Mexican Hot Chocolate Cup Cakes With Cocoa Whipped Cream

Total Time: 42 mins Preparation Time: 25 mins Cook Time: 17 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 12
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon espresso powder
• 1/3 cup water (to mix the espresso in)
• 2 cups cake flour
• 1/3 cup cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
• 2 ounces dark chocolate, chopped
• 3 ounces mascarpone cheese or 3 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
• 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 12 mini marshmallows (optional)
• 1 pinch cinnamon (optional)

Recipe

• 1 preheat oven to 325 degrees.
• 2 add sugar, buttermilk and oil to a stand mixer (or large bowl if you’re using a hand mixer). mix well. add eggs and vanilla extract, mix well.
• 3 in a separate large bowl, sift cake flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.
• 4 add 1/3 of your dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until combined. pour in your espresso mixture, blend, then continue with two more addition's of the remaining dry ingredients.
• 5 pour blended batter about 3/4 full into cupcake pans lined with cupcake liners. bake until the cupcakes have puffed up with a deep brown color, about 25 minutes. let cool on a baking rack.
• 6 filling:.
• 7 while cupcakes are baking, using a double boiler, melt chocolate until completely smooth. let cool. in a large bowl, mix cooled chocolate and mascarpone cheese until well blended. scoop mixture into a piping bag.
• 8 with a knife or melon baller, carefully create a hole in the center of each cupcake. pipe the chocolate mixture into the hole you just created, about 1½ tablespoons of chocolate into each cupcake.
• 9 topping:.
• 10 mix heavy whipping cream, powdered sugar, cocoa and vanilla in a stand mixer and whip to stiff peaks. add to a piping bag and pipe over each cupcake in a circular motion.
• 11 decorate with one or more mini marshmallows and pinch of cinnamon if you like.