Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Cupcakes

One of my best friends is getting married in July, and there's been wedding planning all-a-buzz for the past week or so. There's also been talk of cupcakes at the wedding, and as part of my bridesmaid-ly duties, I compiled a bunch of cupcakes recipes that my friend can pick from for the wedding. We had ANOTHER snow day Friday (and possibly one coming on Wednesday...seriously?!), so I took some of my planned cleaning time and baked (a girl has to have priorities). Though, I really do need to clean and re-organize, as my apartment is supposed to be painted in the next two weeks...maybe another snow day would be a good thing.

ANYWAYS, back to the cupcakes. So, I took time to bake and naturally I chose the most time-consuming recipe to make, but also the one that sounded most delicious. I have to interrupt this story for a side comment....Did you know that there are 58 pages of 44 recipes each (you do the math) of cupcake recipe on foodgawker.com. AND, there are 84 pages of cupcake recipes on tastespotting.com!!! Unreal. Ok, back to my story. So I went to the grocery store and grabbed the necessary items, and gave myself 2 and a half hours to make then before heading to my friend's house for wedding planning. Good thing I had enough time, because the original cake recipe did not perform. The cupcakes didn't bake, they came out a soupy mess, even though I followed the recipe to a tee. So I googled chocolate cupcake recipes and found the first one I liked, which was from allrecipes.com. I threw that together and proceeded to make amazing cupcakes.

I think the comment that best suits these cupcakes came from my friend who stated "There's chocolate in the raspberries and raspberry in the chocolate!". She said this in a shocked and giddy manner.

So So Pretty!

Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Cupcakes
from here

For the cupcakes:
9 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups cake flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. baking powder
8 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup strong coffee (or water)
1/2 cup whole or low-fat milk

For the filling:
Seedless raspberry jam

For the raspberry truffles:
2 pints fresh raspberries
5 oz. semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped (I used chocolate chips)
1/4 cup seedless raspberry jam
1/3 cup heavy cream
For the frosting:
16 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
6 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam
Pink icing color (optional)

Instructions
1. For  the cupcakes: preheat the oven to 350° F.
2. Line two cupcake pans with paper liners.
3. In a small bowl sift together the cocoa powder, cake flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder.
4. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.  Mix in the eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl between additions.
5. In a liquid measuring cup, combine the coffee and milk.
6. Add half of the dry ingredients to the mixer and mix on low speed just until incorporated.  Stir in the coffee-milk mixture and mix until combined.  Add in the remaining dry ingredients, again mixing just until incorporated.
7. Divide the batter evenly between the cupcake liners, filling the cups about 3/4 full.  Bake for 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
8. For the filling: once the cupcakes have cooled completely, heat some raspberry or blackberry jam just enough to allow for easy stirring and smooth texture in the microwave for about 20 seconds or so.  Transfer the jam to a pastry bag fitted with a large plain tip, poke into each cupcake and pipe a small amount inside.
9. For the raspberry truffles: rinse fresh raspberries and transfer to a baking sheet lined with paper towels.  Gently shake the berries around to remove excess water.
10. Place the chocolate and jam in a small heatproof bowl.
11. Bring the cream to a boil in a small saucepan over medium-low heat.  Remove from the heat and pour over the chocolate and jam.  Let stand for about 3 minutes.  Whisk together gently until smooth.
12. Let the ganache cool a bit until it has thickened slightly (enough to be piped through a pastry bag).  Once it has reached the right consistency, transfer the ganache to a pastry bag and pipe into the center of the clean raspberries.  Refrigerate at least 15 minutes to set.
13. For the frosting: place the butter and jam in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment.  Cream on medium-high speed until well incorporated, about 2 minutes.  Sift in the powdered sugar and mix until smooth.  Tint with icing color as desired.
To finish the cupcakes, frost with the raspberry jam buttercream and top with a few of the raspberry truffles.

I changed some things from this recipe. I did use the pink food coloring, and I added in a 1/4 teaspoon of raspberry extract to the frosting. It gave it a little extra tart because the frosting is so sweet. I also hollowed out a little chunk of the cupcake rather than piping the jam right into the cake because it was making a total mess. Here's the allrecipes

• 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 3 tablespoons butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cups white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup milk

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line a muffin pan with paper or foil liners. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cocoa and salt. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well with each addition, then stir in the vanilla. Add the flour mixture alternately with the milk; beat well. Fill the muffin cups 3/4 full.
3. Bake for 15 to 17 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. Frost with your favorite frosting when cool.