Chocolate Sour Cream Cupcakes

I had to download Google Chrome today. My site is hosted by Blogger, and it cancelled out half the features of my blog in Internet Explorer. Out of nowhere. With no warning. No explanation. There was a bar at the top of Explorer saying "Your web browser no longer supports the blogger interface. Some of the features of blogger may not be available to you. Click here to download Google Chrome." I know, right? It's kind of underhanded (people at Blogger, I'm talking to you). Now I have another internet browser clogging up my poor little (or giant. giantly huge and out-dated.) overworked laptop. I will say that there's a small feature I'm liking on Google Chrome...spell check. And as of this post, I've also discovered its option to upload multiple pictures at once. I may have to eat my words. Nix that. Blogger timed out on me at least three times during the completion of this post, causing me to lose my saved work. Chrome, I dislike.

On the other hand I baked chocolate cupcakes today. I made cream cheese frosting in the shape of roses. I put doilies underneath and shiny red wrappers for Valentine's Day. If I was going to bake anything for my man for Valentine's Day it would probably be meaty and dinnerish. It probably wouldn't involve cupcakes or buttercream roses. But I thought you might like cupcakes and buttercream roses.

Add this to my list of cupcakes that's been neglected for some time. I really love these, too. The first time I made them was here in mini-form. This recipe makes 12. Last time I used sour cream, but this time I was running low and used vanilla Chobani. FYI, they were still great.

Chocolate Sour Cream Cupcakes


3/4 cup cocoa powder
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp kosher salt
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temp
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup sour cream

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a 12-cup cupcake pan with liners. In a medium bowl whisk together the cocoa powder, flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment cream the butter on medium-high speed for about 2 minutes. Add the sugar and beat on high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the eggs one at a time, beating at low speed until just combined. Scrape down the bowl and beat in the vanilla extract. With the mixer on low alternate the dry ingredients with the sour cream in three separate additions, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Beat until just combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.

Fill each cupcake tin 3/4 of the way full and baked for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out with only a few crumbs attached. Let cool for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Source: Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart.

Cream Cheese Frosting


4 ounces (half a block) cream cheese
4 tbl salted butter, at room temp
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
3 cups powdered sugar
1-2 tsp milk

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment cream together the cream cheese and butter on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the vanilla extract. Add in the powdered sugar and begin mixing on low speed, gradually increasing the speed to high. Beat until light and fluffy, adding milk if the frosting becomes too thick. Move to the fridge to chill if the frosting is too gloopy.

Source: Sarah Cupcake original.