Anti-Valentine's Day Chocolate Cupcakes

This Valentine's Day weekend, a friend is throwing an Anti-Valentine's Day party.  Being the glutton for punishment, I asked that special question - "what can I bring?"  This is not the time for light and refreshing.  Somehow, from that question, I ended up making ironically iced Anti-Valentine's Day chocolate cupcakes.  This decision comes from three girls on a lunch break debating the virtues of Anti-Valentine's garlic breath versus overly rich "why bother" foods.   Dessert is what my hubby calls a "no-brainer" and an "easy out" for invitations.  An hour later, and I can have made from scratch chocolate cupcakes with chocolate frosting ready for any event.  Besides, who can really turn down a chocolate cupcake? Especially this one!  This recipe comes from a blog, I follow called the Joy of Baking. 

 If you are easily offended, I put the more off color labeled ones towards the bottom and after a marker. 

Chocolate Cupcakes:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly butter, or line 16 muffin cups with paper liners.

In a bowl, add the cocoa powder to the boiling water and stir until smooth. Set aside and let the mixture cool to room temperature. 

In another bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Then in the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy - about two minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating until smooth. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in the vanilla extract. 

Add the flour mixture and beat only until incorporated. Then add the cooled cocoa mixture and stir until smooth.

Fill each muffin cup about two-thirds full with batter.

Bake for about 16-20 minutes or until risen, springy to the touch, and a toothpick inserted into a cupcake comes out clean.  Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool. 

Chocolate Frosting:

Melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl placed over a saucepan of simmering water. 

Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature. 

In the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the butter until smooth and creamy. Add the sugar and beat until it is light and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla extract. Add the chocolate and beat on low speed until incorporated. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat until frosting is smooth and glossy.  This should take about 2 -3 minutes.

The Final Product:

Once the cupcakes have completely cooled, frost with icing. You can either spread the frosting on the cupcakes with a small spatula, or like me, you can use the back of a spoon. If you are decorating, now is the time. 

Makes about 16 cupcakes.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder

1 cup boiling hot water

1 1/3 cups all purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup granulated white sugar

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Chocolate Fudge Frosting:

4 ounces unsweetened chocolate

2/3 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1 1/3 cups confectioner sugar, sifted

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Oh by the way, these are good. Really good.  Like, stealing a crumb and ending up eating the whole cupcake good.  

German Chocolate Cake

This recipe is another anti-produce recipe, but it's worth it. For my husband's birthday, all he wanted me to make was a German Chocolate Cake.  Before this, I'd never baked a cake from scratch and could probably count the boxed cakes I've made on one hand, so this was no small request.  I didn't even have a real cake pan - just glass casseroles and a hidden pie dish I never knew I had! 

 

 After contemplating the merits of many different recipes, I finally determined that for my first cake should be a tried and true recipe.  Baker's German's Chocolate to the rescue!  For a week night dessert, I could try a more adventurous approach, but not for a birthday and especially not for a birthday party.   Food history lesson - German Chocolate Cake is not a German recipe but is in fact related to the name of the chocolate company's owner.  German's Chocolate was later bought out by Baker's Brand who was later bought out by Kraft Foods. 

 

Due to  my lack of backing up the images, I can not share the in-process pictures I took, but hopefully the beautiful photo above of the final product will inspire you to make one of your own and see it first hand. 

 

Cake Recipe:

1 pkg. (4 oz.) Baker's German's Sweet Chocolate

1/2 cup  water

4 eggs, separated

2 cups  flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp.  salt

1 cup butter, softened

2 cups  sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup  buttermilk 

 

Filling Recipe:

1 can  (12 oz.) evaporated milk

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

1 1/2 cups  sugar

3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) butter or margarine

1 package  (7 oz.) Sweetened Coconut (about 2-2/3 cups)

1 1/2 cups Chopped Pecans

4 egg yolks  

To Make the Cake:

Heat oven to 350°F.  Cover bottoms of 3 (9-inch) round pans with waxed paper; spray sides with cooking spray. Microwave chocolate and water in large microwaveable bowl on HIGH 1-1/2 to 2 min. or until chocolate is almost melted, stirring after 1 min. Stir until chocolate is completely melted.

Beat egg whites in small bowl or with a stand mixer on high speed until stiff peaks form; set aside. Mix flour, baking soda and salt. Beat butter and sugar in large bowl of your stand mixer until light and fluffy. Add egg yolks, 1 at a time, beating well after each. Blend in melted chocolate and vanilla. Add flour mixture alternately with buttermilk, beating until well blended after each addition.

Add egg whites; stir gently until well blended. Pour into prepared pans.

Bake 30 min. or until toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean. Immediately run small spatula around cakes in pans. Cool cakes in pans 15 min.; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely.

To Make the Filling:

 
Beat egg yolks, milk and vanilla in large saucepan with wire whisk until well blended. Add sugar and butter; cook on medium heat 12 min. or until thickened and golden brown, stirring constantly. Remove from heat.
Add coconut and pecans; mix well. Cool to room temperature and of desired spreading consistency.

To Assemble the Final Product and Achieve Bliss:

Spread Coconut-Pecan Filling and Frosting between cake layers and onto top of cake.

Verdict:  The waxed paper really does aid in the release of the cakes from the pans.  The cake was so good that several male friends of myself and my husband offered to take me in and/or marry me if my husband was ever foolish enough to let me go.  I even got an offer to build me the kitchen of my dreams - and I may take that friend up on that offer but only after hubby and I are ready to buy a house.