Hostess Cupcakes

By michaelmeiner

Ingredients

• 2 3/4 cups flour
• 1 Tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 sticks butter -- at room temperature
• 1 1/3 cups sugar
• 1/3 cup light brown sugar
• 3 extra large eggs
• 6 ounces bittersweet chocolate (at least 60%) -- melted
• 1 Tablespoon unsulfured molasses (mild flavored)
• 1 Tablespoon vanilla
• 3/4 cup whole milk
• buttercream frosting
• 3 cups chocolate ganache

Details

Servings 24

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat oven to 350. Line cupcake tins.

Sift flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda in small bowl.

In a large bowl with electric mixer on medium, cream the butter and both sugars together until light and creamy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each one. Beat in the melted chocolate, molasses and vanilla. Using a wooden spoon, stir in some of the flour mixture, then some of the milk. Repeat until both have been incorporated.

Fill the muffin cups almost to the tops (about 7/8th full). Bake until set and a toothpick inserted in the centers come out with moist crumbs, about 25 minutes. Cool.

Place buttercream in a pastry bag with coupler and a medium open-star tip. Press the tip from the top about 2/3rds of the way down into the center of each of the cooled cupcakes (don't go all the way through). Squeeze the bag, filling each cupcake with 1 tablespoon of the buttercream (squeeze until the frosting reaches the top of the cupcake). Wipe the tip clean in between cupcakes.

Make the ganache and freeze until it thickens, 10 to 15 minutes. Dip and swirl the top of the cupcake into the ganache and set it on a wire rack.

Change the tip on the pastry bag to a small round tip. Decorate the top of the cupcake with a corkscrew design.