Mini Espresso Mascarpone cupcakes

November 26th, 2009 by justJENN

Sometimes you just need a little chocolate. As in teeny tiny. These are light and sweet, with a small amount of pep to get you going.

ingredients:
6 ounces chocolate chips
1 cup water
1/3 cup mascarpone cheese
2 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon espresso powder
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. Line a mini muffin pan with liners. This recipe makes a lot – 48+!

Combine the chocolate chips and water in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. It looks disgusting, but trust me. Stir constantly and eventually the chocolate will melt. Whisk in the mascarpone cheese until the mixture is smooth. Set aside and let cool for a few minutes.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the sugar, oil, eggs, and vanilla. Stir in the mascarpone mixture.

In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, salt, baking powder, and chocolate chips. Add the dry ingredients to the chocolate mixture. Stir until just blended.

Pour the batter into the prepped cupcake liners. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until a tester inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Cool completely – on a wire rack.

I topped these with a little whipped cream frosting, but frankly – they are great on their own. I may have eaten ten. Or so.