Ritchie turns 4T

O.M.G. These cupcakes are sooooo good. I made a version of them back in July for Sarah's Bridal Shower, and they were great then. But then Ritchie was turning forty, and I decided to re-work them for his birthday celebration. My roommate loves him some chocolate and raspberry, so that's what these are - triple chocolate raspberry cupcakes. And everyone loved them.

Then I made them again for our most recent baby shower at work (Congrats Pao, Doug, DJ, and Isis!!) and again, there weren't any left over. So my suggestion would be to make sure you save some for yourself, otherwise you won't get any, they will be in other people's bellies.

This recipe (the non-raspberry one) originally came from Stef at the cupcake project, who got it from chockylit, who doesn't have it posted anymore. But Stef's original recipe has 4 different parts, and that was too complicated, so I just chose two - the cupcake and the ganache. Then I added my own touch.

You should make these they're ridiculous.

Triple Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes

(adapted from cupcake project)

Makes 18 cupcakes

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, room temperature

1-1/4 cups sugar

2 large eggs, room temperature

3/4 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 cup whole or 2% milk

1 teaspoons vanilla

2/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

2/3 pint raspberries, cut in half

1. Beat butter until softened.

2. Add sugar and beat until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.

3. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until well combined.

4. Measure the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder into a small sized bowl and whisk to combine.

5. Measure out the milk and vanilla and stir to combine.

6. Add about a third of the dry ingredients to the butter/sugar and beat to combine. Add about a half of the milk/vanilla and beat to combine.

7. Continue adding, alternating between dry and wet and finishing with the dry.

8. Stir in chocolate chips and raspberries

9. Scoop batter into cupcake cups about 1/2 full.

10. Bake at 350°F for 22-25 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean. The raspberries add moisture to the cupcakes, so they are gooey, but the tester will come out clean.

11. Once the cupcakes are completely cool, frost with ganache.

12. If you want, you can add a raspberry to the top of each cupcake for additional decoration.

Chocolate Ganache

1/3 cup heavy cream

3.5 oz dark chocolate

1. Put chocolate in a bowl.

2. In a small sauce pan, bring heavy cream just to a boil.

3. As soon as it comes to a boil, pour over chocolate.

4. Whisk together until completely smooth.

5. Spread on cupcakes immediately (it's easiest if you use a spoon).

*Note* This may not seem like a lot of ganache, but I promise it will be enough for the 18 cupcakes. They don't need that much on top.

Happy Birthday Jill!

These cupcakes were enjoyed by one and all. Except me. Sometimes I'm critical of what I make (okay, all the time), and I thought these came out a little dry. However, the recipe that I'm posting below aims to correct that dryness by increasing the butter, so feel free to try them.

I made these for my cube-mate Jill's birthday... the big 2-3. She is also my biggest competitor in the baking department. She promises that I did not let her down. So without further delay...

Coffee Cake Cupcakes

(adapted from my girl Martha)

This recipe has three parts (but is really not that complicated):

Cupcakes

Streusel topping

Milk glaze

I made the streusel topping first, because it has to chill. So I'll put those instructions first.

Streusel topping:

1 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 cup brown sugar

2 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

3/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp unsalted butter (1 1/4 sticks) at room temperature

1. Whisk together dry ingredients, then add in the butter using a pastry blender or your fingertips. I used my hands to combine.

2. Combine until still crumbly.

3. Refrigerate for 30 minutes before using.

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Cupcakes:

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 1/4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp unsalted butter (1 1/4 sticks) at room temperature

1 cup sugar

3 eggs

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

1 1/4 cups sour cream

1. Whisk together first four ingredients

2. With an electric mixer on medium-high, cream together butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating until each is incorporated.

3. Stir in vanilla.

4. Add flour mixture slowly, then sour cream. Stir until just combined. At this point, the batter will be somewhat like bread dough, kind of sticky. I used a spoon to scoop out the batter, almost as if I was scooping cookie dough.

5. Line 24 muffin tins with paper liners

6. Divide batter evenly among lined cups.

7. Sprinkle half the streusel topping evenly over the cupcakes, pressing it into the batter with a spoon. Evenly sprinkle the remaining topping.

8. Bake at 350°F for about 20 minutes, rotating halfway through.

9. Remove from oven and let cool fully.

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Milk Glaze:

Make this milk glaze right before using.

1 1/2 cups confectioners sugar

3 tablespoons milk

1. Whisk together ingredients until smooth.

2. Drizzle over cupcakes