That Warm Winter Feeling

Winter has definitely arrived with a bang in Wellington this year! It's been getting pretty cold and gross here lately, the days are much shorter and it's almost always dark by the time I leave work. Even though winter can be a bit depressing, so many grey clouds and a LOT of rain in Wellington! But I actually still love winter. I love the clothes, I love sitting by the fire (unfortunately at other people's houses, we don't have a fire!) and I also love all of the warm, rich flavours and spices that winter offers. The rain and wind and general unpleasant weather also offers a fantastic chance to do some baking!

Even though you could technically make these cupcakes at any time of year, gingerbread does tend to lend itself to winter. I used a half recipe of My Favourite Chocolate Cake and turned it into cupcakes, jazzed up a bit with some gingerbread type spices. The Swiss meringue buttercream is flavoured with cocoa and some spices as well, which I think makes these truly chocolate gingerbread cupcakes. I was also excited for the chance to use my little gingerbread men sprinkles which looked so cute on the top! I got them from Cake Stuff, a New Zealand baking and decorating supplies company. I've bought quite a few specialty items from them and they're always really good and affordable, a hard combination to find in New Zealand. I hope you enjoy these cupcakes as much as I did with or without the sprinkles, happy baking!

 

Chocolate Gingerbread Cupcakes

This recipe will make around 15-20 cupcakes, depending on how much you fill the cases.

Ingredients

45g dark chocolate bits

3/4 cups hot brewed coffee

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 1/4 cups flour

3/4 cups dark cocoa powder (not Dutch-process)

1 tspn baking soda

1/4 tspn baking powder

1/2 tspn salt

2 eggs

1/3 cup vegetable oil

3/4 cups buttermilk, shaken

3/4 tspn vanilla essence

1 tspn ground ginger

1 Tbspn ground cinnamon

3/4 tspn ground nutmeg

 

Chocolate Gingerbread Swiss Meringue Buttercream

5 egg whites

1 1/4 cups brown sugar

340g butter, softened

1/2 tspn vanilla essence

5 Tbspn cocoa powder

2 tspn ground cinnamon

1 tspn ground ginger

3/4 tspn ground nutmeg

Pinch of salt

 

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 150°C and line 2 standard muffin tins with cupcake liners.
2. Put the chocolate in a bowl, add instant coffee powder or granules and pour 3/4 cup of boiling water over the chocolate (alternately, brew enough plunger or espresso coffee to make a 3/4 cup and pour that over the chocolate). Mix together until smooth.
3. Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt together in a large bowl. In the bowl of a stand mixer (or a large bowl with a hand mixer) beat the eggs until thickened and lemon coloured (around 5 minutes).
4. Slowly add the oil, buttermilk and vanilla, beating after each addition. Then add the sugar, before mixing in the chocolate and coffee mixture. Sift the cocoa powder over the bowl and mix until well combined.
5. Pour half the flour mixture over the wet mixture and mix until the flour is combined enough to not fly up in your face and then add the other half and beat it all together until well combined.
6. Spoon the mixture into the cupcake cases using a large spoon, fill the cases until they are 3/4 full.
7. Bake in the middle of the oven, rotating after 15 minutes, until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cupcakes comes out with only a few moist crumbs attached, around 20-25 minutes.
8. Leave to cool slightly in the tins then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely before frosting the cupcakes.
9. I frosted the cupcakes using a piping bag and a large star tip because I like the effect of big swirls of frosting, but you can use any tip you want, or at a pinch even just chop the end off a ziploc bag and use that too!

Chocolate Gingerbread Swiss Meringue Buttercream

1. Wipe the bowl and whisk of a stand mixer (or bowl and hand held electric mixer) with lemon juice, to remove any trace of grease.
2. Add the egg whites and sugar to the bowl and set over a pot of simmering water.
3. Whisk constantly but gently until the temperature reaches 55°C, or if you don’t have a candy thermometer, until the sugar has completely dissolved and the egg whites are hot, about 8-10 minutes.
4. Place the bowl back on the mixer and, using the whisk attachment, whip on medium-high speed until the meringue is thick and glossy and the bottom of the bowl feels neutral to the touch (this can take up to 10 minutes or longer).
5. Switch to the paddle attachment and, with the mixer on low speed, add the softened butter in chunks until incorporated. If it curdles, keep mixing and it will come back to smooth.
6. Increase speed to medium and beat until the mixture becomes thick and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
7. Add the vanilla essence and salt and continue to beat on low speed until well combined. Then sift in the spices and cocoa and continue beating on low speed until they are well combined and the frosting is nice and fluffy.
8. You can keep the frosting in an airtight container at room temperature for a day, refrigerated for up to a week or in the freezer for up to 2 months. The frosting should be thawed at room temperature and then beat on low speed for a few minutes to create a smooth consistency again.

Comments

[Thalia @ butter and brioche]

These cupcakes look too good! Love the chocolate gingerbread frosting. Yum.