Sunday, October 25, 2009

The Inevitable Birthday Cupcakes


First of all, thank you for the sweet birthday wishes. You are all lovely, and you make me so very happy! It was a great weekend, full of good eats, which of course, meant cupcakes. These beautiful babies were moist, fudgy, and the sheen on that ganache just begs you to take a bite.

Chocolate Chip and Mascarpone Cupcakes
Recipe courtesy Giada De Laurentiis and the Food Network


Cupcakes
5 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1 cup water
1/3 cup mascarpone cheese, at room temperature
2 1/4 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup (6 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips

Ganache
1 cup (6 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
2/3 cup heavy whipping cream
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the Cupcakes:
Place an oven rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 325 degrees F. Combine the unsweetened chocolate and water in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Stir constantly until the chocolate is melted, about 2 minutes. Cool for 2 minutes. Whisk in the mascarpone cheese until the mixture is smooth. Beat the sugar, oil, eggs, and vanilla in a large bowl for 30 seconds. Stir in the mascarpone mixture. Whisk the flour, baking soda, salt, baking powder, and chocolate chips in a medium bowl. Add the dry ingredients to the chocolate mixture. Stir until just blended. Divide the batter among the prepared muffin pans. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until a tester inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out with no crumbs attached. Cool the cupcakes completely before dipping, about 1 hour.

For the Ganache:
Place the chocolate chips in a small bowl. Combine the heavy cream and vanilla extract in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook until small bubbles appear on the outside edge of the cream. Pour the hot cream mixture over the chocolate chips. Using a fork, gently stir until all the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth.

Dip the tops of each cupcake in the ganache and transfer to a baking sheet. Place the dipped cupcakes in the refrigerator to set, about 15 to 20 minutes. Allow cupcakes to return to room temperature before serving.

15 comments:

  1. I saw this Giada episode (I love her) and it looks so good!

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  2. glad you had a good birthday :)
    my husband's is tomorrow, maybe I'll make him these fabulous looking cupcakes!

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  3. I watched her make those and was drooling! That ganache on top is just so gooey and dark. Glad you liked them- now I will make them!

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  4. These look really good. I love the idea of marscapone vs cream cheese. A little sweeter and creamier choice. And the ganache frosting is my fav.
    thanks - ann

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  5. Looks delish..and a good way to celebrate your bday :)

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  6. il bandito del bignéOctober 26, 2009 at 1:29 PM

    hey this looks good enough for a seattle visit...

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  7. Ohh my, these look yummy! Love Giada! Glad to see you had a delicious treat for your Birthday!

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  8. What a perfectly lovely little cupcake!

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  9. Good enough for breakfast I'd say - yum. And ganache is so fancy but so simple.

    Hope you had a very happy birthday!

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  10. Smiling....cause we all have our cupcake birthday stories. Lovely.

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  11. you and your blog are making me very happy right now.

    glad you stopped by mine, so i could find your little gem of a blog.

    ReplyDelete

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