Chocolate Decadence

7/31/09:
Watched Giada on FoodNetwork this morning and decided that I must, must, must try baking her chocolate chip mascarpone cupcakes.
They looked so delicious and quite simple to make. Was extremely enthusiastic with my new baking adventure, headed off to Trader Joe's to get all the ingredients I need, well, I do already have a well-stocked pantry (those who've visited me will attest to that) but admittedly, don't stock up enough on mascarpone, cream nor good quality baking chocolate. Note to self: if you want to bake spontaneously, make sure you keep a good supply of the basics like choc chip morsels, dairy (buttermilk, milk, whipping cream, unsalted butter) and cake flour (not the general all-purpose flour, mind you).
The cupcakes turned out moist and so decadent.....of course, it's loaded with 3 full bars of good quality, semi-sweet dark chocolate (I used Lindt but Ghirardhelli, Guitard or even Hershey's would be good too), coated with another layer of chocolate ganache. Ummm...yummy.



My good friend Shireen happened to be visiting and she helped decorate the cupcakes with sprinkles and colored sugar.




Here's where you can find the recipe
I followed it to the T.....definitely a keeper! Note: used electric hand mixer for this instead of my Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer. Works just as well and prevents overmixing!