Chocolate Cupcake Parfaits

By mommypop

Ingredients

• Chocolate Cupcakes:
• 2 cups flour
• 3 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 3 large eggs, at room temperature
• 3 oz unsweetened chocolate, melted, cooled
• 3/4 whole milk, at room temperature
• Pudding:
• 1 cup each: heavy cream, whole milk
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp sugar
• 2 Tbsp each: unsweetened cocoa powder, cornstarch
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 2 Tbsp plus 1 tsp unsalted butter
• 3 oz bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

Details

Preparation time 40mins
Cooking time 80mins

Preparation

Step 1

Pudding:

Whisk the cream, milk, and egg in a medium saucepan. In a bowl, whisk together sugar, cocoa, cornstarch and salt; add mixture to the saucepan. Heat to a boil, whisking constantly, over moderately high heat. Strain the pudding into a bowl. Stir in the butter and chocolate until melted.

Pour pudding into a glass bowl. Press plastic wrap directly on the surface of the pudding; refrigerate until chilled, about 30 minutes.

Cupcakes:

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin pans with the 18-20 paper liners. Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together in a bowl; set aside.

Combine the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on low until well mixed. Increase speed to medium; beat until mixture is very light and pale in color, about 5 minutes. Beat in vanilla.

Beat in the eggs one at a time, beating smooth after each addition. Beat in the melted chocolate. Scrape the bowl and eater with a spatula.

Restart the mixer on low. Add a quarter of the flour mixture; beat until absorbed. Increase speed to medium-low; beat in 1/4 cup milk.

Repeat step 4, including the change of speed two more times.

Stop and scrape; beat in the remaining flour mixture. Scrape again. Increase the speed to medium; beat 3 minutes.

Divide the batter among the lined pans, filling the cups to the top. Bake, 15-20 minutes. Cool before proceeding with parfait.

Parfaits:

Prep: Whip 1 cup whipping cream, with 1-2 Tbsp sugar, to soft peaks.

Cut tops off 6 cupcakes, slicing them crosswise just below where the top meets the base.

Choose 6 glasses that are wide enough to accommodate the cupcake tops.

Layer: Plop about 1/4 cup chocolate pudding in the bottom of each glass.

Nestle the cupcake bottoms into the pudding, pushing in gently so the pudding comes partway up the sides of the cupcakes.

Dollop each with a generous portion of whipped cream, pushing down around the sides of the cupcakes and covering its top.

Dollop on half-inch layer of pudding.

Gently top with the cupcake tops.

Finish with a dollop each of pudding and whipping cream. Shavings of dark chocolate would be nice as well. Cover the parfaits and chill. When ready to serve, re-fluff the whipped cream with a whisk.