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Devil's Food Cupcakes:
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) and place your oven rack in
the center of the oven. Butter, or spray with a non stick vegetable spray, 18
muffin cups.
In a bowl,
whisk the cocoa with the hot coffee (or water) until the cocoa has dissolved and
the mixture is nice and
smooth. Then whisk in the sour cream and vanilla extract.
In a large bowl, whisk
or sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
In the bowl of
your electric stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment (or with a hand
mixer), beat the butter until smooth. Add the sugar and oil and beat, on medium
high speed, until the mixture is soft and fluffy, and light in color (this will
take about 3-4 minutes). Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each
addition. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
Add the flour
mixture (in three additions) alternately with the cocoa/sour cream mixture (in
two additions), beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Beat only until the
ingredients are fully mixed together.
Fill the muffin
cups about 3/4 full and bake for about 16 - 18 minutes or until a toothpick
inserted in the center comes out clean and the tops spring back when lightly
pressed. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool (in their pans) for about 10
minutes. Then
remove the cupcakes from the pan, place on a wire rack, and cool
completely before filling and frosting.
Vanilla Cream Filling: In the bowl of
your electric stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment (or with a hand
mixer), beat the
shortening and butter until soft and creamy. With the mixer on its
lowest speed, beat in the confectioners' sugar. Increase
the speed to high, and beat until light and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes.
Then, with the mixer on low speed, beat in the vanilla extract and
slowly drizzle in the corn syrup. Continue to beat until the filling
looks like soft mayonnaise. Place the vanilla cream in a pastry
bag fitted with 1/4 inch (.5 cm) plain tip (I used a Wilton #12).
Chocolate
Ganache: Place
the chopped chocolate in a medium sized heatproof bowl. Heat the cream in a
small saucepan over medium heat. (Can also heat the cream in the
microwave.) Bring just to a boil. Immediately pour the boiling cream over the
chocolate and allow to stand, without stirring, for a few minutes. Then,
starting from the center, gently stir (as you do not want to incorporate air)
with a spoon until the chocolate has melted and the Ganache is smooth.
Homemade Hostess®
Cupcakes: With a sharp
knife, or the end of a 1 inch (2.5 cm) round pastry tip, cut a 1 inch (2.5 cm)
round hole that is 3/4 inch (2 cm) deep in the bottom of each cupcake. (Keep the
small rounds of cake that you removed. Cut the rounds so they are only about 1/4
inch (.5 cm) thick.) (See video for demonstration.) Then pipe in enough Vanilla
Cream to fill the hole. Take the small round of the reserved cake and "plug" the
hole where you piped in the cream. Repeat this process with the rest of the
cupcakes.
Place the Ganache
in a small deep bowl. Dip the tops of the cupcakes in the Ganache to coat,
letting the excess drip back into the bowl. Then place on a wire rack, frosting
side up. Once all the cupcakes have been dipped in the Ganache, place the
cupcakes in the refrigerator until the Ganache has set (about 20-30 minutes).
Decoration:
Melt the white chocolate in a heatproof bowl, placed over a saucepan of simmering water
(or in the microwave). Place in a pastry bag fitted with a small plain tip
(Wilton #3 or #4) and pipe 4 to 7 loops-de-loops (squiggles) on the top of each cupcake.
Place the cupcakes in the refrigerator until set. Store the cupcakes in the
refrigerator, but bring to room temperature before serving.
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