Chocolate Fleur de Sel Caramel Cupcakes

Back to Cupcakes (Martha Stewart's book) quest. I'm yearning for something chocolaty and while Red Velvet Cake is my all-time-evergreen-go-to chocolate fix, I need to get out of the RVC rut and try something new. Let's see........
Stewart's Cupcakes book page # 148. I followed the cake and filling recipes but for the chocolate buttercream, I opted to go with one of my favorite chef, Ina Garten's recipe, but with a new twist - I added ricotta cream cheese (just because I can.....have a good 3/4 pint left!)
The salted caramel tasted divine - swirling, waiting, the smell of sugar cooking, slowly caramelizing to a golden brown hue....found the overall process rather hypnotic!
Overall, good combo of flavors: chocolate, salt and caramel although I think I will use a different chocolate cake recipe than Martha's. It has a tad too much leavening if you ask me. I would have preferred a chocolate sponge cake, one that's not too light so that it can hold up to the caramel filling.
I think the chocolate cake and caramel filling should suffice - the frosting could overpower the cake-caramel combo. I'd skip the frosting next time round.

Recipe from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes (pg #148)
Ingredients:
For the chocolate cupcakes:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cups unsweeted Dutch-process cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
2 large eggs
3/4 cup buttermilk
3 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup warm water

For caramel filling:
2 1/2 cups sugar
2/3 cup water
1 Tbsp light corn syrup
3/4 cup heavy cream
2 1/2 tsp fleur de sel

For chocolate buttercream (recipe from Food Network's Barefoot Contessa) Ricotta cheese added by Jen
24 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup ricotta
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature


Method for Cupcakes:
Preheat over to 320˚F. Line mini cupcake tins with cupcake liners.
Whisk together flour, cocoa, sugar, baking soda and baking powder as well as salt in a mixing bowl.
Add the wet ingredients eggs, buttermilk, oil, vanilla and water
Mix with electric mixer at low speed until smooth and combined.
Fill cupcake liners with mixture, up to two-thirds full.
Bake for 15 mins.
Transfer cupcakes to wire racks to cool
Use paring knife to make an insertion on the center top of each cupcake.
Spoon 1 to 2 tsp warm caramel filling into each cupcake.
Sprinkle a pinch of fleur de sel (sea salt) over filling
Fill pastry bag fitted with a medium open-star tip (Wilton # 21 )
Pipe frosting onto each cupcake.
Garnish with a pinch of sea salt (optional)

Method for Salted Caramel:
Heat sugar with water and corn syrup over high heat, stirring occasionally until syrup is clear.
Bring to boil
Swirl pan occasionally until mixture is caramelized (~360˚F).
Remove from heat and stir in cream with wooden spoon.
Add sea salt

Method for Chocolate Buttercream:
Place the chocolate chips and heavy cream in a bowl set over a pot of simmering water, stirring occasionally, until the chips are completely melted. Off the heat, add the corn syrup and vanilla and allow the chocolate mixture to cool to room temperature. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whisk the chocolate mixture and softened butter on medium speed for a few minutes, until it's thickened. Add in ricotta cheese.