chocolate brownie cupcake, peppermint filling, chocolate ganache and peppermint twist topper.
Goodness me, I feel like the white rabbit in Alice and Wonderland, the Disney version that is with "I'm late, I'm late, I'm late for an important date". How boring it is when "life" gets in the way of baking cupcakes, but that's when it's great to turn to your never fail recipes like today's Chocolate Peppermint Twist Brownie Cupcakes.
I've used this batter many times before including the orange flavoured boomerang cupcakes, this time I'm using Lindt Mint Intense chocolate to give the cake batter an extra minty flavour but by all means if you can't get it replace it with the same amount of dark eating chocolate and a drop or two of peppermint extract/essence.
Lindt Excellence Mint Intense flavours the cupcake batter
Chocolate Peppermint Twist Brownie Cupcakes
Ingredients
120g plain flour (4oz)
2 tbs *dark dutch process cocoa
3/4 tsp baking powder
100g block Lindt Excellence Mint Intense chopped (3oz)
170g butter (6oz)
215g sugar (7.5oz)
3 large eggs room temperature
Method
We are going to purposely underbake the batter a little today so we end up with a slightly sunken centre that will hold the peppermint filling.
Pre heat oven to 180C (350F) line a 12 cup muffin pan with paper liners
Sift together flour, cocoa & baking powder, set aside. Place the butter & chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water, stir frequently until chocolate mix is melted and smooth. Cool for 15 minutes.
Use a wooden spoon to stir the sugar into the chocolate mixture & mix until combined. Stir in eggs, one at a time until incorporated. Fold in the flour mixture, until there is no traces of flour, but do be careful not to overmix.
Divide the batter between the 12 paper liners, bake 18-20 minutes, the cakes will look almost cooked with a slightly undercooked (indented) centres. Remove to a cooling rack for 5 minutes before removing cupcakes from pan to cool completely.
Unfilled cakes keep up to 3 days in a covered container.
*use whatever cocoa you have if you can't get dark dutch processed cocoa. Dutch processed cocoa gives you a rich dark chocolate colour and isn't as bitter as other cocoas.
Mint Layer
Ingredients
3 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cup icing sugar (powdered sugar)
1 1/2 – 2 tablespoons of cream or crème fraîche
3/4 teaspoon pure peppermint extract/essence
green food coloring (optional)
Method
In the bowl of your electric mixer or with a hand mixer, beat all the ingredients until smooth. Add a few drops of green food coloring if you want the frosting green. If the frosting is too thick, add a little extra cream. The frosting should be just thin enough to spread/fill the cupcakes easily. Spread the frosting evenly over the cooled cupcakes, making sure the centre indent is filled. Place in the refrigerator for about 5-10 minutes or until firm.
Chocolate Ganache
½ cup cream
200g (7oz) dark eating chocolate chopped
Bring cream to the boil in a small saucepan, remove from heat, add chocolate, stir until smooth.
Wait until your ganache is cool but still spreadable and spread gently over the mint filling in the cupcakes.
*the ganache will lose it's gloss once set, if you are not serving the cakes within an hour but want "gloss" a teaspoon of corn syrup stirred in after the chocolate has melted into the cream will preserve the gloss.
Peppermint Twist Topper
For the toppers I used commercial chewable peppermint lollies, 2 lollies and a drop of green food colour will make 12 twisted toppers. Though, simple chopped/crushed hard peppermint candy also makes an excellent topper.
chewable white mint becomes a twisted topper
See working with fruit chews for how to colour and soften a lolly. Make six twisted pieces from each lolly by rolling and stretching small pieces into random twisted shapes. Place a twist on top of each cake.
Happy Baking :)
You might be feeling more like a banana cupcake? 
Then how about Bundy Banana Grog Cupcake and Toffee Toppers