with butter is the quintessential method for making cupcakes. This particular method yields soft, buttery and extremely delicious cupcakes.Mawa Cupcakes have taken over the title of the Best Cupcakes in the world.

MAWA CUPCAKES RECIPE | (Mava cupcakes) | Eggless Mava Cupcake
(Print this recipe)
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Bake Time: 30 – 35 minutes
Makes: 5 large or 8-10 small cupcakes.

Ingredients
All purpose flour – 1 cup
Mawa Cheese – 3 tbsp (buy or make at home)
Butter, at room temperature – 1/3 cup
Powdered Sugar – 3/4 cup
Milk Powder – 2 tbsp
Cornflour – 1 tbsp
Baking Powder – 3/4 tsp
Baking Soda – 3/4 tsp
Cardamom Powder – 1 tsp
Buttermilk – 1/3 cup or more (or beat yogurt along with some water to form a creamy liquid)
* 1 cup is = 200 ml. Take a normal 8 oz cup and measure everything with that.

Method
Preheat Oven to 150 C
1. Sift all purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, cardamom (elaichi) powder and cornflour together. Mix well. Set aside

2. In a mixing bowl, add the softened butter and powdered sugar.

3. Beat well with an electric mixer on a wooden spoon well until you get a creamy mixture. (buttercream)

4. Add milk powder to this mix and again beat well.

5. Add the Mawa / Khoya (cheese) to the bowl and mix well with the spoon.

6. Add half of the flour mixture and half of the buttermilk

7. Fold the flour into the mixture completely. (refer notes) Or mix well.
8. Repeat the same with other half of flour & buttermilk. You shouldn’t have a runny mixture. Its okay if it is a little thick.

9. Butter and line cupcake molds with liners / parchment paper.

10. Add the batter into the cupcakes until they are almost three quarters full.

11. Bake at 150 C for 30-35 minutes or until the cakes are done. (insert a toothpick into the center of any cupcake. if it comes out clean without wet batter, it is done!)

Notes
1. *Point number 7: Folding is the method of gently incorporating the flour along with some air into the mixture. With a wooden spoon, gently circle from beneath the batter. Keep doing it until flour is completely mixed in. (didn’t understand? Check out this video)
2. You could use the same batter to bake a cake instead of cupcakes.
3. Keep a watch out for the cakes after the 30th minute. Oven temperatures vary.
4. I made the mistake of filling the cupcake molds fully. Hence, I don’t think the cupcakes could rise a lot. Always fill upto half or three fourths only.
5. You don’t need to frost these cupcakes. They actually taste delicious without frosting.
6. You can keep them in the refrigerator for 2-3 days. They might harden a bit. But you could always pop them in the microwave for about 20 seconds to soften the cupcakes.

Verdict
Every bite of this cake was pure bliss. It took me back to my childhood! These are even spongier than my chocolate cupcakes. And I think I have the “creaming-butter” method to  thank for. And the khoya particles that didn’t exactly blend in to give a smooth batter mixed so beautifully with the batter while baking that all there was left of the Khoya / Mawa was its lingering creamy taste.

Linking to Bake fest by cooksjoy

I highly recommend these products -