Skip to main content

Chocolate? Wine? Yes, Please!

I like chocolate. I like wine. It was only a matter of time until I would put the two together.

Red Wine Cupcakes (recipe courtesy of the ladies at We Are Not Martha)

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

5 oz. chocolate chips

1/2 cup boiling water (two to three minutes in microwave)

Combine these three until chips are completely melted. Set aside.


2 sticks butter, room temperature

1 1/2 C sugar

4 eggs

Cream the first two, and add one egg at a time, beating in completely.

1 1/4 C flour

1 1/2 t baking powder

1 t salt

Combine these dry ingredients and mix into egg mixture.


3/4 C red wine (I went with a local favorite)

Alternate melted chocolate and wine into flour-egg mixture. When all in combined, fill muffin cups to near full and bake for 20-27 minutes at 350 degrees. Let cupcakes cool slightly and remove to wire rack.

Then...in lieu of the cream cheese frosting recipe posted at the website, I opted for a simpler one.

Red Wine Frosting

Beat together: 2 cups powdered sugar, 1/2 cup (one stick) softened butter, 1 tsp vanilla, 1/4 cup red wine. Frost cupcakes when they are cool.

And voila!


Additional notes: I used cake flour for the first time, and when I baked the first batch for 20 minutes, they seemed very underdone (sunken tops). The next went for 23 minutes, and the same thing occurred (to a lesser extent). The last batch cooked for 27 minutes, and that seemed to be the right amount of time. I don't know for sure if it was the cake flour usage or that the recipe's cook time was off. I should probably make these again to find out for sure (using all-purpose).

The garnishes were a spur of the moment thing. I had leftover maraschino cherries in the fridge, and I let them drain overnight in the fridge. However, this morning, the frosting had hardened (chilling in the fridge), and putting the cherries on top proved to be an exercise in futility. Enter the flamingo mini-skewers. Just laying there in my random kitchen gadget drawer!

My family (children included) did taste-test these. Yes, I know there is a full cup of wine in this recipe. Nobody got drunk. These aren't cupcakes I'd make for around the house - I'm taking them to a family gathering. Mostly adults. The kids get Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies - from a "Be Food" March post.

Comments

  1. Sounds good, but 2 sticks butter are 2 too much for our families cholesterol.
    Don't worry about the kids, or anyone getting drunk, alcohol evaporates out at a high rate during cooking, it's unlikely any remains. That's how a distilling works, the alcohol cooks out in the steam and is captured, cooled, and directed into the jug or the next cooker.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Garden Party, Pt. 2

6:30 is too early for a Sunday, ne c'est pas?  Alas, that is the time I arose this morning, and while my body wanted to fall back asleep, my mind was already off and running.  So, up I got. Something tells me I'm going to regret this later...like when I'm trying to watch the new Avengers movie tonight. Last Sunday was my last day off, and that was only at my request.  There are no more days off in the foreseeable future, between the part-time bar job and the near-40 hour demands of the restaurant.  It's a hard-knock life, I reckon, but that's how it goes when you're in search of The Dream.  So we savor the tranquil moments while we can.  Like yesterday, for example.  By some stroke of excellent luck, it was just me and the youngest son in the house for a few hours.  I took him out for lunch, and then I made him do yardwork with me.  I showed him how to mow the yard, and he discovered it's not terribly fun nor easy.  Ah, yes. Tranq...

Go Placidly

My food truck business started back up this past weekend, and from here until November, the weeks will be packed.  Sandwich-slinging Thursday-Saturday and bartending work Monday-Wednesday.  And Sunday, I guess, is the day to sleep in and hide in my house. Hiding out is the one thing I feel like doing a lot of these days.  My food truck's ReOpening wasn't the only thing happening in my hometown this weekend past.  A 13-year-old boy was accidentally shot and killed on Saturday and then yesterday, the police department busted one of the biggest meth labs in a long time. Both are tragic...one is a sad loss, one that will devastate a loving family for the rest of their lives.  One is tragic only because of the profound stupidity/ignorance/addiction of a few people who happen to be living in a town mostly filled with good-hearted, hard-working people. And if it's not drama at the local level, then there's the constant bombardment of news that seems to be vividly...

Groceries This Week and The Three-Week Challenge!

Now, this is what I'd like my pie charts to look like every week: Somehow, I just can't get around buying condiments!  That's been a slice in my chart the last several weeks...this week, it was jelly for my kids' lunchtime PB & Js. The snacks slice is a bit bigger than I'd like, but I took advantage of the 2/$4 deal on graham crackers (got some frozen homemade cream cheese frosting I need to use up - hence, improviso s'mores!).  Also, Ritz crackers to substitute in for the "Lunchables" my daughter wanted to buy for her soccer games on Saturday. But, fresh produce at nearly a quarter of spending?  Yes, that's awesome.  My cart was laden with watermelon, apples, oranges, and muskmelon.  YUM!  The significantly smaller 'Meat' slice is due to a small purchase of lunchmeat for weekly wraps and sandwiches. I am pleased with the variety of spending, as well as the low receipt total this week. Spending This Week: $60.86  -  Total Expe...