Rich Chocolate Cupcakes With Strawberry Frosting

By foodiva

Ingredients

• 3 cups sliced frozen strawberries
• 6 tbsp orange liqueur
• 8 oz bittersweet chocolate, either chips or finely chopped
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 8 tbsp (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
• 3 oz bittersweet chocolate, either chips or finely chopped
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp table salt
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup sour cream, room temperature
• 16 tbsp (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 3 cups confectioners' sugar
• 3 tbsp strawberry juice pressed from the compote through a fine mesh sieve
• heart sprinkles, optional

Details

Servings 6
Preparation time 60mins
Cooking time 78mins
Adapted from justalittlebitofbacon.com

Preparation

Step 1

Instructions

Strawberry Compote

Add the strawberries and liqueur to a large saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Let simmer until the compote is thick and syrupy. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature. You can make the compote a day ahead.

Chocolate Ganache

Put the chocolate into a heat safe bowl large enough to hold the chocolate and cream and allow you to whisk. Bring the cream to a boil over medium high heat. Pour the cream into the bowl of chocolate. Let it sit for 30 seconds, then whisk until smooth. Set the ganache aside. (The ganache will need at least 30 minutes to cool enough to get to a spreadable consistency.)

Rich Chocolate Cupcakes

Preheat oven to 350F. Fill the wells of a jumbo cupcake pan with liners. If you are halving the recipe, fill the empty wells halfway with water.

Fill a medium saucepan with a couple of inches of water. Bring the water to a gentle simmer over medium low heat. Add butter and chocolate to a medium heatproof bowl and set it over the saucepan of water. Heat until the chocolate and butter are melted, whisking occasionally. Add the cocoa to the melted chocolate and whisk until smooth. Set the bowl aside and let cool until just warm to the touch.

In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking power, and salt.

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, then add in the brown sugar and vanilla. Pour in the cooled chocolate and whisk until smooth. Whisk in 1/3 of the flour mixture, then 1/2 of the sour cream, another 1/3 of the flour, the remaining sour cream, and the remaining flour. Batter should be thick and smooth.

Add 1/2 cup of batter to each cupcake liner. Bake the cupcakes for 18-19 minutes. A toothpick will still be a little wet if you put it the middle of the cupcakes. Let the cupcakes cool in the pan for a few minutes then carefully move them to a cooling rack.

Once the cupcakes have cooled for about 15 minutes on the rack, remove a 2 inch section of cupcake top from each. If needed, scoop out some of the middle so you have enough room for 2 tbsp of filling. Add 1 tbsp of ganache and 1 tbsp of strawberry compote to each cupcake. Replace the tops. Then spread another tablespoon or two of ganache over the top of each cupcake. Let the cupcakes cool completely to room temperature.

Strawberry Buttercream Frosting

Press the remaining strawberry compote through a fine mesh strainer and collect the liquid. You should have about 3 tbsp when you're done. Set this aside for the frosting.

In a large bowl begin beating together the butter and confectioners' sugar with a mixer on low speed. Add the strawberry juice one tablespoon at a time while you continue to beat together the butter and sugar. Once the frosting is creamy and smooth, transfer it to a piping bag or a plastic bag with the corner cut off. If you want, use a decorative tip to pipe the frosting. Pipe frosting onto each cupcake. Decorate with colored sprinkles.