Although chocolate all on its own is a powerfully soothing bite, I also like the combination of chocolate and fruit. When the acidity of both is in
balance, I think it works beautifully. I
think this is true for raspberries, strawberries, bananas, apricots, figs, cranberries and cherries.
Cherries have been really good this season - sweet, juicy and plentiful. So I decided to use part of my stash to turn out some
simple chocolate cupcakes with a buried treasure of cherries. The cherries are simmered for just a few
minutes to soften them up and to flavor them with some spice for extra intrigue. The cupcake is tender and enriched with the
depth of cocoa. So simple and
so irresistible. If you're a fan of chocolate cupcakes - and really,
who isn't - I think you'll find this combination a worthy one.
Bench notes:
- I sometimes like to use star anise with cherries. Just a couple of points from a star are
plenty in this compote to give them a nice twist. The cherries can be made a day
or two ahead. Place in an airtight container and chill until ready to use.
- I first tested this recipe using cake flour and I absolutely
loved the results. But the cupcakes were
super tender and didn't hold together very well. So all-purpose flour will add a bit more
strength to the texture. But try cake flour if you don't mind the extra tenderness.
- Since these cakes are very tender, I recommend using paper liners to
avoid trying to wrestle them out of the pan. Lightly greasing the rim
circumference of each well will also help ensure the tops will loosen
easily.
- The high ratio of sugar to butter in the cake recipe
requires you to cream the mixture for about 5 - 6 minutes on medium speed
until it is light in color and fluffy in texture. It starts out grainy, then turns into small clumps, then lumps into a ball
and then eventually smoothes out to a cohesive fluffy mixture. At first you’ll wonder how it’s ever going to
come together but it will. Honest!
- When using a cherry pitter tool, be extra careful to
account for all the cherry pits. Even though it does a great job of piercing
the fruit, sometimes the pits stay lodged in the center, so check and be sure
you can account for all of them!
- Drain off the juices before placing the
cherries in the cupcake batter (I placed 2 at a time). The
cherries should still be moist but you don’t want the batter to get
soupy. Use the drained syrup and any extra
cherries to flavor oatmeal or yogurt.
Chocolate Cherry Cupcakes
Makes 12 cupcakes
12 oz fresh cherries
2 tablespoons (39 grams) sugar, to taste
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
2 points of 1 star anise
1 1/2 cups (7 1/2 oz) flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons (31 grams) cocoa powder
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons (3 oz) hot water
3 oz (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter @ room temperature
1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon (112 grams) granulated sugar
1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon (112 grams) dark brown sugar, packed
2 eggs @ room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons (3 oz) milk
For the cherries, stem and pit them and place in a
saucepan. Add the sugar, cinnamon and star anise and simmer, stirring
occasionally, until the fruit begins to soften, about 3 – 4 minutes.
Take off the heat and cool. When ready to use, discard the star anise.
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.
Line a standard cupcake tin with paper liners.
For the cupcakes, sift together the flour, salt and baking
soda. In a separate bowl, whisk cocoa
and hot water together until thoroughly blended.
Cream butter and both sugars until light and fluffy, about 5 - 6 minutes
on medium speech in a stand mixer (see the fourth bench note above).
Stop and scrape down the bowl at regular
intervals. Add eggs one at a time and blend well before adding the next.
Scrape down the bowl. Add cocoa mixture and vanilla
and combine thoroughly.
Add the dry ingredients in 3 additions, alternating with half the milk
and beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Stop mixing just before it is fully blended
and finish by scraping the bottom of the bowl and folding with a rubber spatula
until there are no streaks. Distribute
equally into the prepared cupcake liners. Submerge
2 drained cherries into the batter of each cupcake.
Bake until a toothpick tests with a few moist crumbs
adhering, about 20 to 22 minutes. Cool
10 minutes. Run a thin bladed knife
around the edges to loosen and turn out the cupcakes. Cool completely.
