Double Stuffed Chocolate Cupcakes; Celebrates the idea of “more is better.” I start with a decadent chocolate cupcake and then fill it with a rich pastry cream, then dipped the top of the cupcake in ganache, next comes a piped swirl of the pastry cream on top the the ganache, and the top is dunk into the ganache to enrobe the creamy goodness inside. This cool creamy chocolatey treat will have them begging for more!  I’ll be giving you three recipes for you to add to your repertoire.  Chocolate cupcake, Pastry Cream, and Chocolate Ganache.  All delicious on their own, but when combined together will make your friends and family ecstatic with joy!

Chocolate in all forms seems to bring out the kid in people.  I love to watch the reaction of folks when I speak about chocolate. Eyes light up, a smile graces their faces, the sigh of what could be and yet to come when talking about chocolate. Chocolate is an experience. Affecting our mood by the mere mention of it.

Chocolate has come a long way since its arrival to Seville, Spain in 1585 from the New World.  Chocolate was only consumed in a drink form; made with water and to balance the bitter flavor the addition of sugar, vanilla, and spices was added to the chocolate drink.  So expensive was chocolate only Royalty and the very rich could afford to enjoy this new concoction.

For most of us back in the day, our first experiences with chocolate came in 4 forms.  Nestlé’s Chocolate milk mix, Nestlé’s Toll House Chocolate Morsels, Hersey’s Chocolate Bar, and Unsweetened Baker’s Chocolate.  I remember my first experience with the latter.  I was 4 or 5 when I had the pleasure of experiencing the full flavor of a unsweetened Baker’s chocolate.  My mom was preparing to bake something with chocolate in it and I happen to walk into the kitchen.  I spied a chocolate bars sitting on the counter.  I had never seen bars of chocolate that were thick and square.  Of course, I had to have it.  As there was no one in the kitchen at the time (mom had step away) I grabbed up one of the chocolate bars with my little fingers.  With the thought of all that delicious chocolate flavor to greet me, I took that first bite.  What greeted me was not what I expected.  The taste of overwhelming bitterness and tartness filled my taste buds.  This was wrong!  It should have tasted good.  What was this stuff?  It couldn’t be chocolate or at least to my young taste buds and mind.  Lesson learned, never eat something when you don’t know what it is.

Equipment

• Mixing Bowls
• Whisk
• Heat Resistant Rubber Spatula
• 2 or 3 Quart Sauce Pan
• Measuring Cups/Spoons or Digital Scale
• Muffin Tin
• Cupcake Liners
• Portion Control Scoop/Ice Cream Scoop

Chocolate Cupcakes (yields 18)

Measure         Grams         Ingredients

• 1-1/2 cups       210 g.         All Purpose Flour (unbleached, unbromated)
• 1/2 cup            44 g.           Natural Cocoa Powder
• 1-1/3 cups       290 g.         Granulated Sugar
• 3/4 tsp.           3/4 tsp.        Sea Salt (finely ground)
• 1 tsp.              1 tsp.           Baking Soda
• 1/2 tsp.           1 tsp.           Baking Powder
• 3 ea.               3 ea.            Eggs (large, room temp.)
• 2/3 cup           141 g.          Butter (unsalted, melted)
• 3/4 cup           170 g.          Milk (whole, room temp.)
• 6 oz.               170 g.          Chocolate (50% to 70%, finely ground)

Mixing Directions

1. Pre-heat the oven to 350° F.  Spray the muffin tin with non-stick spray and line with cupcake liners.
2. In a sifter placed into a large mixing bowl, combine the all purpose flour, cocoa powder, granulated sugar, sea salt, baking soda, and baking powder.  Sift the dry ingredients into the large bowl once.  Force any dry ingredients through the sifter if necessary.
3. In a 1 quart bowl combine the eggs, melted butter, and whole milk.  Whisk to combine.
4. Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients and whisk vigorously for 1 minute.
5. Add the finely ground chocolate and stir together with the rubber spatula
6. Scoop batter into the prepared pan with the cupcake liners.  Filling each 3/4 full.
7. Bake the cupcakes at 350° F. for 18 to 22 minutes or until the top center is just set.  Cupcake center should spring back when lightly pressed.
8. Remove the cupcakes from the oven and cool for 15 minutes on a cooling rack before removing from the baking pan.  Remove the cupcakes after 5 minutes and place on a cooling rack and cool completely.

Pastry Cream

     Measure         Grams         Ingredients

• 2 cups             453 g.          Half & Half
• 1/4 cup             56 g.          Granulated Sugar
• 1 ea.                 1 ea.          Vanilla Bean (Scraped)
• 1/8 tsp.           1/8 tsp.        Sea Salt (finely ground)
• 1/4 cup             31 g.          Cornstarch
• 1/4 cup             56 g.          Granulated Sugar
• 6 ea.                 6 ea.          Egg Yolks (large)
• 1 tsp.               1 tsp.          Vanilla Extract (pure)
• 4 tbsp.              56 g.          Butter (unsalted, room temp.)

1. In the sauce pan combine the half & half, 1/4 cup granulated sugar, scraped vanilla bean, and salt.  Place the pan over medium heat and bring to a boil.
2. In a bowl combine the cornstarch and 1/4 cup granulated sugar.  Whisk to combine.  Add the egg yolks and whisk together until smooth.  Set aside for next step.
3. Once the liquid ingredients come to a boil, remove from the pan from the heat and slowly pour all the hot half & half mixture into the egg yolk mixture while whisking constantly.  Scrape down the bowl with the heat resistant rubber spatula if necessary.
4. Pour the tempered egg yolk and half & half back into the sauce pan.  Scraping the bowl if necessary.
5. Place the pan over medium to medium low heat, stirring constantly.  Scraping the corners and bottom of the sauce pan constantly.
6. As the pastry cream thickens stir quicker and cook for 1 more minute.  This is to insure the cornstarch will thicken properly and the starch flavor will cook out.
7. Remove the sauce pan from the heat and pour the cooked pastry cream into a clean bowl.  Whisking for 1 minute with a clean whisk to cool and smooth out the pastry cream.
8. Add the vanilla extract and butter and whisk until incorporated.  The pastry cream should be very smooth.
9. Scrape the sides of the bowl down and place plastic wrap directly on the pastry cream to keep if from forming a skin.
10. Place in the refrigerator until needed.  The pastry cream can be made 2 days ahead and refrigerated until needed.

Chocolate Ganache

• 8 oz. 226 g. Chocolate (60%-80%, chopped finely)
• 8 oz. 226 g. Heavy Cream

1. Place the chopped chocolate into a bowl.
2. Place the heavy cream into a sauce pan and bring to a light boil.
3. Remove the pan from the heat and pour the heavy cream over the chocolate.
4. Let sit for 30 second and then whisk until the Ganache is smooth.
5. Keep at room temperature until need.  Ganache can be re-melted in the microwave if it sets up.  The Ganache should just barely be warm when dipping during the cupcake assembly.

Cupcake Assembly

• Pastry Cream
• Chocolate Cupcakes
• Ganache
• 1/2″ Plain Piping Tip
• 14″ Piping Bag

1. Remove the pastry cream from the refrigerator.  Uncover and beat with a rubber spatula to loosen and smooth out the pastry cream.
2. Prepare the piping bag by trimming the piping bag and fitting the plain piping tip.
3. Place the pastry cream into the prepared piping bag.
4. Pipe approximately 1 Tbsp. of pastry cream into the top of each chocolate cupcakes.
5. Then dip the tops of the chocolate cupcakes  into the Ganache just to coat and seal in the pastry cream.  Place the glazed cupcakes in the freezer for 10 minutes.
6. Remove the chilled filled and glazed cupcakes from the freezer and pipe the pastry cream directly on the Ganache in a circular shape.  Starting on the outside edge to the center of each cupcake.
7. Place the pastry cream topped cupcakes into the freezer and freeze until the pastry cream is just frozen, 30 to 45 minutes.
8. Remove the frozen pastry cream topped cupcakes from the freezer and dip into the Ganache to completely enrobe the pastry cream.  (The Ganache might need a few second in the microwave to flow for this, Do Not Bring the Ganache to a boil)
9. Place the Ganache Glazed Pastry Cream filled cupcakes into a airtight container and refrigerate until serving.
10. The Pastry Cream Stuffed Chocolate Cupcakes taste best if you bring them out to room temperature 30 minutes before you serve them.  Enjoy!