Bake the afternoon away with a delicious batch of these rich chocolate cupcakes
Ingredients
• 105g unsalted butter, softened
• 285g light brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 180g plain flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
• pinch salt
• 8g cocoa powder
• 125g plain chocolate, chopped
• 165ml milk
• Basic cream cheese frosting, chocolate variation
• white chocolate drops, to decorate
Method
1 Preheat the oven to 165°C and line two 12-hole muffin trays with cases.
2 Place the butter and half the sugar in a bowl and cream until pale and fluffy. Beat the eggs in a jug and slowly mix into the butter mixture.
3 Sift the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, salt and cocoa into the mixture. Stir until just combined.
4 Place the chocolate, milk and remaining sugar in a saucepan. Gently bring to the boil and stir until all the chocolate and sugar have dissolved.
5 Slowly pour this into the batter and mix. Scrape the bowl to make sure it is well combined. Transfer to a jug right away and pour into the cases until two-thirds full.
6 Bake immediately for 15–20 minutes, depending on your oven. They are cooked when the tops spring back to the touch.
7 If you insert a clean knife into the sponge, it should come out with a small amount of crumb sticking to it, as the texture should be slightly sticky and dense. Let rest in the tray for a few minutes before removing and placing on a wire rack to cool completely.
8 To decorate, use the chocolate cream cheese frosting and top with white chocolate drops.
Recipe courtesy of Peggy Porschen, extracted from Cupcakes © Quadrille.
