Let’s celebrate the bliss of National Chocolate Cupcake Day on the 18th of October with a heavenly mouthful of a yummy, moist chocolate cupcake. Cupcakes are wonderful things of joy. You can have them with an assortment of icings and sprinklings or just have them as they are.
But first, a tidbit of history: chocolate cupcakes were first mentioned in American Cookery, a book by Amelia Simmons in 1796 and again in 1828 in Eliza Leslie's Seventy-Five Receipts for Pastry, Cakes, and Sweetmeats.
Cupcakes mainly derive their name from the small moulds or tins they were baked in in the absence of a larger baking dish. Back in the day, they would also be called number cakes or 1234 cakes.
In Goa, we find bakeries at every corner, thanks to our Goan-Portuguese culture. There are bakeries that have been running since the time of the Portuguese, like Geeta Bakery in Panjim, which started in 1948. Vanilla, peanut butter, red velvet, blueberry, lemon and strawberry are definitely in-demand flavours, but nothing can beat chocolate cupcakes.
Let's take a look at this easy and quick chocolate cupcake recipe and surprise our loved ones on this day with a few delicious cupcakes.
Ingredients:
115 gm softened butter
115 gm caster sugar
2 large eggs
85 g self-rising flour
4 tablespoon cocoa powder
1 tsp vanilla essence
Chocolate sauce or chips for topping
Preparation method:
Preheat oven to 180 C/ 375 F. Cream the butter, sugar and cocoa powder in a bowl into a smooth batter. Stir in the beaten eggs and add the vanilla essence. Add the self-rising flour to the batter and mix well. Place parchment paper cupcake liners in the baking moulds and pour the mixture in, to half-fill the moulds. Bake for 25 minutes in the preheated oven.
Fluffy cupcakes once out of the oven are ready to eat. One can further add chocolate sauce or chocolate chips if needed.