Raspberries seemed to be the perfect fit J Plus, she’s the kind of girl with a teeny tiny sweet tooth and I didn’t want to overwhelm her with something overpowering and sugary.
The richness of the dark chocolate is balanced out perfectly with the tart raspberry frosting and the drizzle of bittersweet ganache. The cupcake is airy and pairs wondrous with the thick, tangy buttercream.
Happy Birthday, Kara! Hope your birthday was as sweet as you :)
…Recipe by: Martha Stewart
Makes 12 (I doubled this)
For the Dark Chocolate Cupcakes
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup sour cream
For the Raspberry Buttercream
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
4-6 cups powdered sugar (depending of your sweetness level & desired consistency)
1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam
Splash of pure vanilla extract
Dash of sea salt, for taste
For the Chocolate Ganache Drizzle
…Recipe by: Martha Stewart
Makes 1 ½ cups---you will have leftovers!
8 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate
1 cup heavy cream
1/8 teaspoon coarse salt
First up, Prepare the Cupcakes:
(1) Preheat oven to 350° F; Line 12-cup standard muffin tin with paper liners.
(2) Into a medium bowl, sift together cocoa, flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside. In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
(3) Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each, then beat in vanilla.
(4) With mixer on low speed, add flour mixture in two batches, alternating with sour cream and beginning and ending with flour.
(5) Pour batter into cups, filling each 3/4 full. Bake until a toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean, about 20 to 25 minutes.
(6) Cool in pan 5 minutes; transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
(1) Using the bowl of an electric mixer, beat butter and raspberry jam at a low speed, until light and fluffy. Add in vanilla and salt.
(2) Add powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, until you reach a consistency that you desire.
(3) Pipe, or frost onto cupcakes, as desired.
(1) Coarsely chop chocolate (serrated knife works best for this)
(2) Bring cream just to a boil over medium-high heat. Pour over chocolate, and add salt. Let stand for 10 minutes (don't stir -- doing so will cool the ganache too quickly, making it grainy).
(3) Stir with a whisk until smooth and shiny to break up any pieces and emulsify cream and chocolate.
(4) Chocolate will often settle on the bottom or sides of the bowl. Scrape dish with a rubber spatula to incorporate all of it.
(5) Once desired consistency is reached, use a fork to drizzle chocolate lightly over tops of cupcakes.