Devil's Food Cupcakes

Every once in a while, a girl needs some chocolate...  These devil's food cupcakes with chocolate ganache really hit the spot.  They are incredibly rich in taste, but light in texture.  Because I am not a choco-holic, and chocolate icing on chocolate cake is a little too much for me--I used cream cheese icing for some of the cupcakes.

Recipe- Devil's Food Cupcakes

3/4 cup boiling water

3/4 cup cocoa powder

6 oz. butter

2 c. sugar

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. vanilla

3 eggs

2 and 1/2 c. cake flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. baking powder

1 c. buttermilk

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.  Place rack in the middle of the oven.  Whisk together boiling water and cocoa. Cover and set aside.

2. With a mixer, cream together the butter, sugar, salt, and vanilla extract.

3. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.  Continue creaming until light and fluffy.

4. Sift together the cake flour, baking soda, and baking powder.  Add to the mixture, alternately with the buttermilk. 

5. Add the cocoa/water mixture and mix until thoroughly combined.  Scoop into cupcake pans and bake for 20-25 minutes (until a toothpick inserted deep into the middle comes out clean).

6. Let cupcakes cool completely before decorating. Prepare the chocolate ganache.

Recipe- Chocolate Ganache

8 oz. semi-sweet chocolate

3/4 c. heavy cream

2 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons butter

Chop chocolate and place into a glass bowl.  Bring the heavy cream and sugar just to a boil in a small sauce pan.  Pour over the chopped chocolate.  Whisk together, and then stir in butter until melted.  Dip the tops of the cooled cupcakes in the warm ganache. Let set.

I then piped some left over cream cheese icing onto the cupcakes.

Get creative! Enjoy!

Red Velvet Cupcakes

Who doesn't love red velvet cupcakes?!  The recent red velvet cupcake craze has been pretty remarkable.  I  am a red velvet fiend, but I didn't fall in love with the RV until 2007.  I was at a friend's graduation party, and she had catered a red velvet cake.  One bite and I was in love with the almost-chocolate taste combined with the cream cheese icing--a perfect match.

I have been looking for  a good red velvet cake recipe pretty much since then.  I have gone all over the U.S. tasting red velvet cake--from Picadilly in Louisiana (the cake is rumored to have southern roots), to red velvet cheesecake at the cheesecake factory, and even Starbuck's--which only recently added red velvet cupcakes to their menu (avoid them at all costs--not worth the money, calories, and not fair to your taste buds!)  

So, I recently experimented with a recipe when I made these cupcakes for a fundraiser.  It was the BLSA (Black Law Students Assoc.) annual "Soul Food Lunch" fundraiser.  A portion of the proceeds went to the Haiti relief effort.  

Though the taste was not the best I've ever had (and I've had a lot), the texture was incredibly light and the cake absolutely melted in my mouth.  It was almost dangerous--multiple cupcakes could easily be consumed.  For that reason alone, I will be making these again.  Tomorrow actually.  I have a feeling that cupcakes and Champagne will make a great pair...