Hot Chocolate Cupcakes stuffed with Marshmallow!

When temperatures start to drop…

…its the best time for hot chocolate cupcakes!

Tastes just like hot chocolate 🙂

Ingredients:

For Chocolate Cupcakes:

• 3/4 cup cake flour
• 3/4 cup granulated white sugar
• 1/2 cup Valrhona cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons buttermilk, at room temperature
• 1/3 strong coffee, hot
• 1/2 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 egg plus 1 egg white, at room temperature

For Chocolate Buttercream:

• 2 sticks plus 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened (warmer than room temperature)
• 2 cups confectioner’s sugar, sifted
• 3/4 cup Valrhona 100% cocoa powder
• 1/3 cup heavy whipping cream
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• Pinch of salt

For Chocolate Ganache:

• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup Ghirardelli 60% cocoa chocolate chips
• Pinch of salt

Plus Marshmallow Fluff for filling!

Directions:

For Cupcake:

• In bowl to standing mixer, shift together cake flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
• In a small bowl, whisk together buttermilk, hot coffee, vanilla extract and then the egg plus egg white (Make sure the hot coffee isn’t boiling hot that it will cook the egg).
• With a paddle attachment to standing mixer, on low speed, slowly add the buttermilk mixture to the dry ingredients. Mix until just combined and if there are some lumps, its okay.
• Start placing cupcake liners into the muffin tray and divide the cupcake batter among the 12 lined cupcake tins.
• Bake at 350F degrees for 16-18 minutes and allow the cupcakes to cool for about 5-10 minutes in the tray before moving them to the cooling rack.

For Buttercream:

• While the cupcakes are cooling, start making the buttercream.
• With paddle attachment on standing mixer, combine unsalted butter and confectioner’s sugar on low speed (KitchenAid mixer speed 2) for approximately two minutes.
• Add pure vanilla extract and continue to mix for another two minutes.
• Add heavy whipping cream and pinch of salt and increase mixer speed to medium-high (KitchenAid mixer speed 6) for another two minutes.
• Stop the mixer and scrap down the sides of the bowl and mix on high (KitchenAid speed 8) for a few seconds.

For Chocolate Ganache:

• In saucepan, on medium-low heat, heat the heavy cream until simmering.
• Turn off the heat and then add in chocolate chips.
• Allow the chocolate chips to sit and then whisk the heavy cream and chocolate chips together until mixture is smooth.
• Can be used immediately and excess can be stored in airtight container in refrigerator.

Assemble:

• Use a round pipping tip to puncture a hole and remove some of the central part of the cupcake. Here you have two options, which will also determine how much filling you need.

You can use either end of the tip (the narrow end or wide opening). The only difference is how much marshmallow filling you will get into the cupcake. If you’re a marshmallow fanatic, like me… then definitely use the wide opening downwards. I bought the large tip from Williams-Sonoma, so it’s not a branded tip with a reference number to it, but for your reference, the base (wide end of the opening) is 3.5 cm and the opening of the tip (narrow end) is 1.7 cm.

Note: if you’re filling the cupcake with salted caramel or less viscose than marshmallow, I suggest using a bismarck tip, which has a long narrow tube to essentially inject the filling into the cupcake. In this case, I would not remove any cake from the center, just directly fill the center of the cupcake.

Sometimes the center of the cake does not come out easily and in that case, I’ll use a pair of chopsticks or knife to pull out the cake.

• Use a spatula or spoon to scoop the marshmallow fluff into pipping bag fitted with a round tip (I used a Wilton 12).

Pipe some awesome marshmallow goodness into that cupcake.

• Use a closed star-tip to pipe a swirl frosting on the cupcake (start pipping from the center of the cupcake and spiral out to the edge of the cupcake (to have one layer of buttercream base on the bottom), then continue to pipe in a swirl around the cupcake continuing upwards after each round.
• Use desired amount of chocolate ganache on top of the buttercream and top with mini marshmallows (I used Kraft Mallow-Bits). Finish off with a red and white striped straw!

Enjoy!!

**Chocolate cupcake recipe adapted from Sweetapolita.