Hummingbird Bakery Chocolate Cupcakes

I spent a very large portion of my weekend locked up in the library. I tend to do most of my studying, and all of my writing, at my house for several reasons. First, I am lucky enough to have a "study" with a fabulous desk and it's really a great place to work. Second, there are so many books that I need at any given moment; it's really (literally and figuratively) a pain to lug them back and forth to the library. Third, the GU library is awash with germs -- all of those students in one place, it just can't be helped. I get so tense when I'm at the library and the person in the carrel next to mine is coughing up a lung. This is a) a fear of catching whatever illness is now airborne around me and b) I'm easily distracted by any noises. This makes the library a frustrating place for me. I've never been a "shhhhhh"-er, but gosh darn it if I'm not silently cursing all of the quiet chatting, the loud talking, chip crunching, bottle opening, zippers zipping noises around me. That said, I can't argue with the fact that I tend to get a lot of work done when I'm at the library, and as I have just a pile of work to do, I spent my weekend at the library (by the way, I have, after two years, found an almost perfect quiet space). This means that I didn't make muffins to share today. I did, however, make these chocolate cupcakes about a week ago, and since muffins and cupcakes are similar in shape, I thought I'd share the cupcakes instead.

My birthday was about a month ago, and my sister got me The Hummingbird Bakery Cookbook (among other things -- she really went all out). I had never heard of this book, but after flipping through it just one time I fell in love with all of the treats on the pages inside of this lovely book. I have been on a major, major chocolate loving kick lately. Usually I can keep the chocolate cravings under semi-reasonable control, but lately I've had chocolate on the brain big time. There are several chocolate treats in the Hummingbird Bakery Cookbook that caught my eye, but I decided to go with good old-fashioned chocolate cupcakes because I had all of the ingredients on hand.

First of all, let me say that the recipes in this cookbook are perfect for singletons! I don't know if it's because Hummingbird is a British bakery, but these recipes don't make a ridiculously large batch of sweets. For example, the cupcake recipe makes 12 cupcakes (more on that in a bit). Now, I know that you might be thinking 12 cupcakes is still a lot of cupcakes for one person, and you're right. But if you consider that I have to halve or even third nearly all of the recipes in Martha Stewart's Cupcakes to get 12 cupcakes, this is a big deal. 

The ingredient list is simple, no exotic ingredients here, but the mixing method is interesting. You actually mix in the flour at the beginning with the sugar and the butter. That's a different method for me, but I think it accounts for the delightful texture of these cupcakes. Now, the recipe states to fill the cups 2/3 full, and I did, but I only got 10 cupcakes. But, there were about 4 out of those 10 that crowned over the cup. Ordinarily this isn't a big deal, but these cupcakes are so delicate in texture that you don't really want to have them rise above the liner at all. As I was frosting mine, the cakes that crowned above the liner were dangerously close to separating them at the liner. So, should you decide to make this cupcakes, go ahead and be stingy when you're filling the muffin cups. You'll end up with delightfull diminutive cupcakes. 

I'll be honest, these cupcakes aren't the deadly, drowning in very intense chocolate flavor and experience that I was looking for. Then again, I kind of knew that when I looked at the recipe and saw there was only cocoa powder, and just a little bit of that. The chocolate flavor in this cupcake is light, and it's actually perfect because the cupcakes are light. They are so very light, fluffy, and delicate that it's quite incredible, really. These might have the best texture of any cupcake I've ever put in my mouth. They're so light and fluffy, maybe fairy cakes really are a more appropriate name for this treat?

Chocolate Cupcakes from Hummingbird Bakery

Ingredients

3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons all purpose flour

2 1/2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

a scant 3/4 cup sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

a pinch of salt

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

1/2 cup whole milk

1 egg

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 quantity chocolate frosting

sprinkles

12 hole cupcake pan, lined with paper cases

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Put the flour, cocoa, sugar, baking powder, salt, and butter in a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment (or use a handheld electric mixer) and beat on slow speed until you get a sandy consistency and everything is combined. 

Whisk the milk, egg, and vanilla together in a pitcher (I used a bowl), then slowly pour about half into the flour mixture, beat to combine, and turn the mixture up to high speed to get rid of any lumps. 

Turn the mixture down to a slower speed and slowly pour in the remaining milk mixture (scrape any unmixed ingredients from the side of the bowl with a rubber spatula). Continue mixing for a couple more minutes until the batter is smooth but do not overmix. 

Spoon the batter into the paper cases until two-thirds full and bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes, or until the cake bounces back when touched. A skewer inserted into the center should come out clean. Let the cupcakes cool slightly in the pan before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely. 

When the cupcakes are cold, spoon the chocolate, vanilla, or cream cheese frosting on top and decorate with sprinkles. 

Chocolate Frosting

enough to frost 12 cupcakes

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted

6 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

1/3 cup unsweeted cocoa powder, sifted

2 tablespoons whole milk

Beat the confectioners' sugar, butter, and cocoa together in a stand mixer with a paddle attachment on medium-slow speed until the mixture comes together and is well mixed. Turn the mixer down to a slower speed. Add the milk to the butter mixture a couple of teaspoons at a time. Once the milk has been incorporated, turn the mixer up to high speed. Continue beating until the frosting is light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. The longer the frosting is beaten, the fluffier and lighter it becomes.