Molten Chocolate Cakes

This recipe is also from this cookbook. This is seriously one of my favorite desserts I have made. The cakes were so gooey and dense and chocolately. Like a really rich brownie. Next time I make them though, I will make sure to butter and sugar the tins more and cook them a little longer. (Some of mine came out a little too gooey. More of a little pile than a mini cake :) One batch makes 6 cakes.

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for muffin tins
1/3 cup granulated sugar, plus more for muffin tins
3 large eggs
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, melted
Confectioners' sugar, for dusting

Whipped Cream, for serving

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Generously butter 6 cups of a standard muffin tin. Dust with granulated sugar, and tap out excess. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and granulated sugar until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. With the mixer on low speed, beat in flour and salt until just combined. Beat in chocolate until just combined. Divide batter evenly among prepared muffin cups.

Place muffin tin on a baking sheet; bake just until tops of the cakes no longer jiggle when the pan is lightly shaken, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from oven; let stand 10 minutes.

To serve, turn out cakes, and place on serving plates, bottom sides up. Dust with confectioners' sugar, and serve with whipped cream, if desired.

Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

I have been wanting to make red velvet cupcakes for a while and I decided that Valentines day was the perfect time to make them! I used this recipe by Paula Deen. The recipe makes 24 cupcakes. That was kind of a lot for just our family so I halved it. They turned out great and I think they are a cute and festive dessert for Valentines day!

Ingredients for the Cupcakes:

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cocoa powder

1 1/2 cups vegetable oil

1 cup buttermilk, room temperature
2 large eggs, room temperature

2 tablespoons red food coloring

1 teaspoon white distilled vinegar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Ingredients for the Frosting:

1 pound cream cheese, softened

2 sticks butter, softened

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

4 cups confectioner's sugar

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 (12-cup) muffin pans with cupcake papers.

In a medium mixing bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder. In a large bowl gently beat together the oil, buttermilk, eggs, food coloring, vinegar, and vanilla with a handheld electric mixer. Add the sifted ingredients to the wet and mix until smooth and thoroughly combined.

Divide the batter evenly among the cupcake tins, about 2/3 filled. Bake in oven for about 20 to 22 minutes, turning the pans once, half way through. Test the cupcakes with a toothpick for doneness. Remove from oven and cool completely before frosting.

In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese, butter and vanilla together until smooth. Add the sugar on low speed, beat until incorporated. Increase the speed to high and mix until very light and fluffy.

(Optional: Garnish with chopped pecans and a fresh raspberry or strawberry)

Vanilla Cupcakes with Strawberry Buttercream Frosting

The other day I was in the mood to make some cupcakes, but didn't want to make anything too tricky. I decided to just make some vanilla cupcakes using a recipe from joyofbaking.com, with a simple buttercream frosting. I used a basic vanilla frosting recipe from the food network website, but substituted the vanilla extract for strawberry extract. They were super simple and easy but they tasted good and turned out pretty cute.

Ingredients:
Vanilla Cupcakes:
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2/3 cup granulated white sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Zest of 1 large lemon (optional)
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup milk

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C) and lightly butter or line 12 muffin cups with paper liners.

Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla extract and lemon zest.

In a separate bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.

With the mixer on low speed, alternately add the flour mixture and milk, in three additions, beginning and ending with the flour. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.

Evenly fill the muffin cups with the batter and bake for about 18-20 minutes or until nicely browned and a toothpick inserted into a cupcake comes out clean. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool. Once the cupcakes have completely cooled, frost with icing.

Strawberry Buttercream Frosting:
Ingredients:
3 cups confectioners' sugar
1 cup butter
strawberry extract (**I didn't measure how much I used, I just added it until it tasted right. It probably ended up being about 1 teaspoon)
1 to 2 tablespoons whipping cream
pink or red food coloring

Directions:
In a standing mixer fitted with a whisk, mix together sugar and butter. Mix on low speed until well blended and then increase speed to medium and beat for another 3 minutes.
Add extract, food coloring, and cream and continue to beat on medium speed for 1 minute more, adding more cream if needed for spreading consistency.

Pink Lemonade Cupcakes

When I saw this cupcake recipe on a baking blog I thought they were so cute and was curious to see how they tasted. They sounded so unique. They turned out to be really good. The cake is super moist and really does taste like pink lemonade. It sounds kind of weird, but its not too different than a lemon cake. But the frosting is pretty sweet so next time I'll probably use less so they aren't so sugary.

Cupcakes

Ingredients:
1 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
Pinch salt
1/2 c. granulated sugar
1/4 c. vegetable oil
2 egg whites
1/3 c. thawed frozen Pink Lemonade Concentrate
1/4 c. buttermilk
2 or more drops red food coloring

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line muffin pan with liners.

In a small bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, oil, egg whites and lemonade concentrate. Alternately whisk in flour mixture and buttermilk, making three additions of flour mixture and two of buttermilk, beating until just smooth. Add just enough food coloring to turn the batter a light shade of pink.

Scoop batter into liners (fill about three-fourths full). Bake in preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until tops of cupcakes spring back when lightly touched. Let cool in pan on rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and let cool completely on rack. Top cooled cupcakes with frosting (see below).

Lemonade Buttercream:
3 c. + 3 Tbsp. confectioner’s sugar
1 stick unsalted butter at room temperature
1/8 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. pink lemonade concentrate
Red food coloring

Add the butter, confectioner’s sugar, salt, lemon juice, and a few drops of food coloring to the stand mixer and mix on low using the paddle attachment until combined. Turn the speed to med-high until the buttercream is fluffy and uniformly pink. Pipe or spread onto cooled cupcakes.

Root Beer Float Cupcakes

I saw these cupcakes on a blog a while ago and I thought they sounded interesting. Since root beer is one of my favorite treats, (weird. I know :)I was curious to see how well the flavor translated into a cupcake. I was really happy with the way they turned out. (*note: they didn't rise very much when they cooked, so make sure you fill the liners pretty full with the batter)


Ingredients:

Cupcakes:
1 cup rootbeer soda
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons root beer extract
1 1/3 cups flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
pinch of salt

Directions:
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line a dozen cupcake tins with papers liners.

Combine the soda and vinegar and let stand for a few minutes. Add in the sugar and oil, whisking vigorously until slightly frothy. Integrate the extracts, and gently add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, being careful not to overmix. Distribute the batter evenly between the prepared tins, fill the cupcake liners approximately 3/4 of the way to the top. Bake for about 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Allow them to cool completely before proceeding to the ganache.

Ingredients:

Ganache:
5 oz. dark chocolate (*I used semisweet chocolate chips)
1/4 cup milk
1 tablespoon maple syrup

Directions:
Combine the above in a microwave-safe container and heat for about a minute. Stir thoroughly. If it isn't completely melted, return to the microwave for 15 seconds at a time, watching carefully to ensure that it doesn't burn. Drizzle ganache in squiggles over the cupcakes. (*I piped it on with a plastic bag) Allow ganache squiggles to fully cool before preparing the frosting.

Ingredients:

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting:
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon milk

Directions:
In a standing mixer fitted with a whisk, mix together sugar and butter. Mix on low speed until well blended and then increase speed to medium and beat for another 3 minutes. Add vanilla and milk and continue to beat on medium speed for 1 minute more, adding more milk if needed for correct consistency. Pipe onto cupcakes.

Cookie Dough Cupcakes with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

I was browsing recipes on the internet the other day and came across this recipe for Cookie Dough Cupcakes. They sounded interesting so I decided to make them and I was SO glad I did! (I think Tyler and Colton were too!) I know they sound kind of weird but they are seriously so good! (not exactly healthy, but still really good!) I wasn't sure how the cookie dough in the middle didn't cook in the oven, but the trick is to freeze the cookie dough first so it stays soft.

Ingredients:

Cupcakes

24 paper liners for cupcake pans (2 1/2-inch size)

1 package (18.25 ounces) plain yellow cake mix

1 package (3.4 ounces) vanilla instant pudding mix

1 cup whole milk

1 cup vegetable oil

4 large eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 package (1 pound) frozen cookie dough

Chocolate Buttercream

8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter, at room temperature

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

3 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted

3 to 5 tablespoons milk

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions
Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F. Line 24 cupcake cups with paper liners. Set the pans aside.Place the cake mix, pudding mix, milk, oil, eggs, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer on low speed for 30 seconds. Stop the machine and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat 2 minutes more, scraping down the sides again if needed. The batter should look well blended. Spoon or scoop a heaping 1/4 cup batter into each lined cupcake cup, filling it two thirds of the way full. (You will get between 22 and 24 cupcakes; remove the empty liners, if any.)

Cut the frozen dough pieces in half to make 24 pieces. Place a frozen cookie dough piece on top of each cupcake. Place the pans in the oven.

Bake the cupcakes until they are golden and spring back when lightly pressed with your finger, 23 to 27 minutes. Remove the pans from the oven and place them on wire racks to cool for five minutes. Run a dinner knife around the edges of the cupcake liners, lift the cupcakes up from the bottoms of the cups using the end of the knife, and pick them out of the cups carefully with your fingertips. Place them on a wire rack to cool for 15 minutes before frosting. They may sink a bit in the center.

While the cupcakes cook, prepare the Chocolate Buttercream.

Place the butter and cocoa powder in a large mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer on low speed until the mixture is soft and well combined, 30 seconds.Stop the machine and add the confectioners' sugar, three tablespoons of the milk, and the vanilla. Blend with the mixer on low speed until the sugar is incorporated, one minute. Increase the speed to medium and beat until light and fluffy, one minute more. Add one to two tablespoons more milk if the frosting is too stiff.Place a heaping tablespoon of frosting on each cupcake and swirl to spread it out with a short metal spatula or a spoon, taking care to cover the tops completely. The cupcakes are ready to serve.

Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Icing

The other day I was in the mood to bake and I decided to make these cupcakes from the Barefoot Contessa at Home recipe book. I'm so glad I did :) They turned out really good and were so moist. I halfed the recipe for the cupcakes so it only made about 10 but made the original amount of the icing so that I could pipe it on instead of just spreading it with a knife. They are pretty rich but so worth it :)

Ingredients

For the cupcakes:

12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

2/3 cup granulated sugar

2/3 cup light brown sugar, packed

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 cup buttermilk (*I just used regular milk)

1/2 cup sour cream

2 tablespoons strongly brewed coffee

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup good cocoa powder

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Peanut Butter Icing, recipe follows

Chopped salted peanuts or mini chocolate chips for decoration (optional)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a standard muffin pan with paper liners. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and 2 sugars on high speed until light and fluffy, approximately 5 minutes. Lower the speed to medium and add the eggs, one at a time. Now add the vanilla, and mix well.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, sour cream, and coffee. In another bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt.

Now, with the mixer on low speed, alternate adding the buttermilk mixture with the flour mixture (add the buttermilk mixture in 2 additions and the flour mixture in 3.) Mix only until blended. Give the batter a few gentle stirs with a rubber spatula just to make sure all the dry ingredients are incorporated.

Use a standard ice cream scoop (or two spoons) to fill the muffin tins; they should be about 3/4 full.Bake for about 20 minutes, until the tops spring back when gently pressed or a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Don’t overbake — better to err on the side of caution and check them a little early.

Cool for 10 minutes, remove from the pans, and allow to cool completely before frosting. Frost each cupcake with Peanut Butter Icing and sprinkle with chopped peanuts or mini chocolate chips, if desired.

Peanut Butter Icing:

Ingredients:

1 cup confectioners’ sugar

1 cup creamy peanut butter

5 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/3 cup heavy cream

Directions

In the bowl of a mixer, mix together the confectioner’s sugar, peanut butter, butter, vanilla, and salt on medium-low speed with the paddle attachment. When well blended, add the heavy cream and continue mixing on high speed until the mixture is light and smooth.