Chocolate Peppermint Cupcakes

Am I weird for liking the rainbow fruity flavored candy canes more than the peppermint flavored ones?

Don't get me wrong, I love mint. Especially chocolate and mint. Andes Mints. Peppermint Patties. Thin Mint Cookies. So, it's a no-brainer that I would make a chocolate peppermint cupcake for the holidays. I still need a bit more practice with my peppermint swirl frosting technique, but not so bad for my first time, right?

I like that these cakes have just enough of a hint of peppermint that it's not overwhelming. Peppermint extract is Really strong, so a little goes a long way. Trust me, I spilled an entire bottle of it last year in my kitchen.

Mint for months...

I used a basic chocolate cake, filled it with chocolate peppermint ganache, and topped it with a peppermint buttercream. These were the simplest ones out of all my flavors, and a big hit as well.

Could use a little more red in some of these...

Chocolate Peppermint Cupcakes
adapted from Glorious Treats

2 cups sugar
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa (best quality available)
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract (best quality available)
1 cup boiling water

Peppermint Buttercream:
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
4-5 cups powdered sugar
1/2 to 1 tsp. peppermint extract
2-3 tbsp cream or milk

Chocolate Peppermint ganache:
8 oz. baker's chocolate, broken into small pieces
1/2 cup whole milk or cream
1 tsp. peppermint extract

1. Preheat oven to 350 and line 2 muffin pants with cupcakes liners.
2. In a large mixing bowl, stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
3. Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla. Beat on medium speed for one minute.
4. Stir in boiling water (the batter will be thin, don’t worry, this is right).
5. Fill liners 2/3 full with batter. I used my glass mixing cup with the spout to help pour the batter.
6. Bake cupcakes for approximately 22-24 minutes. Cool completely on wire rack before frosting.
7. For the ganache (make while the cupcakes cool): Heat the milk or cream in the microwave in 30 second intervals until scalding. Pour over the chocolate pieces and let sit for 5 minutes. Add the peppermint extract and whisk with a fork until the chocolate is melted and smooth. Let sit to thicken up a bit.
8. Once the cupcakes have cooled, cut a hole in the middle of each one and fill with ganache.
9. For the frosting, beat the butter until fluffy. Add the powdered sugar, one cup at a time, and beat. Add the extract and beat once more. To adjust the consistency, add milk or cream, one tablespoon at a time until you reach the desired consistency.
10. Pipe onto cupcakes and serve!

**To get the red swirl in your frosting you need
red gel food coloring
toothpicks
piping bag and frosting tip

1. Set up a piping bag with the tip you're going to use.
2. Dip a toothpick into the frosting and make vertical lines down the sides of the piping bag. If you need more food coloring, dip a NEW toothpick into the gel, do not dip a used toothpick into it.
3. Load the bag with frosting and pipe as usual.
4. When you need to add more frosting to the bag, repeat the process of making food coloring "stripes" down the bag.