Unintentionally, these cupcakes ended up looking like cupcakes you’d find at a wedding. I think it may have been the white icing and pearl sprinkles, but either way I thought they turned out simple and almost elegant. I decided sort of last minute that I was going to take cupcakes in to the hospital the next day and didn’t want to make a run to kroger so I had to make do with the ingredients I had on hand. Of course I had all the ingredients for my go-to chocolate cupcakes and thought topping them with a vanilla buttercream would be a nice combo, and one I hadn’t blogged about before. I used a Wilton 2D tip to pipe the frosting and was happy with the ribbony effect it gave…slightly different from your standard swirl. I didn’t bring any cupcakes back home with me so I guess they were a hit. Sometimes it’s the simple flavors that everyone likes best. Enjoy!
Chocolate Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream
for the cupcakes:
3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped fine
1/3 cup Dutch-processed cocoa
¾ cup hot coffee
¾ cup bread flour
¾ cup granulated sugar
½ tsp salt
½ tsp baking soda
6 tbsp vegetable oil
2 large eggs
2 tsp white vinegar
1 tsp vanilla extract
Method
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Line muffin tins with paper liners (18-20).
3. Place chocolate and cocoa in medium bowl. Pour hot coffee over mixture and whisk until smooth. Cool slightly, about 5 minutes in refrigerator. Whisk flour, sugar, salt, and baking soda together in medium bowl; set aside. Whisk oil, eggs, vinegar, and vanilla into cooled chocolate-cocoa mixture until smooth. Add flour mixture and whisk until smooth.
4. Divide batter evenly among muffin pan cups.
5. Bake for 13-17 minutes, or until edges are springy to touch and center is almost set.
6. Cool cupcakes thoroughly on wire rack.
for the vanilla buttercream:
2 sticks softened butter
4 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
3-4 tbsp heavy cream
Beat softened butter until light and fluffy. Add powdered sugar and beat until fully incorporated. Beat in vanilla extract and cream (one tablespoon at a time) until you reach your desired consistency.
*cupcakes adapted from Cook’s Illustrated
