Cupcakes to die for

Guest post by my friend MJ, who’s also a published author (I’m so proud!). In fact, if the thought of Valentine’s Day around the corner is making you cringe, bake up a batch of these ice cream cone cupcakes and curl up with her book J’ai une amie célibataire. Full of tongue-and-cheek humour about being single and owning it, MJ’s book is a light read that’s bound to get your spirits up!

Choca-Mocha Ice Cream Cone Cupcakes: the decorating is the fun part, so many options!

I know, I know… cupcakes are so 2009. But what can I say? I just love their bite-size cuteness. When my boyfriend told me he had seen a recipe for cupcakes in an ice cream cone, I was intrigued. It could be the best idea ever… or the worst!

To be honest, I had my doubts about the whole ice cream cone thing. So to make sure they’d be at least delicious even if totally ruined or deformed, I used my favorite cupcake recipe: choca-mocha cupcakes, with chocolate-covered coffee beans mixed into the batter, to die for!!!

To ensure that the top rises like an ice cream scoop instead of dripping over the edge of the cone, it’s best to wrap the cone in parchment paper. It’s a b@#&! to do, but totally worth it. Use a string to hold the parchment paper in place, but not the cheap kind… I learned the hard way that cheap string can melt all over your muffin tray

The parchment paper is key in order to prevent the mix from dripping down the cone.

My doubts lingered until the final stage: the frosting application. That’s the part where the cupcakes really become ice cream cones. I was satisfied with the look of them but the biggest test was still to come: the appreciation of my dinner guests. I was afraid I had overcooked them but turns out they were a hit! Did the fact that 4 bottles of wine had already been consumed by the 4 people present have anything to do with it? I’ll never know. But I had a blast making them and they simply were too cute to disappoint.

WARNING: Eating too many cupcakes can cause insomnia.

Album to cook to: Something to die for, The Sounds.

Ingredients:
3 ½ oz. bittersweet chocolate
10 tablespoons of butter at room temperature
¾ cup of granulated sugar
2 tablespoons of cocoa powder
2 eggs
¾ cup of self-rising flour
2 teaspoons instant coffee, dissolved in 1 tablespoon of boiling water
¼ cup of chocolate-covered coffee beans

To decorate:
7 tablespoons of butter at room temperature
1 ⅔ cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
2 teaspoons instant coffee, dissolved in 1 tablespoon of boiling water

CHOCA-MOCHA CUPCAKES (makes 12)
Adapted from: Cupcakes by Susannah Blake

Preheat the oven to 350 ° F and get your cones wrapped in parchment paper. The cones can be put in a traditional muffin tray.

Melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water or in the microwave, then set aside to cool.

Beat the butter and sugar together in a bowl until light and fluffy, then beat in the eggs, one at a time. Stir in the melted chocolate and cocoa powder. Sift the flour into the mixture and stir in the dissolved coffee, followed by the coffee beans.

Spoon the mixture into the ice cream cones and bake for about 20 minutes until risen and a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.

To decorate, beat the butter, confectioners’ sugar and dissolved coffee in a bowl until pale and fluffy (I added a bit of melted chocolate to the frosting). Spread the mixture smoothly over the cupcakes and decorate to your liking.

Tags: choca-mocha, Cupcakes, Cupcakes in a cone, ice cream cone cupcakes, J'ai une amie célibataire, Valentine's Day