Double Chocolate Cinnamon Mini Cupcakes Food

DOUBLE CHOCOLATE MINI CUPCAKES

Steps:

• This recipe makes about 50 to 60 miniature cupcakes.
• Line miniature muffin tins with liners (I purchase the mini liners at a craft store that carries cake supplies).
• Preheat oven to 350. Sift flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt into a bowl and blend.
• Cream butter thoroughly, until very soft. Gradually add sugar and continue to beat for a minute or two. Beat in coffee mixture and vanilla.
• Add eggs one at a time and beat well after each addition.
• At low speed, add dry ingredients in three equal additions and milk in two equal additions. In other words, add one third of the dry mixture, then half of the milk, then another one third of the dry ingredients, followed by the rest of the milk, and then the last of the dry ingredients. Scrape down the bowl as needed. The mixture is about the consistency of a thick pudding.
• Stir in the miniature chocolate chips. Pour batter into cups. I fill them pretty close to the top; when they bake, they come over and make a mushroom shape, which is how I like them. If you prefer smaller, then fill accordingly. I have found that using a cookie scoop (looks like a small ice cream scoop, it's for cookie dough) works well to fill the muffin cups without too much mess.
• Bake at 350 for about 15 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Remove the cupcakes from the pan and let cool completely.
• For glaze, put chocolate, butter and cream in top of a double boiler (I just use two pots). Use low heat and stir until mixture is smooth. The glaze doesn't look very chocolate-like until right at the end. Stir completely to make as smooth as possible. Remove from heat and let the glaze cool for five minutes. Spoon glaze on each cupcake and swirl. A miniature rubber spatula works well. The glaze is very shiny, but becomes more fudge-like as it cools.
• Each time I make this recipe, I have glaze left over; you probably could cut it by one fourth, but I've never wanted to take a chance on not having enough. Anyway, as far as I'm concerned, the glaze left in the pan is the cook's reward -- have a couple spoonsfuls when you're done!

DOUBLE CHOCOLATE MINT CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a muffin pan with cupcake liners.
• Whisk together the sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. Make a well in the center. Add the buttermilk, oil, 1 teaspoon peppermint extract and the eggs to the well and whisk together until there are just a few streaks remaining. Add the chocolate chips and fold them into the batter with a rubber spatula until just combined.
• Using an ice cream scoop, fill each cupcake liner about halfway to two-thirds full with batter. Bake until set and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with just a few a crumbs, about 25 minutes. Allow to cool completely in the pan.
• Meanwhile, place the frosting in a medium bowl. Fold in the remaining 1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract, then add the broken candy and fold together using a rubber spatula. Place a dollop of frosting on top of each cupcake and use an offset spatula to spread. Dust the tops with red sprinkles, if using.

HEALTHY DOUBLE CHOCOLATE MINI CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350. Spray a mini muffin tin pan with cooking spray and set aside.
• Mix the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl until well combined.
• Make a well in the center and add the applesauce, milk and vanilla. Stir until just combined.
• Toss the chocolate chips with the extra flour (this helps keep the from sinking in the batter and sticking to the bottom of the muffin tins). Fold the chocolate chips into the batter.
• Fill your mini muffin tins. Each muffin cup should be about 3/4 full.
• Bake at 350 for 14-16 minutes, until done.
• Let cool completely in pan before turning out. (Otherwise the chocolate chips can stick to the muffin pan instead of to the cupcakes. Sad.)

MINI CUPCAKE CHOCOLATE BOX

Steps:

• Bake mini chocolate cupcakes in foil liners, then microwave store-bought frosting (milk and dark chocolate flavors) until runny and spoon the frosting on top of the cupcakes. (Place whole almonds on a few before you frost so they'll look like classic boxed chocolates.) Drizzle melted white or dark chocolate on top. Fill a heart-shaped box with the cupcakes.

DOUBLE SHOT MOCHA LATTE CUPCAKES

Steps:

• For the ganache: Put the chips in a medium bowl. Heat the heavy cream in a small saucepan just until it bubbles around the sides. Immediately pour the hot cream over the chocolate, give the bowl a good shake and let stand 10 minutes, shaking the bowl occasionally. Then whisk until the mixture is homogenous, 20 to 30 seconds. Chill about 40 minutes, stirring occasionally and scraping down the sides, until the mixture is almost spreadable. Give it another brief whisk, and let stand at room temperature until it's at frosting consistency.
• For the cupcakes: Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line standard muffin pans with 20 cupcake liners. In a small bowl, stir the chocolate chips into the hot espresso until melted; cool in the refrigerator to room temperature.
• Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt into a bowl. In the bowl of an electric stand mixer with a paddle attachment, beat the eggs, granulated sugar, applesauce, oil and vanilla at medium-high speed for about 2 minutes. Beat in the cooled chocolate mixture until the mixture is homogenous. With the mixer on medium-low speed, add the flour mixture and beat just until incorporated, scraping the sides as necessary. It's ok if the batter is slightly lumpy. Using a 1/4-cup ice cream scoop, fill each cupcake liner with batter.
• Bake until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, 18 to 20 minutes. Transfer the pans to cooling racks and cool for about 10 minutes, and then transfer the cupcakes to the racks to cool completely before filling and frosting.
• While the cupcakes cool, make the filling: In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, whip the cream and confectioners' sugar to firm peaks. On low speed, whisk in the espresso. Use immediately, or hold in the refrigerator until ready to assemble.
• To assemble: Use an apple corer or melon baller to remove the center from each cupcake, about three-quarters of the way into the cupcake. Use a pastry bag to pipe some of the espresso cream filling into the centers. Pipe a large rosette of dark chocolate ganache on top of each cupcake.

QUICK DOUBLE CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line two 12-cup standard muffin tins with paper cupcake liners and set aside.
• In a bowl, using an electric mixer, mix the cake mix, 1 1/3 cups water, oil and eggs on medium speed until moistened and smooth. Stir in 3/4 cup chocolate chips. Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups, stirring it occasionally to redistribute the chocolate chips. The batter will nearly fill each liner to the top. Evenly sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup chocolate chips over the tops of the cupcakes. Bake until the cupcakes spring back when lightly touched, or a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool.
• When cool, put the White Faux Buttercream out with spoons or small spatulas along with bowls of the cupcake toppings for the kids to decorate their own cupcakes.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer, using the paddle attachment, whip the butter on high speed until very soft. Meanwhile, place a large sheet of parchment paper on a work surface. Using a large sifter, sift the confectioners' sugar onto the parchment. This helps prevent clumping and makes the mixing easier. Lower the speed of the mixer and, using the parchment as a funnel, pour half the sugar into the bowl and mix slowly until combined. Add the milk and mix until combined. Once combined, add the remaining sugar with the vanilla and mix. Once it is combined, turn the mixer speed up and beat the icing until very light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes. If desired, divide the icing into smaller batches and color with food coloring.
• Spread the icing on cooled cupcakes while at room temperature. Refrigerate any leftover icing, but be sure to let it come back to room temperature before using. Re-whip the icing to make it fluffy again. Makes 4 cups (enough for 24 cupcakes).
• Yield: about 8 cups, enough for at least 6 dozen cupcakes
• Prep Time: 10 minutes Ease of preparation: easy