MS's Tiramisu Cupcakes

Two of my favorite things: tirmasu and cupcakes. What could be better than a tiramisu cupcake? I will be honest and say that even though these cupcakes were delicious, I'd like to keep these two entities separate. My husband described it as being similar to the invention of cheeseburger pizza. Cheeseburgers are great and so is pizza. BUT if you put it together,while not BAD, it does not meet expectations. I'd also like to add that I think tiramisu really means "huge mess in the kitchen". All in all, the cupcakes were a tasty treat but it wasn't like eating real tiramisu. The only advice I can give is make sure you use plenty of the marsala syrup and let it aborb for more than an hour.  No matter how tempting the cupcakes look, they must sit and soak.  The frosting is heavenly and the cupcakes are a wicked (in a good sense) vanilla flavor.  I guess they 2 vanilla beans I purchased for 14.99 were doing their job. So here's the recipe, have fun and enjoy!
Martha Stewart's Tiramisu Cupcakes
1 1/4 cups cake flour (not self-rising), sifted

3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
1/4 cup milk
1 vanilla bean, halved lengthwise, seeds scraped and reserved
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature, cut into pieces
3 large whole eggs plus 3 egg yolks, room temperature
1 cup sugar
Coffee-Marsala Syrup (recipe to follow)
Mascarpone Frosting (recipe to follow)
Unsweetened cocoa powder, for dusting

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Sift together cake flour, baking powder, and salt. Heat milk and vanilla-bean pod and seeds in a small saucepan over medium heat just until bubbles appear around the edge. Remove from heat. Whisk in butter until melted, and let stand 15 minutes. Strain milk mixture through a fine sieve into a bowl, and discard vanilla-bean pod. With an electric mixer on medium speed, whisk together whole eggs, yolks, and sugar. Set mixing bowl over a pan of simmering water, and whisk by hand until sugar is dissolved and mixture is warm, about 6 minutes. Remove bowl from heat. With an electric mixer on high speed, whisk until mixture is fluffy, pale yellow, and thick enough to hold a ribbon on the surface for several seconds when whisk is lifted. Gently but thoroughly fold flour mixture into the egg mixture in three batches; stir 1/2 cup batter into the strained milk mixture to thicken, then fold milk mixture into the remaining batter until just combined. Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each three-quarters full. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until centers are completely set and edges are light golden brown, about 20 minutes. Transfer tins to wire racks to cool completely before removing cupcakes. To finish, brush tops of cupcakes evenly with coffee-marsala syrup; repeat until all syrup has been used. Allow cupcakes to absorb liquid 30 minutes. Dollop frosting onto cupcakes; refrigerate up to overnight in airtight containers. Dust generously with cocoa powder just before serving.
Martha Stewart's Tiramisu Cupcakes

From Martha Stewart Cupcakes, May 2009
Ingredients
Marscapone Frosting (Makes about 2 cups)
1 cup heavy cream
8 ounces mascarpone cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar, sifted
With an electric mixer on medium speed, whisk heavy cream until stiff peaks form (be careful not to overbeat, or cream will be grainy). In another bowl, whisk together mascarpone and confectioners' sugar until smooth. Gently fold whipped cream into mascarpone mixture until completely incorporated. Use immediately.
From Martha Stewart Cupcakes, May 2009

Marsala Syrup
Ingredients (Makes enough for 18 cupcakes)
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon freshly brewed very strong coffee (or espresso)
1 ounce marsala
1/4 cup sugar
Directions
Stir together coffee, marsala, and sugar until sugar is dissolved. Let cool.

From Martha Stewart Cupcakes, May 2009