Time to Mallow Out, Cause We Got It!... Hot Chocolate

One of my Fall highlights is going to my parents house for our annual bonfire. I love the Fall, anyway, but nothing beats sitting around a big fire with the entire family, roasting hot dogs, marshmallows, and having some of mom's AMAZING chili. Last weekend the family was together and the announcement was made that the bonfire was on for this weekend immediately I started to brainstorm a cupcake recipe to premier at the bonfire. By the time that I decided on this cupcake, the bonfire was canceled. What a BUMMER! I am hoping that it will be rescheduled, because it's one of my favorite family get-togethers. The only good thing that came of this emotional roller-coaster is the creation of this recipe. I took my already delish chocolate cupcake recipe and shook it up a little bit, giving a delicious spin on one of Fall and Winters' favorite beverages : HOT CHOCOLATE

The results were yummy. I hope you enjoy as much as all of us did!!

Hot Chocolate Cupcakes

For the cupcakes:
1 2/3 c flour
1 1/2 c granulated sugar
3/4 c Unsweetened Cocoa (I used Hershey's Special Dark - for the first time EVER. Big win here)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/4 tsp baking soda
1 1/3 c vegetable oil
2 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 c buttermilk
1/2 c prepared hot chocolate (made with water) and slightly cooled

For the ganache:
4 oz semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 c heavy cream
2 Tbsp confectioners' sugar

For the frosting:
1/2 c unsalted butter, softened
1/2 c shortening
10 oz marshmallow fluff
1-2 tsp vanilla
3 Tbsp whipping cream
2-3 Tbsp water

For Garnish:
Jet Puffed Mallow Bits
Hot cocoa powder, sprinkled on top

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees, and line your muffin tins with baking cups.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, and soda.
In your mixer bowl, combine oil, eggs, and vanilla. Mix on low until combined. Once well mixed, add half of your dry ingredients to mixer bowl, beating on medium for about 30 seconds. Add buttermilk to mixer bowl, and beat until incorporated. Add the rest of your dry's, followed by the hot chocolate. Mix until well combined, about 1 minute.

Scoop batter into prepared cupcake pans, and bake for 20-25 minutes, until tops bounce back when touched. Let cupcakes cool in pans for 7 minutes, then allow to cool on racks the rest of the way.

Once cupcakes cool, make your ganache. Put all ganache ingredients in microwave safe bowl, and heat on high for 30 seconds, or until warm to touch (not blazing hot - W.A.R.M.) Remove from micro, then whisk chocolate, until it is smooth and lump-free. Place bowl in refrigeratore, for 20-25 minutes, or until cool to the touch. Not cold - C.O.O.L.
While this is cooling, core out your cupcakes, and munch on cupcake nubs while you wait on the ganache. Once ganache is cool, fill your cupcakes. I used a pastry bag with no tip. When you are about ready to cut the tip off the bag, make sure you are prepared, because ganache is still pretty thin. If you have extra ganache, like I did, save it, so you can drizzle your frosted cupcakes with it.

Once your cupcakes are filled, prepare frosting, while you allow ganache to set. Place butter, shortening, marshmallow fluff, and vanilla in mixer bowl. Beat at medium speed for about 2 minues, until thoroughly combined. Slowly add sugar, about 1/2 a cup at a time. Add water, as needed, to get to desired consistency. I ended up using about 2 1/2 Tbsp water. Once smooth, add your whipping cream, and increase speed to high, and whip frosting until light and cloud-like. Pipe onto your cooled, ganached cupcakes, then drizzle with extra ganache, if desired.

The Great Pumpkin

I LOVE Charlie Brown. Once upon a time, someone gave me the box set of the main 3 Charlie Brown Specials - The Christmas one, the Thanksgiving one, and the Great Pumpkin one. I watch them every year, and I don't get sick of them. I can't get over seeing Charlie Brown dressed up as a ghost, with 5,000 holes cut in his sheet, due to him having issues with the installation of the eye-holes. Linus' situation always makes me sad....it tears me up to see him so disappointed after missing the appearnace of the Great Pumpkin. "Maybe next year, Linus!"
Oh, and who can forget Snoop's costume - A WW1 flying ace! Classic!!!
I'd been hunting for a Pumpkin cupcake recipe for a little while, and came across this one on Sweetopia.net I had to double it, in order to get more than 12 cupcakes out of the deal, because they were SOOOO yum! These cupcakes were super moist, and very pumpkin-y. After just one bite, I promised myself that I'd have to bake more pumpkin-inspired things before the season was over. I always forget how much I love pumpkin until my first bite of pumpkin pie, or my mom's Pumpkin Bars (mmmm....) Looks like I'll be hitting up the store to stock up on some more pumpkin soon!!

Pumpkin Cupcakes with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting

For the cupcakes:

2 c flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
2 heaping tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
4 large eggs
1 15oz can pumpkin
1 c granulated sugar
1 c light brown sugar, packed
1 c vegetable oil

For the frosting:
1 8oz block cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 c unsalted butter, room temperature
2-3 Tbsp good quality maple syrup
5 c confectioners' sugar
1-2 Tbsp water

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees and line muffin pan with cupcake liners.
In a medium bowl, combine dry ingredients - flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger. Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the rest of your cupcake ingredients, and whisk together, to make sure all is thoroughly incorporated, and smooth. Pour dry ingredients into wet ingredients, and stir, with a spoon, until batter is blended well.

Scoop batter into cupcake liners, then bake for about 20-25 minutes, until centers bounce back, when touched. Allow to cool in pan for about 7 minutes, then cool completely on wire rack.

For frosting, cream together butter, cream cheese, and 2 Tbsp syrup. Add half of your confectioners' sugar. Mix to combine, then add remainder of sugar. Add water, as necessary, to reach desired consistency. Taste frosting, and if you want more maple flavor, add more syrup.
Pipe, or spread onto cupcakes - enjoy!!

The Hostess with the Mostest

When I first started entertaining the idea of this "cupcake of the week" project, I came across a recipe for a mock-Hostess cupcake. I knew I would eventually make these, mainly for my kids amusement. I mean, seriously, are there any parents who's kids do not ask for these when they walk by them in a store? Heck, even I find myself eyeballing them!

Well, I finally worked them into my schedule and the reaction was worth the many steps required to prepare them! The kids think I'm the best mom/baker EVER and those taste testers lucky enough to get one indicated that they were "better than Hostess" Woo hoo! These were winners!

Chocolate Cupcake with Cream filling

Inspired by Babble.com

For the cupcake:

1 1/2 c sugar

2 c all purpose flour

3/4 c Dutch processed cocoa (E. Guittard Cocoa Rouge I purchased at Sur La Table)

1 tsp baking powder

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

2 eggs

1 c oil

3/4 c buttermilk

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1/4 c medium roast coffee (I used Starbucks Pike's Place blend), warm

For the filling:

4 Tbsp unsalted butter

1 c confectioners' sugar

2 tsp vanilla

8 oz marshmallow creme

For the ganache:

3/4 c whipping cream

7 oz semisweet chocolate

For the icing:

4 oz unsalted butter

1 1/2 c confectioners' sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1-2 tsp water

Preheat oven to 325, and line your muffin pans with cupcake liners. 

In your mixer bowl, combine sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix together for about 30 seconds, on low, to get everything blended. In a large liquid measuring cup, combine eggs, oil, buttermilk, and vanilla. Whisk together, to incorporate, then slowly pour into your mixer, against the inner wall. Bring mixer to medium speed, and mix for about 2 minutes, until everything is completely incorporated. Batter will look like brownie batter, very thick. Remove bowl from mixer, the add your coffee. Whisk in, by hand, until absorbed into batter.

Scoop batter into cupcake liners, filling about 3/4 full. Bake at 325 for 22 minutes. Remove from oven, and cool in pans for 10 minutes. Remove cupcakes to a wire rack, and allow to cool completely. 

While cupcakes cool, prepare your filling. In your mixer bowl, combine all of your filling ingredients, and whip until fluffy, which will be about 2 minutes. Scoop into piping bag, and fill each cupcake, using a long filling tip.

Once cupcakes are filled, prepare your ganache. Place cream in a small saucepan, over medium heat. Meanwhile, coarsely chop up chocolate, and place in a heat resistant bowl. When cream comes to a boil, pour over chocolate, and begin whisking, until chocolate has completely melted. Once this happens, stop whisking. Dip cupcakes, upside-down, into ganache, making sure to coat each top evenly. Allow excess to drip off, then return to wire rack, to allow ganache to set.

Prepare frosting while cupcakes set up. Whip together all of the icing ingredients with 1 tsp water. Add more water, until desired consistency is reached. You want icing to be semi-thin, so it is easily pipe-able. Using a #3 tip, pipe squiggles on tops of cupcakes. 

Once cupcakes are set up, dig in! You'll be your kids hero when they open up their lunch boxes the next day!