Chocolate+Cream Cheese+Buttercream = Happiness

Just looking at these I get hungry....hmmmmm they were so good! Ok so I think I've become obsessed with cupcakes lately! I found this chocolate cupcake recipe and the buttercream recipe from a website I LOVE, http://www.bakerella.com/ (I've become obsessed with her website as well). I made all chocolate cupcakes and then two different frosting's a buttercream frosting in which I tinted with pink coloring and a chocolate cream cheese frosting in which I filled 1/4 of the cupcakes with and then frosted with either of the frosting's. I only filled some of the cupcakes because I thought it might be too much but apparently I was dead wrong! I took the to a BBQ and it seriously like looking for Willy Wonka's golden ticket! All the girls were lifting up the cupcakes comparing weights trying to find the filled ones and if they picked a regular cupcake they pond it off on their husband and picked a new one. It was hilarious. I of course didn't distinguished the filled ones with any certain frosting or decoration so it really was a game of chance. I loved it!!

24 chocolate cupcakes ready to be frosted

I borrowed my mom's cake decorating tips, I really want to start learning how to decorate cakes and cupcakes so here is my first lesson.

All ready to go get eaten in my new cupcake carrier from Target

Chocolate Cupcakes

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2/3 cup cocoa
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 cups sugar
• 3/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 3 eggs, room temperature
• 1 1/4 c milk, room temperature
• 1 tsp vanilla

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare cupcake pans with 36 baking cups. With a wire whisk, sift together flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl and set aside. In a mixer, cream sugar and butter. Add eggs one at a time, scraping down sides with each addition. Add vanilla. Add flour mixture to the creamed butter in three additions, alternating with the milk in two additions. (flour, milk, flour, milk, flour) Bake for about 15 minutes or until done. Cool and frost.

Buttercream Frosting

• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, room temp
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 lb powdered sugar (3 3/4 cups)
• 1-3 tsp milk, half and half, or cream

Using a mixer, cream softened butter and vanilla until smooth. Add sugar gradually, allowing butter and sugar to cream together before adding more. If you want your frosting a little more creamier, add a teaspoon of milk at a time and beat on high until you get the right texture. Then use icing colors to tint the frosting the color of your choice. This is usually just enough for a 2-layer cake, double the recipe for a 3-layer cake.

Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting

• 1- 8oz pkg cream cheese, room temp
• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, room temp
• 4 cups sifted powdered sugar (decrease the amount of you don't care for it being stiff for piping
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
  

Mix cream cheese and butter until smooth and creamy. Mix in powdered sugar one cup at a time. Mix in cocoa powder.

These cupcakes where wonderful!! I recommend them. If you make them let me know what you think! I plan on making many more cupcakes and will be trying new kinds as well! Happy Baking :)