Chocolate Cupcake

Jaemi just turned 4! We were not supposed to throw a party for her, but caved in at the last minute. I was unable to pre-order the cake I really wanted for her birthday, so I decided to make cupcakes instead. I got this recipe from my sis-in-law, and tweaked the frosting a little bit. I'm still not that good in artfully designing cupcakes, but they turned out great-tasting and was a sure hit! 



Dry ingredients:

1 3/4 c flour
3/4 c unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
2 c sugar
1 tsp salt

Wet ingredients:

2 eggs
1 c milk
1/2 c vegetable or canola oil
2 tsp vanilla
1 c boiling water

Frosting:

1/2 c unsalted butter, room temperatrure
2/3 c cocoa
1 tsp vanilla
1 can condensed milk


How to make the cupcakes:

Line cupcake pan with paper cups. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
In a large bowl, sift flour, cocoa, baking powder and baking soda.
Add sugar and salt. Mix until well blended.
In a separate bowl, whisk egg then add in all wet ingredients and stir.
Add wet mixture to dry mix, stir until well combined, but still with some lumps.
Pour batter in cupcake pan, filling about 2/3 of each cup.
Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until the toothpick comes out clean when tested.

** You can also use this as cake mix, increasing the baking time to 20-22 minutes for 8" round or 9" square cake pan.


Frosting:

Using a mixer, whisk the soft butter. Add condensed milk then cocoa powder, whisking them in 3-4 intervals. Add vanilla then whisk. Use rubber spatula to scrape unwhisked cocoa on the sides of the bowl and mix them in. Cool the cupcakes before frosting.