Peppermint Chocolate Cupcakes #christmas #cupcakes

I'm so excited, I finally came on my favorite chocolate cupcake recipe! I've tried so many chocolate cupcake recipes before and have never really found one that I like completely. They are too dense, too dry, too oily, or they have too much cocoa. So, I decided to make my own recipe. I love this chocolate cupcake. I also like that these are so smooth and beautiful, you take them out of the oven and they don't sink and flatten. They hold their beautiful, round shapes up.

Another great thing about this is the simplicity of this chocolate cupcake. You don't need to melt chocolate or boil water. You simply combine all the dry ingredients then add the rest. Bonus, made from basic ingredients that you may always have in good hands. Of course if you use this recipe for basic chocolate cupcake (free-peppermint version) just remove the peppermint extract and increase vanilla for 1 tsp then top with your favorite frosting.

Ingredients :

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• ½ cup packed light-brown sugar
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup cocoa powder
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp baking soda
• ½ tsp salt
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 large egg
• ½ tsp vanilla extract
• ½ tsp peppermint extract
• 1/3 cup hot water
• ¼ cup sour cream
• 1 recipe Milk Chocolate Ganache , recipe follows
• 1 recipe Peppermint Cream Cheese Frosting , recipe follows
• ½ cup crushed peppermint candy canes

For the Milk Chocolate Ganache

• 3 Tbsp heavy cream
• 1/3 cup milk chocolate chips

For the Peppermint Cream Cheese Frosting

• 6 oz . cream cheese , softened
• ½ tsp vanilla extract
• ½ tsp peppermint extract
• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 6 Tbsp salted butter , softened

Instructions :

1. Preheat 350 degrees oven. In a large bowl with whisk flour, sugar, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add vegetable oil, milk, eggs, vanilla extract and peppermint extract and beat with a mixer at low speed for 2 minutes. Stir in hot water, stir until mixed. Add sour cream and stir until mixed. Fill the paper lined with full muffin cups and bake cupcakes in the oven for 17-19 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the cupcake center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and let it cool for a few minutes in a muffin pan before transferring to the wire rack to cool. Cool on a wire rack for 30 minutes.
2. After cool cupcakes, spread around 1 teaspoon cooled chocolate milk ganache cupcake each. Place cupcakes in a 13 x 9 inch baking plate, cover with plastic wrap and cool for about 10 mintues while you make peppermint cream cheese frosting.
3. Pipe each ganache chocolate cupcake covered with peppermint cream cheese frosting and sprinkle cupcakes with crushed candy sticks.

For milk chocolate Ganache

1. Combine chocolate milk chips and cream in a microwave safe bowl and microwave mixture at 50% strength in 30 second intervals, stirring after each interval until melted and smooth. Cool the mixture in the refrigerator for about 10 minutes (basically until consistency does not become drippy spreadable).

For Peppermint Frosting Cream Cheese

1. In a large bowl, use an electric mixer, whip with butter and cream cheese until it expands, about 1 minute. Stir in vanilla and peppermint extract. Slowly add powdered sugar and mix until mixed and fluffy.our favorite frosting.