Chocolate Baby Shower Cupcakes

I had the pleasure of making these Chocolate Cupcakes with blue Italian Meringue Buttercream for a baby shower this weekend.  The cupcakes bake up with flat tops, making them the perfect platform for festive swirls of the silkiest, best tasting buttercream you can imagine.  

The cupcake recipe will make 36.  You'll have to double the buttercream recipe to decorate them all, but you'll be left with a few cups of buttercream to freeze for another day.  

For chocolate cupcakes, I like to use brown grease-proof liners.  I also love using this heavy weight commercial quality muffin/cupcake pan.  

To start the recipe, we need to combine Dutch-processed cocoa and boiling water.  Whisk them together until smooth.

Then set it aside to cool, keeping it covered to prevent it from drying out.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a BeaterBlade attachment, cream room temperature butter and sugar together.

Add the eggs, salt, and vanilla extract.

Beautiful.

Then add the reserved cocoa mixture, buttermilk, flour, baking soda, and baking powder. 

Done. 

The batter will make 36 cupcakes - be sure to bake just one batch of 12 cupcakes at a time.  Cover the bowl of batter with plastic wrap and allow it to sit on the counter until you're ready to bake the next batch (being sure to allow the pan to cool before filling).  I use a #20 scoop (3 tablespoons) to fill my cupcake liners so every cupcake ends up being the same size. 

The Italian Meringue Buttercream (recipe and how-to photos) can be found here.  Make 2 separate batches to frost 36 cupcakes (a double batch is too big to make in a 6-quart stand mixer, but single batches will fit in a 5 or 6-quart mixer fine).  Note: you may want to use clear vanilla if you plan to tint your buttercream.  I use pure vanilla extract 99.99% of the time, but I make a rare exception when I tint buttercream a light color that would otherwise be affected by the slightly ivory tone pure vanilla extract naturally lends to buttercream.    

For this blue shade, I tinted the buttercream with this brand of gel coloring.  I also used these round sprinkles, and Ateco polycarbonate piping tips (or a Wilton 1M).  I love polycarbonate tips and prefer them to metal for a number of reasons:  they don't bend out of shape, you can see air bubbles through them, they don't rust or discolor, and they don't have a seam so they're super easy to clean.  Love them.  

Items used to make this recipe:

(affiliate links)

• cupcake carrier https://amzn.to/3r9kAlc

• dutch processed cocoa powder https://amzn.to/3AKkJ1Y

• professional cupcake pan https://amzn.to/3Un6poq

• greaseproof cupcake liners https://amzn.to/3oaitMd

• #20 portion scoop https://amzn.to/3g4ehJu

• white pearl sprinkles https://amzn.to/3g74tOR

• gel coloring https://amzn.to/3ycH47Y

• beaterblade https://amzn.to/3o8stWj

• wilton 1m piping tip https://amzn.to/35rMBw1

• large piping bags (I suggest nothing smaller than 16 inches) https://amzn.to/3o7VFMW

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Chocolate Cupcakes

makes 36

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup boiling water

• 3/4 cup dutch-processed cocoa powder

• 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

• 1 teaspoon baking soda

• 1 teaspoon baking powder

• 12 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature

• 2 cups granulated sugar

• 3 large eggs, room temperature

• 1 teaspoon fine salt

• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (or clear vanilla extract)

• 1 cup buttermilk

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350F and place rack in center position.

2. Line muffin pan with paper liners; set aside until needed.

3. In a medium bowl, whisk together boiling water and cocoa powder until smooth; cover with plastic wrap and cool until needed.

4. In another medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and baking powder; set aside until needed.

5. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a BeaterBlade attachment, cream butter and sugar for a couple minutes until light and fluffy.

6. Add eggs, vanilla, and salt; mix until combined.

7. Add cooled cocoa mixture, flour mixture, and buttermilk; mix just until combined.

8. Use a #20 scoop to fill cupcake liners and tap the pan on the counter to even the level of batter before baking.

9. Bake cupcakes for 15-20 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

10. Cool cupcakes in pan for several minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Note

• Be sure cupcakes are completely cool before frosting with Italian Meringue Buttercream (recipe and photos found here).  You'll need to make 2 batches to frost 36 cupcakes. 

adapted from recipegirl.com 

Lemon Cupcakes with French Vanilla Buttercream

Has Spring sprung in your neighborhood?  It certainly has here.  We have beautiful blooms everywhere and the bright sunshine reminds me that I need to share these cheerfully scrumptious lemon cupcakes with you.  Be careful though... they're addictive.  Happy Spring!!!

Lemon Cupcakes with French Vanilla Buttercream

makes 24 cupcakes using a #20 scoop (recipe may be halved)

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 cups cake flour (see substitution below)

• 1 tablespoon baking powder

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 1 1/4 cups buttermilk (see substitution below)

• 4 large egg whites (reserve yolks for French Vanilla Buttercream below)

• 1 1/2 cups sugar

• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened to room temperature

• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

• 1 teaspoon pure lemon oil (see notes below)

Directions (no need to preheat oven at this point - the cupcake batter needs to rest for 20 minutes before baking so turn the oven on after you finish mixing the batter)

1. In a small bowl, combine the buttermilk, egg whites, vanilla extract, and lemon oil; set aside.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the cake flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.

3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the flat beater, cream butter and sugar on medium speed for 3 minutes.

4. Turn off the mixer and add 1/3 of the flour mixture; mix just until the dry ingredients are moistened.

5. Add 1/2 of the wet ingredients; mix just until incorporated.

6. Repeat process with 1/3 of the dry, remaining half of the wet, and remaining third of the dry ingredients, occasionally scraping down the sides of the bowl.

7. Set mixture aside to rest for 20 minutes.

8. Preheat oven to 350F.

9. Line a muffin tin with paper liners.

10. Fill each liner with a level scoop of batter using a #20 scoop.

11. Bake for 15 minutes, cool completely.

12. Pipe with French Vanilla Buttercream (recipe below)

Notes

• To substitute 1 cup of cake flour - combine 2 tablespoons cornstarch and enough all-purpose flour to equal 1 cup (bleached all-purpose flour is preferred)

• To substitute 1 cup of buttermilk - combine 1 tablespoon vinegar and enough milk to equal 1 cup

• Be sure to use culinary grade lemon oil. To substitute 1 teaspoon culinary grade lemon oil - use 1/2 teaspoon pure lemon extract plus the zest of 2 lemons

French Vanilla Buttercream

makes enough to frost 24 cupcakes

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 75 grams egg yolks (about 4 egg yolks)

• 100 grams sugar (1/2 cup)

• 110 grams light corn syrup (about 2 2/3 tablespoons)

• 300 grams unsalted butter, softened (about 2/3 pound)

• 4 grams pure vanilla extract (about 1 teaspoon)

Directions

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg yolks until light yellow in color; turn off the mixer until you're ready to add the hot sugar syrup.

2. In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, heat the sugar and corn syrup together, stirring constantly, until the mixture comes to a full rolling boil.

3. Immediately pour a small amount of the hot syrup into the beaten egg yolks and turn the mixer on right away for a few seconds; turn off and scrape the inside of the bowl with a spatula.

4. Repeat the process using 1/2 of the remaining sugar syrup; mix again for several seconds, turn off, and scrape bowl.

5. Add the remaining sugar syrup and turn the mixer back on, this time allowing it to continue to mix until the egg mixture is completely cool, about 5 minutes (feel the bottom of the bowl to gauge the temperature of the mixture).

6. When the egg mixture is completely cool, beat in the softened butter and vanilla extract, scraping down the sides of the bowl once or twice.

7. Pipe buttercream onto completely cooled cupcakes.

8. Garnish as desired and serve cupcakes at room temperature.

9. Refrigerate unused buttercream - allow to come to room temp before using (you may need to whisk the room temp buttercream to restore its creamy texture).