Third time's the charm

Dear Megs,

I believe I have perfected the Orange Mocha Cupcake. Perhaps this is ridiculous; I'm sure there already exists a perfectly lovely recipe for this exact thing. That said, I made this up and am terribly proud of myself. Before I get into that, though, here are some new things in my life that brightened up this rainy day for me.


So, the cupcakes. This time I followed the rules. I was foolish not to do so before, as I think I overmixed the batter. These guys are light and airy - almost too light, if there is such a thing. They just melt in your mouth. The flavor is not as chocolaty as #2, but a little more mocha-y than #1. A lovely balance. I decided on dark chocolate ganache to frost, which is not only a less in-your-face flavor than buttercream, but is also SHINY!



Orange Mocha Cupcakes 3

2c all-purpose flour
1/2 t salt
1/2 t baking soda
1 t baking powder
1/2 c cocoa
1/2 c butter
1 c sugar
2 eggs
1/2 c oj
2 t instant coffee
1/2 c oil
1 t vanilla
1 c cream
1 T orange zest

1) pre-heat oven to 350
2) whisk dry ingredients (minus sugar) together.
3) cream butter and sugar; add eggs and vanilla.
4) dissolve instant espresso in OJ. on low speed, mix dry indredients into wet, alternating flour mixture with oil/oj/milk. stir in zest.
5) bake in standard muffin tins for 20 minutes.