Chocolate Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

Ok.  This weekend I discovered that I'm bad at frosting cupcakes.  Really really bad at frosting cupcakes.  I think it probably has to do with my poor background in art.  I've always been bad at art during my school days. And I was ever so relieved that I no longer had to do art after my secondary school days.. Looks like my 'non-talent' is back to haunt me. 

The good news is that the cupcakes tasted good!  I brought them along for dinner, and surprisingly my family liked them despite how they look.. And it's all thanks to a friend who sent me a very detailed chocolate cake recipe eons ago...  I didn't dare to venture making it then because the recipe looked rather daunting.. But it wasn't as difficult as it looked.. 

The cupcakes had very little flour going into it.  And their volume come mainly from whipped egg whites. Upon cooling, the cakes flatten and shrink from the side.. So, yes, I've learnt that for my next batch, I shall increase the amount of cake batter in each paper cup..  I added a cream cheese frosting that I found online.. And I'm pleased, glad, thrilled that the frosting went really well with the cake... 

The recipe is for a whole cake, but I halved it, and made 12 cupcakes instead. (I will include the recipe of the whole cake below.. My wonderful friend took the time to include the timings for cupcakes...so do look at the details ya!)

Chocolate Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

makes 12

Soft Chocolate Cake (Laduree Recipe)

Ingredients:
150g butter
35g flour (I used cake flour)
150g chocolate (at least 70% cocoa)

1 tablespoon cocoa Powder

150g granulated sugar
1 egg + 4 egg yolks + 7 egg whites

9 inch round cake pan

Step 1: Preparing the pan
Butter the cake pan and refrigerate for 5 minutes Remove from fridge and dust with flour (I dusted with cocoa powder)
Turn pan upside down and tap out exces flour Keep in fridge

Step 2: Preparing the Chocolate mixture
Melt Chocolcate and butter using bain marie method. Stir with spatula until melted.
Remove from heat and set aside to let cool slightly
Sift Cocoa powder and flour, set aside
Preheat oven at 180C

Step 3: Preparing the egg mixture
Using the bain marie method again, whisk together the 1 egg, 4 egg yolks and half the sugar (75g), until the mixture thickens (when u stir the mixture apart, it will take some time to flow back together)
Remove from heat and set aside to cool slightly

Step 4: Preparing the egg whites (Using a clean, dry, absolutely grease and stain-free metal bowl) Whisk the egg whites to a foam. Once white and frothy, add the remaining sugar (75g) while continuing to whisk for another minute. I tend to whisk till it holds almost stiff peaks and still look a little glossy. (Do not over-beat until it becomes super stiff, or ur cake may turn out dry

Step 5: Combine the egg and choc mix
Delicately fold 1/3 of the egg n sugar (in step 3) into the chocolate mix (from step 1). Pour the entire mixture back into othe remaining 2/3 of the egg and sugar mix, mixing together gently

Step 6: Putting it all together
Delicately fold 1/3 of the egg white, along with the sifted flour and cocoa powder into the mixture from step 5. Pour this all back into the remaining egg white mixture.
Fold until smooth but do not overmix (U should not see anymore whites but the batter should still be very light when mixing. If the egg white is fully deflated, the mixture will not rise and become soft)

Pour batter into cake plan, place in oven, lower temperature to 170C and bake for 25 minutes (I halved the recipe and baked in 2 small pans, it was done in 15 minutes. If u do cupcake stuff, do not grease the liners and bake only 8 to 10 minutes. 1/2 the recipe would yield 10 to 11 small cupcakes)

Keep the cake at room temp and serve within 24 hours. 

Cream Cheese Frosting (adapted from here)
(I made only a third of the quantity stated below.  And it was just enough to frost 12 cupcakes)

Ingredients

2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup butter, softened

2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

In a medium bowl, cream together the cream cheese and butter until creamy. Mix in the vanilla, then gradually stir in the confectioners' sugar. Store in the refrigerator after use.