NOTHING beats chocolate! To me, the ultimate treat is sweet and contains chocolate in some shape or form. These days, cupcakes are all the rage. That’s probably got something to do with the easy preparation -anyone can do it-, ingredients – anyone can get it- and ready to eat serving portions -everywhere can these be served, no plates or cutlery neccessary-.

So here’s hoping this recipe for chocolate cupcakes will inspire you to get baking — from scratch! Yesterday I once again checked the package of one of those cupcake mixes offered in every store now: It really is nothing but self-raising flour and sugar. Please don’t waste your money on those, try this recipe instead!

Ingredients:

For the cake

140 g flour

50 g cocoa powder

1 tbsp baking powder (7 g)

220 g sugar

pinch of salt

1 egg

120 ml coffee (cooled) – I used instant coffee

60 ml (butter)milk – the sourness of buttermilk aids the baking powder

60 ml sunflower oil – but peanutoil or another plain vegetable oil will work just fine

1 vanilla pod’s seeds – I used approximately 2 teaspoons of artificial vanilla flavoring

For the topping

250 g butter (at room temperature)

60 g powdered sugar

250 g custard pudding (in Dutch also known as ‘banketbakkersroom’. You could use instant pudding, custard powder cooked in milk, or make it from scratch)

150 g dark chocolate, melted or nutella, at room temperature, amount to taste

1. Mix the dry cake ingredients together, mix the wet cake ingredients together, and eventually mix them all together.
2. Bake the cupcakes in paper liners in a cupcake baking tray – otherwise they will not have the proper shape: 25 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius.
3. Mix together the butter and powdered sugar for at least 10 minutes.
4. Add the custard gradually, and keep mixing until your chocolate buttercream is nice and smooth.
5. Pipe on the buttercream (here’s a video tutorial), or just smear it on.

(This recipe is an adaptation from ‘Rudolph’s Cupcakes‘ by Rudolph van Veen – in Dutch)