Dark Chocolate Cinnamon Cupcakes with Cinnamon Brown Sugar Buttercream. AKA, The OMFG.
When I was pregnant with both of my boys I craved two things: Blueberries, and cupcakes. Not necessarily in that order.
I ate so many damn cupcakes. Every week I would frequent the local bakeries, select my favorites of the day, and enjoy them outside in the Arizona sunshine.
Monday: Sprinkles for a Banana with Bittersweet Chocolate. Wednesday: Caketini for a Lemon Raspberry. Friday: 21 Cakes for a Honey Vanilla (And maybe a Blueberry Macaron. Just, maybe.)
The cashiers new me by name. It. Was. Pathetic.
Now I don’t make, or eat, cupcakes very often. I guess I consumed enough for three lifetimes back then. These days, the visual of a pretty little single-serving cake tends to be more appealing than actually eating one.
Although, when I do get a hankering, my go-to cupcake recipe is this one (adapted from The Cupcake Project.) And lord knows I’ve got more than enough experience to claim this particular combination “OMFG” status worthy.
Dark Chocolate Cinnamon Cupcakes
(makes 16 cupcakes)
4 tbsp unsalted butter (room temperature)
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup good quality dark chocolate (melted then cooled to room temperature)
2 eggs, plus 2 egg yolks (room temperature)
1/2 cup coconut oil (Melted and cooled to room temperature. I get mine at Trader Joe’s. If you can’t find coconut oil, sub with vegetable oil. Don’t be afraid of coconut oil though, I swear it’s part of what makes these so super moist, and adds just a tiny hint of coconut flavor. SO YUM.)
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup full fat sour cream
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tbsp espresso powder dissolved in 1/2 cup room temperature water
Cinnamon Brown Sugar Buttercream
6 tbsp unsalted butter (room temperature)
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 1/2 – 2 cups powdered sugar (adjust to desired consistency)
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
3 – 4 tbsp heavy cream
a teensy pinch of salt
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a 12 hole muffin tin with paper liners and set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix the butter and sugar until fully combined. Add the melted chocolate to the butter/sugar mixture and mix until just combined. Mix in the eggs and yolks, one at a time, until just combined. Mix in the coconut oil, vanilla and sour cream until just combined.
In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, cinnamon, salt, and baking soda. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients in three separate additions, mixing until just combined after each. Mix in the espresso powder water until just combined.
Fill the cupcake liners 2/3 full and bake in the preheated oven for 18 – 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Immediately remove the cupcakes from the tin and place them on a cooling rack to cool to room temperature.
To make the cinnamon brown sugar buttercream, mix together the room temperature butter and brown sugar until combined. Slowly add in the powdered sugar and mix to combine. Add in the cinnamon, vanilla, salt and heavy cream and continue mixing until desired buttercream consistency.
I highly recommend a good glob of frosting on each cupcake. You know, so when you bite down into it the frosting smashes into the center of the cake, providing the perfect frosting to cake ratio in every single nibble.
In my opinion, these are perfect. Moist (ugh, such a gross word) cake with buttercream that’s flavorful beyond words. Yes. Dark chocolate and cinnamon are my absolute favorite flavor duo.
Apparently I like my cupcakes how I like my men: sweet, spicy and comforting. You thought I was going to say ‘rich’… oh, ye of little faith.
OMFG. SO GOOD.
omfg. so good. 