Halloween is such a fun holiday! We get to dress up and get candy!! I mean what is better than that?!?As a child I never really cared why Halloween was a holiday, I really only wanted to dress up and go trick-or-treating with my friends. As I got older, I found I have a very curious mind and wanted to know what it was all about. It turns out Halloween dates back thousands of years to Celtic and pagan times when it was called Samhain. It was believed that on November 1st, the gods and/or other spirits would be visible in our world. For some of us, this may sound like a time to reunite with lost loved ones, but it was a time that was feared by many. Bonfires would be set and some would even wear masks to ward off evil spirits and to ensure none would recognize them. As the Celtic or Pagan religions came to an end, it started to become known as All Hallow’s Eve – I think we can see where the word Halloween came from – and November 1st became known as All Saints Day. That day had become a day to celebrate…you guessed it…Saints. What we know as Halloween didn’t become popular until the 20th century with children (and adults) dressing up and trick-or-treating for candy or other treats. However, there seems to be some versions of trick-or-treating in the Old Worlds of the Irish and Scottish and other areas as well, just doesn’t seem to be quite on the same scale as we see today. I still love Halloween and have come to think of it more as All Hallow’s Eve or Samhain but without the evil spirits. 😊🎃
As you all know, I love to bake and will find any excuse to do so. I found this great recipe on the Food Network for Black Chocolate Cake…but I make it in cupcake form and with a little different filling:
Black Chocolate Cupcake w/Black Raspberry filling
Ingredients
- For the cupcakes
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup unsweetened black cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped (I’ve used semi-sweet chips as well)
- 1 tablespoon instant coffee granules
- 1 1/2 cups boiling water
- 3/4 cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (I love vanilla so I think I end up with at least 1.5-2 tsps)
- 3 large eggs
- 2 cups sugar
- For the filling
- Jar of Black Raspberry Jam (seedless) – approximately 18oz jar
- For the frosting
- 1 cup salted butter
- 4 cups powdered sugar – I make this a light 4 cups, probably more like 3-3/4 cups.
- 3/4 cup (heaping) black cocoa
- 6 tblsp. whole milk
- 2 tsp. vanilla
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350˚. Line a cupcake pan with cupcake liners or use silicone baking cups.
- Whisk the flour, cocoa powder, salt, baking soda and baking powder in a medium bowl. In a separate medium bowl, combine the chopped chocolate and instant coffee; pour in the boiling water and let stand 5 minutes, then whisk until smooth. Combine the sour cream, vegetable oil and vanilla in a liquid measuring cup (it will look curdled).
- Beat the eggs and sugar in a large bowl with a mixer on medium speed until combined. Increase the speed to medium high and beat until light and fluffy, 4 to 5 minutes. Reduce the mixer speed to low and slowly add the coffee-chocolate mixture; beat until combined. Beat in the flour mixture in three batches, alternating with the sour cream mixture in two batches, until just incorporated. (Keep the mixer on low as you add the ingredients, then increase the speed to medium briefly between additions to beat out the lumps.) The batter should look like hot fudge.
- Divide the batter between the prepared cups. The batter is very loose, I like to use a measuring cup with a good pour spout or those pancake batter dispensers. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the centers comes out clean, about 25-30 minutes. Let cool 5-15 minutes in the pans on a cooling rack, or until you can safely remove them without burning your fingers. Remove the cupcakes to a rack to cool completely.
- Original link recipe for the cake from the Food Network: https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchen/black-chocolate-cake-7439159
- Once the cupcakes are completely cooled they can be filled. You can fill them by either using a decorating bag with a medium tip and inserting into the center of the cup cake and squeezing some filling in. Or my preference is using a cupcake corer. It makes perfect holes in the center (and then you can eat the centers) and you the same amount of filling in each one without guess. If you use the corer, just core out the center – I use a small corer and just go about half way down – and then fill with jam. I still use a decorator bag with tip to make things easier and a lot less messy. 😉
- Now for the frosting. This recipe I found online and absolutely love it, which says a lot considering I’m not a huge fan of buttercream frosting.
- Beat butter in a mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Add black cocoa and powdered sugar and begin to mix – I add about 2 cups at a time of the powdered sugar so it doesn’t fly all over, then the vanilla, and finally the black cocoa powder. Add 3 tablespoons whole milk and beat until smooth. Then add the last 3 tablespoons and mix until smooth and all ingredients are incorporated.
- Here is the link to the original recipe from Ella Claire & Co: https://www.ellaclaireinspired.com/black-buttercream-frosting-recipe/
- Finally – frost your cupcakes. I like to use the really big tip and make the rose like swirls. I tend to keep smaller swirls as I don’t love a lot of frosting. If you like a lot of frosting or want higher swirls, I would probably double the frosting recipe.
- I keep the cupcakes in the refrigerator and just take out about 10-15min before serving.
- Enjoy!!!!
