I call these the *best* chocolate cupcakes because so far they are my favourite. I am seeking the ultimate chocolate cupcake recipe, a cupcake moist, a little dense yet fluffy and super chocolatey as well! So we’ll call these the *best so far*! They are also *easy* because they only use ONE bowl! You can top these cupcakes with any kind of topping – chocolate buttercream, plain vanilla, cream cheese frosting, or, my favourite, a thick chocolate ganache… mmmm….

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder*
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 large eggs
• 3/4 cup buttermilk
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup warm water

Frosting ingredients:

• 1 pound good-quality bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
• 2 1/3 cups heavy cream
• 1/4 cup corn syrup

*I still haven’t found ‘gourmet’ cocoa powder. I was using Hershey’s, now I’m using Fry’s, they are the only ones sold at my grocery store. I will one day find proper cocoa powder as apparently you make better cupcakes this way *

Method

The cupcakes

1 Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line muffin tin with paper liners.

2 Whisk together flour, cocoa, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.

3 With mixer on low speed, add eggs, buttermilk, oil, extract, and the water; beat until smooth and combined.

4 Spoon the batter into liners (ice cream scoops are good for this!) about two-thirds full.

5 Bake approximately 20 minutes (until tester comes out clean).

6 Remove from oven, allow to sit in muffin tin on wire rack for 10 minutes, then remove and place on wire rack until completely cool.

The Frosting

1 Place chocolate in a large heat-proof bowl. Meanwhile, bring cream and corn syrup just to a simmer over medium-high heat; pour mixture over chocolate. Let stand, without stirring, until chocolate begins to melt.

2 Beginning near centre and working outward, stir melted chocolate into cream, until mixture is combined and smooth (do not overstir).

3 Put bowl in refrigerator, and stir it every 5 minutes, until frosting starts to hold its shape and is slightly lighter in colour. You want to ganache to be thick enough to do what you like with it, use immediately as the frosting will continue to harden and get thicker after you stop stirring.

I hope you enjoy this recipe, it makes about 18 cupcakes.

Just a note, you have to know your oven to make good cupcakes. I suggest keeping a watchful eye and watching the tester to see if the cupcakes are ready or not. My oven is crap right now, and it burns everything. I bake everything at 25 degrees less and for less time, I make these cupcakes at 325 F for 16 minutes.

*Recipe from Martha Stewart’s Cupcakes*

In my attempts to become a little more domesticated, I’ve taken up a new hobby – cooking and baking. AAHH! No, don’t run. Seriously, it’s good. That picture up there? Taken by MOI! That’s my cupcake, and I’m not a number one photographer or baker – but it’s the best picture of showing off the marble effect in the cupcake. And it’s scumptious. And yes, that is a cupcake carrier shown above. Because I wanted it. Anyway, on to the recipe!

Ingredients

• 1 3/4  cups cake flour (not self-rising), sifted *
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspon salt
• 1/3 cup milk, room temperature
• 1/3 cup heavy (whipping) cream, room temperature
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 3 large eggs (room temperature)
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder **
• 1/4 cup boiling water

* I used normal all-purpose flour, just use 2 tablespoons less and sifted it thoroughly ** I still don’t know what Dutch-process cocoa powder is. I used Hershey’s.

Frosting ingredients:

• 4 oz (125 ml) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup whole milk
• 1/2 cup heavy (whipping) cream

Method

The Cupcakes

1 Preheat oven to 350 F. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Sift together cake flour, baking powder, and salt. In seperate bowl, combine milk and cream.

2 With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, cream butter and granulated sugar until pale and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Beat in vanilla. Add flour mixture in three batches, alternating with two additions of milk mixture, and beating until combined.

3 To make chocolate batter, measure out 1 cup of batter, and transfer to another bowl. combine cocoa and the boiling water in a seperate bowl. Stir into reserved 1 cup batter.

4 Fill prepared cups with alternating spoonfuls of vanilla and chocolate batter, filling each three-quarters full. Run the tip of a paring knife or wooden skewer through batter in a figure-eight motion to make swirls. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until tops are golden and a cake tester inserted in ceners comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Tranfer tins to wire racks to cool completely before removing cupcakes.

The Frosting

1 Put the chocolate in a heatproof bowl. In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, bring the milk just to a boil. Remove from the heat and immediately pour over the chocolate. Stir with a wire whisk until the chocolate melts and the mixture is smooth.

2 In a clean bowl, using a balloon whisk (or electric hand mixer), whip the cream just until soft peaks form.

3 With a rubber spatula, gently fold the cream into the chocolate just until the two mixtures are incorporated. Do not overfold, or the filling with be gritty.

4 Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm and spreadable, about 1 hour, or for up to 3 days.

Please keep in mind these need to be refrigerated, as the frosting is mousse and can melt!

The cupcake recipe is from Martha Stewart’s Cupcakes and the Ganache Mousse recipe is from Williams-Sonoma Essentials of Baking .

I adore omelettes. I do. I could eat them at any time of day or night! Trying to eat healthy takes a lot of practice for some - and especially for me. So I try to do it by incorporating things I love and making them healthy. I take my omelettes with egg whites only, no meat, and rarely cheese. But there are so many different ways to make one, it's always like a new meal everytime. I remember on vacation I finally got a "real" (according to J) omelette, with whole eggs, cheddar cheese, ham, bacon, and onion. I hate to admit it was heaven. But I'm on a diet. So here is my favourite omelette recipe. Read the rest of this entry »

Are you on a huge chocolate fix? I am, I think it’s because I decided to start a diet today, the day before J’s mom’s birthday, the day before a long weekend of fun which includes a girls night and a day at an amusement park. I’m setting myself up for failure. But one little truffle a day chases all the other cravings away! These are easy to make and so decadent, one is usually enough!

Ingredients

• 14 oz and 6 oz dark chocolate
• 1 ½ cups cocoa powder
• 1 cup heavy cream or crème fraîche
• 3 tablespoons butter (optional)

Method

1 Break 14 oz of the chocolate into pieces and put it in a bowl.

2 Bring the heavy cream to the boil and pour it over the chocolate pieces. Stir until the chocolate has all melted. Add some butter if you’d like to, it makes it creamier.

3 Thicken this mixture by refrigerating it or whisking it. It needs to be thick enough to form the truffle balls easily.

4 Use two spoons to make the balls and put them on parchment paper.

5 Melt the remaining 6oz chocolate.

6 Dip each truffle ball in the melted chocolate, and then roll it in the cocoa powder.

7 Let them set on parchment paper or an aluminum foil covered baking tray. If your kitchen is warm, let the truffles set in the refrigerator.

If you’re like me, you love to indulge in a cappucino with extra whip cream – as a treat of course! I found this delicious cupcake recipe and needed to share it with you!

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup self-raising flour
• 1/2 cup soft, unsalted butter
• 7 tablespoon sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 heaped tablespoon instant espresso
• 2-3 tablespoons milk

Frosting ingredients:

• 5.25 oz white chocolate
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon sour cream
• 1 and 2/3 cup sifted confectioners sugar (icing sugar)
• a little cocoa or cinnamon powder for dusting

Method

The cupcakes

1 Preheat the oven to 400°F.

2 In a food processor add all the cupcake ingredients except the milk, and pulse to combine.

3 Add the milk and pulse again until the ingredients are well combined.

4 Place 12 cupcake liners into a muffin pan.

5 Spoon the batter into the liners.

6 Bake around 20 minutes (until slight golden brown colour).

7 Let sit for 5 minutes and then place the cupcakes onto a wire rack to cool down completely.

The Frosting

1 Melt the white chocolate and buter in the microwave.

2 After it has cooled a tad, add the sour cream and stir.

3 Gradually add the sifted confectioners sugar until it is a good consistency (malleable, but not wet).

4 Spread the icing on top of the cupcakes and then dust some cocoa powder or cinnamon on top.

From the book `How to be a Domestic Goddess: Baking an the Art of Comfort Cooking`by Nigella Lawson.