Vanilla Cupcakes

1. Preheat oven to 350 and line 2 cupcake pans.
2. Mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. You can use a whisk, a hand mixer, or a whisk attachment of a standing mixer. Add the sugar. Mix on low until well combined.
3. Add in butter, a few cubes at a time, until the mixture is well blended and looks like sand.
4. Add in eggs one at a time.
5. Add buttermilk and vanilla and mix on medium-high (I started mixing by hand here but you can use a standard or electric mixer) for 2 minutes or until batter is smooth, scraping down the sides with a spatula as needed.
6. Fill cupcake liners about 2/3 full and bake for 15-18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
7. Set aside to cool.

Boston Cream

1. While the cupcakes cool, make the Boston cream. Put the egg yolks in a medium-sized bowl and gently beat them together. Set them aside for later.
2.  Add the sugar, cornstarch and milk to a large saucepan and mix until smooth.
3.  Cook, stirring constantly, over medium-high heat until it begins to thicken and bubble.
4. Reduce heat to medium and simmer for 2 minutes. Remove from heat.
5.  Add a little bit of milk mixture to the egg yolks and whisk together, then add egg mixture to milk mixture. This helps you to not cook the eggs with the hot liquid.
6.  Place the pan back on the heat and bring to a light boil. Allow to boil for 2 minutes, stirring continuously.
7.  Remove from heat and add butter and vanilla extract. Stir until smooth, then set aside to cool to room temperature.

Chocolate Ganache

1. While the cupcakes and cream are cooling, make the chocolate ganache. Put the chocolate chips and corn syrup in a large bowl.2.
2. Bring the heavy cream to a boil, then pour over the chocolate chips.
3. Allow to sit for 10 minutes, then whisk until smooth.
4. Once it has cooled enough to put into a piping bag, slowly pipe onto the top of cupcakes.