Chocolate cupcakes

These easy, adorable and quick cupcakes will impress everyone with not only its looks but also taste!

Ingredients:

Cupcakes (for 5-6 cupcakes)

3/4 cup cake flour (recipe given)

2 tbsp dutch processed cocoa powder (you can even use 1/4 cup normal unsweetened cocoa powder instead)

A pinch of salt

3/4 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4th cup melted butter

1 egg

1/3 cup sugar

Vanilla extract

3/4 cups milk

1/4 cups chocolate chips

For the frosting:

1/2 cup semi sweet dark chocolate chips

Optional : Small pieces of mint chocolate (I have used the lindt intense mint dark chocolate, it has a strong flavor so I didn't use much) OR a few drops of peppermint extract

1/4 cup cream

How to make cake flour: (As per 3/4 cups)

Take out 3/4 tbsp of flour and replace it with 3/4 tbsp of cornflour. Sift it together and you have cake flour.

Method:

Dry ingredients: In a large bowl, sift your cake flour, cocoa powder, salt, baking powder and baking soda.

Wet ingredients: In another bowl whisk together your egg, melted butter, sugar and vanilla extract

Fold in the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients in batches along with little milk at a time.

Once the batter is smooth add in the chocolate chips and pour it a little more than halfway up your molds or paper cupcake liners.

I have used the stove to make these cupcakes you can even use your oven, methods for both are given below:

Oven: Preheat your oven to 180 degree Celsius and then bake your cupcakes for around 20-25 mins or until a toothpick or skewer comes out clean.

Stove: Take a large kadhai and place a stand if you have one, otherwise use any steel plate or bowls as the stand and place a pizza plate, or the plate part of a springform cake mold. I used the springform cake mold plate.

Preheat this on low flame for 15 mins or while your preparing your batter. Once you put in the cupcakes put the flame on medium heat for 10 mins, the cupcakes should have rised and then low to medium heat for around 15 mins, or until a toothpick or skewer comes out clean.

For the frosting:

Prepare a ganache, either microwave the cream and chocolate together OR heat the cream till it simmers and pour the hot cream over the chocolate.

After preparing a glossy ganache, cover this with a cling wrap, over the ganache not the bowl.

Refrigerate this for around 30 mins, you can do this while the cupcakes are baking or cooling.

After 30 mins take out the ganache from the fridge and beat it using the hand beater till it lightens in color and becomes thicker. Let it sit on your counter for around 5 mins till it reaches a piping consistency.

Use your favourite piping nozzle, fill your piping bags with the ganache frosting and frost your cooled down cupcakes. Make sure the cupcakes are cooled otherwise the frosting can melt.

After frosting your cupcakes, serve and enjoyyy.