Finding Happiness at the Bottom of a Measuring Cup: Black Bottom Cupcakes

So one thing I love to do that usually cheers me up is cooking/baking.  And even if the actual process doesn't help my mood drastically, who doesn't feel better after eating something delish?  I thought it would be fun to share some of these recipes so you guys all have them on hand when you might be needing a pick me up, or are just wanting to fill a hungry tummy.

This time I thought I'd go with something simple and nostalgic.  My mom used to make these for us as kids and they're still every bit as yummy as I remember.  For those of you who haven't had a black bottom cupcake, it's basically a chocolate cupcake with a cheesecake-chocolate chip filling on top.  I usually find a whole slice of cheesecake too rich to handle, so these cupcakes are the perfect dose for me.

Another plus about this recipe is you can do all the steps by hand.  No fancy equipment needed, just some bowls, spatulas and some stirring.  You can even count the stirring as a mini workout if you want : ) Make sure to get all the lumps out of the cream cheese part!

This recipe makes 12 giant cupcakes, or 24 more modest sized ones.  If you want to make 24, just fill each cup 1/3 full and add about a teaspoon of the cream cheese mixture on top.

 

Black Bottom Cupcakes

1 ½ cups flour

1 cup sugar

1tsp baking soda

¼ cup cocoa powder

1 cup water

1/3 cup oil

1 tsp white vinegar

1 tsp vanilla

8 oz cream cheese, softened

1 egg

1/3 cup sugar

1 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350° F

1) In a medium bowl stir together flour, 1 cup sugar, baking soda and cocoa powder.

2) In a separate small bowl whisk together water, oil, vinegar and vanilla, then pour into medium bowl with dry ingredients.  Stir until just combined.

3) In a separate bowl beat together cream cheese, egg and 1/3 cup sugar until smooth.  Stir in chocolate chips.

4) Pour chocolate batter into prepared cupcake tin with paper liners. Should make 12 big cupcakes, each approximately 2/3 full.

5) Spoon a heaping mound of cream cheese-chocolate chip mixture onto each portion of chocolate cupcake batter

6) Bake cupcakes at 350° F for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out cleanly with no wet batter after poking a cupcake (this can be a little confusing since the melty chocolate chips will stick to the toothpick, so make sure to differentiate between melted chocolate and raw batter when you check).

7) Share them with friends (or just eat them all yourself, it's ok, sometimes you need it).

- Cottontail