Thursday, September 2, 2010

Cupcakes!

I decided to finally make Chef Chloe's winning Cupcake Wars recipe.  I had some strawberries that will go bad if I don't eat through them quickly enough.  Though they did not turn out as beautifully as hers (I apparently didn't fill the cupcake wrappers up enough so they didn't rise as high.  Here's the recipe:


Chocolate Strawberry Shortcake Cupcakes
Secret Winning Recipe!

(Makes 12 Cupcakes)
Ingredients:
 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar    
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup coconut milk 
½ cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon instant espresso powder 
Frosting, recipe below
1 ½ cups hulled and sliced fresh strawberries
Confectioners’ sugar, for garnish

Procedure:
1.    Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line a 12-cup cupcake pan with paper liners. 
2.    Sift or whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt into a bowl. In a separate bowl, mix the coconut milk, oil, vinegar, vanilla, and espresso powder until smooth. 
3.    Pour the wet mixture into the dry mixture and mix with a fork or small whisk. 
4.    Divide the batter evenly among the prepared cupcake liners until each cup is 2/3 full. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. 
5.    Once the cupcakes are completely cooled, slice off the top 1/3 of each cupcake and slather with frosting and sliced strawberries. Place the top of the cupcake back on top and add an additional bit of frosting and sliced strawberries. Dust with confectioners’ sugar.

Frosting
Ingredients:
4 cups confectioners' sugar, preferably organic
1/2 cup refined coconut oil at room temperature OR margarine (recommended: Earth Balance Organic Soy-Free Non-Hydrogenated Buttery Spread)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
¼ cup water

Procedure:
1.    Combine the confectioners' sugar, coconut oil, and vanilla extract in the bowl of a stand mixer. 
2.    Beat on medium-high speed until combined. With the mixer running, add 1 tablespoon of water at a time, until the desired buttercream consistency.



Here's what mine ultimately looked like.  And they were YUUUUUUUUUUUM!

No comments:

Post a Comment