Flourless Chocolate Cupcakes with White Chocolate Mint Cream

I've never made a souffle, not to mention a souffle cupcake, but this recipe managed to draw me in without an intimidating list of ingredients or massive time consumption. It could have something to do with my new kitchen accessory, an electric beater. Now I can tackle the recipes that require excessive egg beating without breaking a sweat, seriously though, you try making those egg whites stiff using only a whisk and those biceps. This recipe combines the genius of Bon Appetit and Deb.


Cupcakes: (I got almost12)
6 ounces of semisweet chocolate, chopped (I used Godiva)
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
Heaping 1/4 teaspoon (1 gram) espresso or instant coffee powder (Yay Starbucks Via!)
3 large eggs, separated
6 tablespoons sugar, divided
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan. Combine chocolate, butter and espresso powder together in a medium saucepan over low heat until mostly melted, then remove from the heat and whisk until it is fully melted and smooth.

Beat egg yolks (with your new, or old, electric mixer) and 3 tablespoons sugar in medium bowl until mixture is very thick and pale, 2-ish minutes. Lightly beat chocolate mixture, then vanilla extract, into yolk mixture. Clean and dry the beaters, than beat egg whites in another medium bowl until soft peaks form. Slowly add remaining 3 tablespoons sugar and all of the salt; beat until medium-firm peaks form. Fold whites into chocolate mixture in 3 stages. Divide batter among prepared cups, filling each three-fourths of the way.

Bake cakes until tops are puffed with little air bubbles, about 15 to 20 minutes. Cool in pan.



Now for lovely compliment to these little chocolate pots, the white chocolate mint cream.
2 ounces white chocolate, finely chopped (again, I used Godiva)
3 ounces heavy whipping cream
1/8 teaspoon mint extract
Maybe I was too liberal with the frosting, but this didn't provide enough cream to frost my cupcakes (that's what she said! Hah! Beat you to it.) so I improvised with just two ounces of whipping cream, two drops of mint extract and a tablespoon or two of powdered sugar. It actually made for a more structured frosting which was aesthetically pleasing. Plus, who doesn't love homemade whipped cream?

Put the chopped white chocolate in a small bowl. Bring the cream to a simmer, pour it over the chocolate allow it to melt the chocolate. Whisk well. Add the mint extract and whisk again. Place a piece of plastic wrap over the bowl and let it chill for two hours.



I loved these while they were still a little warm and gooey in the middle. James gave these a, meh, they're ok. The next day though, after being refrigerated over night, he loved the cool dense chocolate. Go figure.