Black bottomed cupcakes

The other day, I think it was last Monday, I was in a real baking mood. I think I was looking at a couple of recipes online and then just really really wanted to make cakes. Initially I wanted to make something like biscotti or cinnamon buns but I then thought best to stick with something slightly easier for now! (I will however definitely be trying biscotti and cinnamon buns in the immediate future)

So this cupcake recipe was taken from The Hummingbird Bakery Cookbook. Which is a good cake cookbook, I haven’t used it a whole lot, because even the recipes I make more often such as banana bread and brownies (which Hummingbird has) I take from other cookbooks. Though I did make a whole range of different cupcakes from the book last year for my friend Bobby’s birthday : - )

These cupcakes are decadent and creamy, you get the slightly powdery, chocolately base, with a crunch of choc chips and the smooth cream cheese topping. Delicious!

So first off, here is the ingredient list –

Chocolate sponge base –

190g plain flour

120g caster sugar

40g cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda

40ml sunflower oil

1 1/2 teaspoons white vinegar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Cheesecake filling –

140g cream cheese

60g caster sugar

1 egg

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

A pinch of salt

100g milk chocolate chips

You will need –

A 12 hole cupcake tray, greased and lined with paper cases

What to do –

Part 1

Preheat the oven to 170C and grease the cupcake tray and line with paper cases.

For the chocolate sponge case –

Put the flour, sugar, cocoa powder and bicarbonate of soda in a large bowl and mix with a handheld electric whisk on a slow speed until the dry ingredients are well incorporated together.

Put the oil, vinegar, vanilla extract and 125ml of water in a jug and whisk to combine. While mixing the dry ingredients with the handheld whisk, slowly add the contents of the jug, increasing the speed of the blender as the mixture thickens. Continue to beat until all of the ingredients are well mixed together.

Spoon the mixture into the paper cases until two-thirds full.

Part 2

Beat together the cream cheese, sugar, egg, vanilla extract and salt using a freestanding electric mixer with a paddle attachment (or a handheld whisk OR a wooden spoon if you can beat fast enough!) until smooth and fluffy.

Stir in the chocolate chips by hand. Do not overmix!

Scoop about a tablespoon of the cheesecake filling on top of the cupcake mixture in the cases.

Bake in a preheated oven for 20 minutes or until the cupcakes are firm to the touch and they have an even golden colour on the cheesecake filling. Don’t overcook as this will make the cheesecake very dry and crumbly.

Leave the cupcakes to cool before enjoying!