Are you looking for an easy Valentine’s Day treat that your whole family will love?  Then, give this Devil’s Food Chocolate Cupcake  with Peanut Butter Frosting a try.  Not only is it quite good, it is also easy to bake since all of the ingredients, except for the egg, are combined directly into the bowl of the stand mixer.  There’s no big mess to clean up and you’ll have cupcakes in no time flat!  I admit I was a little hesitant to just throw all the ingredients together, but the recipe worked, without having to cream the butter first.  The best part is that these cupcakes are moist and light, and thanks to the extra semi-sweet chocolate chips that are folded into the batter, the centers have a little gooey surprise.  The peanut butter frosting recipe gives these cupcakes a devilishly rich and sweet topping.  A little of which goes a long way.

I adapted this recipe from the Cupcake Bakeshop by Chockylit, a baking blog full of cupcake recipes by Cheryl Porro, a software engineer by day, and a prolific baker by night.  Although she doesn’t post as much anymore, her recipe archives are “chock” full of imaginative flavor combinations.  I urge you to visit her site because you will truly be inspired!

Don’t you just love these fun little cupcake liners and picks?  They’re from the Martha Stewart Crafts Collection.  They’re so festive and perfect for Valentine’s Day, without being too obvious and cliché (as if all this pink and red is sedate?!…LOL!).  I guess I’ve been gleefully sucked in by the hype of the upcoming Hallmark holiday!

Devil’s Food Chocolate Cake
Yields 12 cupcakes

Ingredients:
1 cup flour
1 cups sugar
1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 to 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (optional)
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup milk
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon coffee extract
pinch of salt
1 egg
Peanut Butter frosting (recipe below)

Method:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Line muffin tins with cupcake liners.

Combine the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, chocolate chips (if using), baking soda, milk, butter, and the vanilla and coffee extracts in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on low speed at first, to incorporate all the ingredients without making a mess. Then, mix on high speed for about 2 minutes. Add the eggs, and mix on high speed for another 2 minutes.

Fill the cupcake liners about 3/4 of the way full. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. If you added chocolate chips in the batter, a toothpick might not come out clean since the chips are partially melted into the cake. Let cool slightly in the pan, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.

Adapted from Devil’s Food Cupcake With Chocolate Buttercream by Cupcake Bakeshop by Chockylit

Peanut Butter Frosting
Frosts 12 cupcakes*

Ingredients:
1 cup powdered sugar
1 cup creamy peanut butter (I used salted peanut butter)
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
1/3 cup heavy cream

Method:
Place the powdered sugar, peanut butter, butter, vanilla extract and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on medium-low speed until creamy, stopping to scrape down the bowl with a rubber spatula. Add the heavy cream and beat on high speed until the mixture is light and smooth.

*Note: As you can see from the photos, I skimped a little on the frosting since it is very rich and sweet.  I was able to ice 24 cupcakes with this quantity of frosting.  If you want to be more generous with the frosting, consider making a double batch.

Adapted from the Barefoot Contessa at Home by Ina Garten.

© Daisy’s World, 2012. All rights reserved. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Daisy’s World with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.