Chocolate Malted Cupcakes

I am getting really behind on blogging about these cupcakes. I blame my life. Rest assured that, while it is taking me awhile to get blog posts about the cupcakes up, I am still baking the cupcakes.

These cupcakes appeared at Enrichment this week. Sadly, I did not appear at Enrichment. Because I work for an employee assistance program, by definition, my clients all have jobs. Consequently, most of them need to be seen in the evenings, which makes it hard for me to follow TV shows (thank goodness they have started making them available on the internet) or attend night activities during the week. However, when they announced in Relief Society that there would be cupcakes at the upcoming Enrichment activity, it went without saying that I would contribute.

I picked this recipe because it made me think of an old-fashioned soda fountain. Also, I haven't made any chocolate cupcakes out of this book yet, which I think is a crying shame, since I love chocolate. And I made this recipe on the heels of a killer weekend which included some school disappointment, some depressing singles' activities, and a really bad BYU loss. Thank goodness for cupcakes.

This recipe includes some fun ingredients like

and

Chocolate malted cupcakes

2 1/4 c. all-purpose flour

3/4 c. unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder (I could not find this in the store. Apparently, the Dutch processing removes some of the nutrients, so most stores sell natural cocoa powder. Thanks again, Martha. However, I did find this Hershey's Special Dark cocoa, which blends natural and Dutched cocoa together. In case you are wondering, Dutch cocoa is darker than natural cocoa).

1/2 c. granulated sugar

3/4 c. packed light-brown sugar

1 1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 c. milk

1 1/4 c. malted milk powder

1 c. vegetable oil (this is maybe the first Martha recipe I have made that calls for oil instead of butter)

3 large eggs, room temperature

1 c. sour cream, room temperature

1 tsp. pure vanilla extract (I plan to use the imitation stuff until it runs out)

Preheat oven to 350. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Whisk flour, cocoa, both sugars, baking soda, and salt. In another bowl, whisk together milk and malted milk powder until powder is dissolved.

With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat flour mixture, milk mixture, and oil until combined. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Add sour cream and vanilla, and beat until just combined.

Divide batter evenly among lined cups (should fill about halfway). Bake, rotating tins halfway through, about 20 minutes. Makes about 28.

Frost with fluffy vanilla frosting.

Fluffy Vanilla Frosting

This is a lot like what I would consider a buttercream frosting. I used my KitchenAid to whip it to a fluffy consistency.

1 1/2 c. (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature (I know, I know)

1 lb. (4 c.) confectioners' sugar, sifted (I did not sift mine. I feel okay about it).

1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

With an electric mixer, beat butter on medium high speed until pale and creamy, about 2 minutes.

Reduce speed to medium. Add confectioner's sugar, 1/2 c. at a time, beating well after each addition, and scraping down sides of bowl as needed. After every two additions, raise speed to high and beat 10 seconds to aerate frosting, then return to medium. This process should take about 5 minutes. Frosting will be very pale and fluffy.

Add vanilla, and beat until frosting is smooth. Spread with a knife or pipe with pastry bag.

I really liked the way this frosting piped on the cupcakes. I haven't decided if I think it is a good thing or a bad thing for my cupcakes to look store-bought.