Black Bottom Cupcakes

These are my favorite cupcakes thus far. I was searching for a good recipe to make, when my friend Barb suggested I try Black Bottom Cupcakes. I've only ever had these in a more muffin-like form, and wasn't a big fan. However, these cupcakes were ridiculously awesome. I got many compliments on them, and ate quite a few myself! (Usually I only eat one to see if it tastes okay; I'm more of a batter person). Anyway, this is a mixture of several different recipes from various sources, so here goes -

CUPCAKES
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups white sugar + a few teaspoons more, based on preference
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
2/3 cup vegetable oil
2 cups water
2 tablespoons vinegar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

CREAM CHEESE FILLING

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 egg
1/2 cup white sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

*Note: this makes a little more filling than necessary for the cupcakes, but it's difficult to split an egg into a smaller portion. Just be prepared to have some left over.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line ~24 cupcake tins with liners.

In a large bowl, mix together dry "cupcake" ingredients. Stir in wet "cupcake" ingredients until blended.

To make the filling, mix together the cream cheese, egg, sugar, and salt with a hand-held mixer until light & fluffy. Stir in chocolate chips.

Fill cupcake tins 1/3 full. Add a dollop (or heaping teaspoon) of the cream cheese mixture on top, fill another 1/3 with batter (the end result should be the batter 2/3 of the way up the cupcake tin, with the cream cheese part either completely covered or almost all the way covered). Bake in preheated oven approximately 15-20 minutes.

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

(The beauty of these cupcakes is that the cream cheese filling is slightly tangy, contrasting with the sweetness of the cupcake. Because of that, I kept frosting to a bare minimum - I didn't even cover the entire cupcake with it. If you want more frosting, double this recipe).

2 oz. cream cheese, softened

2 tablespoons butter, softened

4 oz. confectioner's sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons to 1 tablespoon milk

1/4 tsp vanilla extract

Combine the cream cheese and butter in a medium bowl. Beat with an electric mixer until light & fluffy. Gradually add the confectioner's sugar and 1 1/2 teaspoons of milk and beat until smooth. Add the vanilla extract, and remaining milk of mixture is too thick.

This produces a very soft frosting, which works well texture-wise for these cupcakes, but will not work well for any piping or frosting decorations you might want to do.

When cupcakes have cooled, ice with a small amount of the cream cheese frosting. Sprinkle with a hint of cinnamon for an extra splash of awesomeness.

Enjoy!