Mexican Chocolate Cupcakes with Browned Butter Frosting

I am on a new mission. To discover the most delicious cake flavors, frosting and fillings in order to make my cake creations as tasty as possible! I have about a dozen cake books and magazines featuring all kinds of sugary goodness. I decided to grab one and start from the beginning - making all the recipes that I think would work well in a very diverse taste test group (thank goodness to all my family, friends and co-workers)!

First on the list was Mexican Chocolate Cake with Carmelized Sugar Frosting. I had never made this type of frosting before and it looked glaze-like in the photos so I decided to switch it out with some Browned Butter Frosting for some stability. I had planned to place a seashell chocolate garnish on top and needed something I knew wouldn't slide!

While we are on the subject, let's talk garnishes. The joy of cupcakes is their vastness in garnish ability! From exquisite chocolate curls to simple jimmy toppings and complex fondant modeling - the possibilities are endless! I want to experience it all! I went for the simple chocolate mold garnish this time but watch out! The more cupcakes I produce the more toppings I get to experiment with (and being a biologist in real life you know how I love to experiment)!

So what makes a chocolate cake a Mexican Chocolate Cake? A small addition of cinnamon to the chocolate cake batter! The cake ended up being really moist with a hint of the cinnamon. And Browned Butter Frosting? If you haven't had it yet - make it now! A little goes a looong way! Super rich but super worth it! These were so fun to make that I even got my daughter in on the decorating. Here's a picture of her super cuteness for you. She had just decorated a cupcake and held it up and said "Mommy, it's my first cupcake!" We were both so proud :)

Here's the recipe for all of my fellow baking comrads!

Mini Mexican Chocolate Cupcakes

(from Betty Crocker's SuperMoist cakes  for all occasions publication)

1 box Betty Crocker Supermoist devil's food cake mix

1-1/3 cups water

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

3 eggs

1. Heat oven to 350F. Place paper liners in mini cupcake pan.

2. In large bowl, beat cake ingredients with electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds. Beat on medium speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Divide evenly among cupcake liners. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool completely, about 1 hour.

3. Frost cupcakes with Browned Butter Frosting (recipe follows). Top with a fun garnish!

Yield: 6 dozen mini cupcakes

Browned Butter Frosting

(from The Cupcake Bible)

Melt 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter in small saucepan over medium heat. Cook and stir until light brown. Remove from heat, let stand 10 minutes. Combine browned butter, 5-1/2 cups powdered sugar, 1/4 cup milk, 1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla and 1/8 teaspoon salt in large bowl. Beat with electric mixer at medium speed until smooth. Add additional milk, 1 tablespoon at a time, if frosting is too stiff. Makes about 4 cups.