Easy Chocolate Cupcakes 簡易朱古力杯子蛋糕

I finally have the time to transfer my favorite chocolate cupcake recipe to my blog! This recipe was originally posted to my Facebook page EC Bakes (formerly EC Treats) in September from last year. I have been making these cupcakes for almost two years and I still haven’t found any other recipe better than this yet. The recipe is slightly adapted from Baking A Moment and I have reduced the amount of sugar. Recently I have started adding a bit of instant espresso powder to intensify the chocolate flavor. I love these babies because of the following:

They are so chocolatey. One third of the flour component comes from cocoa powder.

They are super fast and easy to make. You simply use cold butter taken right out from the fridge. The preparation time is less than 5 minutes with a stand mixer. And most of all, there is only one dirty mixing bowl to clean up!

These cupcakes are crumbly and fluffy without being overly sweet. They pair up nicely with my silky Swiss meringue buttercream which is made with reduced amount of sugar as well. Of course they are also good on their own without any frosting.

The cake batter is thick as Greek yogurt is used, meaning absolutely no drippy mess when you transfer the batter to the cupcake liners.

Last but not least, the recipe calls for a combination of all purpose and cake flours. As a result, the cupcakes will be sturdy enough to withstand the weight of the frosting (even a generous amount) but yet retain a super fluffy texture.

Cupcakes, as well as many other butter cakes, are traditionally made with the creaming method. You beat softened butter and sugar until pale and fluffy, incorporate the eggs one at a time, and finally add in flour and other liquids alternatively, mixing them until just combined. With this method you may sacrifice some tenderness because of the mixing. These cupcakes are mixed a bit differently, namely with the reverse creaming or the two-stage mixing method. Dry ingredients are first combined with fats and later followed by the incorporation of wet ingredients. When the flour is coated by fats (butter in this case), the formation of gluten is minimized. The result is a tender cake with a velvety crumb. Cakes made this way also rise with a flatter dome and not as high as one made with the creaming method, in which the rise is created by the tiny air bubbles created during the creaming process. With the same recipe, you will get different results in terms of height, texture and mouthfeel. If you have never tried this mixing method, try one with a cake recipe you are familiar with. Compare the results and see which method you prefer.

These cupcakes have received rave reviews and I got various questions regarding the ingredients as well as the methods ever since my recipe was published. Therefore, I’ve included my answers to some commonly asked questions at the end of this post. I hope you will find them helpful. Do let me know should you have any other questions.

終於有時間為EC最喜愛的朱古力杯子蛋糕食譜搬家了！這原是去年九月在Facebook專頁EC Bakes (那時仍叫EC Treats啊)的分享，食譜已用了差不多兩年了，暫時仍未遇到更好的食譜。蛋糕配方修改自Baking A Moment，EC將糖量減少了，最近亦開始在配方中加入少量咖啡粉協助提升朱古力粉的味道。這杯子蛋糕令EC着迷是因為：

它的朱古力味超濃郁(朱古力粉佔粉類三分一)

做法簡單快捷，牛油直接從雪櫃取出使用，不用置室温放軟，用座枱攪拌機的話，麵糊可在五分鐘內做妥，而且只用清洗一個大鋼盆（懶人福音喔）!

杯子蛋糕質地鬆軟無比，减糖配方不會太甜，與EC的減糖瑞士蛋白奶油霜是絕配! 當然不加任何霜飾也很美味

杯子蛋糕以水份較少的希臘式乳酪為材料，所以麵糊較杰，分配入紙模時麵糊不會滴在桌上，减少了清潔工作

最後，配方混合使用低筋及中筋麵粉，因此杯子蛋糕結構夠紮實可承托(大量的)霜飾重量，但質地仍然是鬆軟的

傳統杯子蛋糕及很多牛油蛋糕都是用糖油攪拌法(creaming method)製作，先將軟化牛油加糖打至鬆發，再將蛋逐顆加入攪拌，最後才將粉類及液體隔着分次加入攪拌。EC的做法有點特别，用的是reverse creaming 或two-stage mixing method，意思是先將牛油與所有乾性材料拌匀，然後才將其他濕性材料加入混合。當麵粉被牛油包裹着時，就不會因過度攪拌而出筋，因此蛋糕質地能保持鬆軟。蛋糕在焗的過程中沒有像傳統方法一樣有牛油加糖打發後做成的氣泡協助膨脹上升，所以蛋糕上升時會較平坦，不易有小山丘的情況出現，有利於擠上各種霜飾。倘若用不同攪拌方法去做同一個配方的話，成品無論在高度、蛋糕結構及口感上均有分别，未試過用reverse creaming method做蛋糕的話，可以用自己常用的蛋糕配方改一改次序做一趟來個對比，或許你會像EC一樣愛上這個方便快捷的攪拌方法！

自從去年分享食譜後，不少烘友試做過後均表示喜歡，EC同時亦收到不少關於材料及製作上的問題，因此EC特意重新編輯食譜，並附上常見問題及答案，希望幫到大家，如有更多問題歡迎留言。

Updated April 30, 2016:
For a newer version of this chocolate cupcake which is moister and fluffier, please refer to my post Fluffy Chocolate Cupcakes.
更新 2016/04/30
EC改良了食譜，新配方更鬆軟濕潤！詳情請到超鬆軟朱古力杯子蛋糕

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Easy Chocolate Cupcakes
簡易朱古力杯子蛋糕

Makes 12 standard or 36 mini cupcakes
可做12個杯子蛋糕或36個迷你杯子蛋糕

Ingredients

60 g all purpose flour
30 g cake flour
50 g unsweetened cocoa powder
120 g granulated sugar
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp instant espresso powder (optional but recommended)
115 g butter, cold, cut in cubes
2 eggs, large
120 g plain Greek style yogurt
1 tsp vanilla bean paste or pure vanilla extract

Notes: The eggs I use are about 50 g each without shells.

材料

中筋麵粉 60克
低筋麵粉 30克
無糖可可粉 50克
細砂糖 120克
泡打粉 3/4茶匙
梳打粉 1/2茶匙
鹽 1/4茶匙
即溶特濃咖啡粉 1/2茶匙 (可省略，加了會更好)
凍牛油，切小丁 115克
大蛋 2隻
原味希臘式乳酪 120克
雲尼拿醬或純雲尼拿香油 1茶匙

註：EC用的大蛋每隻淨重約50克

Directions 做法

Preheat oven to 350ºF/180ºC. Line a standard 12-cupcake pan with paper liners. Bring eggs and yogurt back to room temperature.
焗爐預熱350ºF/180ºC，12格杯子蛋糕模內放紙模，雞蛋及希臘式乳酪從雪櫃取出置室温備用。

Combine and sift all dry ingredients in a mixing bowl. Add cold butter cubes all at once. With a hand mixer or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix on low speed until mixture resembles wet sand or bread crumbs. More time will be needed for a hand mixer. Use a bigger mixing bowl if a hand mixer is used to prevent ingredients from flying around.
所有乾性材料混合過篩放入鋼盤中，加入凍牛油丁，用電動打蛋器或坐枱式攪拌器(使用攪拌配件)以慢速攪拌至材料成濕沙或麵包糠狀，用電動打蛋器要多些時間，材料亦容易滿天飛，建議用大一點的鋼盆。

Add eggs, greek yogurt and vanilla bean paste. Stir on low speed until smooth and well combined. Batter will be thick.
加入蛋、希臘乳酪及雲尼拿醬，用低速攪拌成滑身及稠身的麵糊。

Divide batter evenly among liners. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of cupcake comes out clean, about 15 minutes in my oven. For mini cupcakes, bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Adjust time accordingly for your own oven.
將麵糊平均分配放入紙模中，放入焗爐焗至竹籤插入蛋糕中央取出不沾麵糊，EC家中焗爐約需15分鐘 (迷你杯子蛋糕約需10至12分鐘)，請自行調節焗爐火力及時間。

Cool in pan for 5 minutes. Transfer cupcakes to wire rack to cool completely before frosting. Do not let them cool completely in the pan as condensation will make the cupcakes soggy and may even cause the liners to pull away from the cupcakes.
出爐五分鐘後將杯子蛋糕取出移到鐵架上，完全放涼後可擠上霜飾，不要將杯子蛋糕留在模中放凉，倒汗水會令蛋糕變得過濕，甚至使紙模甩掉。

Here are some of my previous works using this chocolate cupcake recipe.
以下是EC的舊作，蛋糕底全部都是這個朱古力蛋糕

FAQ 常見問題

Q: Can I use plain yogurt instead of Greek style yogurt?
A: Yes, but the batter will not be as thick. If you plan to use plain yogurt, try to drain out the liquid by letting it sit at room temperature for an hour. Discard the liquid then measure again. You will need slightly more yogurt to start with.
問：可用普通原味乳酪代替希臘式乳酪嗎？
答：可以，普通乳酪水份較多，麵糊會較稀，建議預先量多一點，室溫置一小時讓其出水，倒走水份後再量所需份量。

Q: I use a hand mixer and the ingredients fly out of the bowl.
A: Use the biggest mixing bowl you can find in your kitchen. Before I got my stand mixer, I used to place my mixing bowl in the kitchen sink when I prepared my batter. Everything was mixed with the slowest speed. That made both preparation and cleanup easier.
問：我用電動打蛋器，材料滿天飛！
答：建議用大一點的鋼盆，未買坐枱式攪拌器前EC會將鋼盆放在廚房鋅盆中才開始攪拌，全程用低速，這樣比較容易操作及清洗。

Q: Should I use cold or room temperature butter cubes?
A: I have tried both and got better results with cold butter taken right out from the fridge. When mixed with the dry ingredients, room temperature butter will more likely produce a dough-like mixture whereas cold butter will give one that is sand-like. Both works at the end, but from my experience I prefer cold butter.
問：應該用凍或室溫牛油丁？
答：EC兩樣皆有試用，覺得凍牛油(直接從雪櫃取出切丁使用)效果較好。當與乾性材料混合時，室溫牛油較易被拌成糰，而凍牛油可保持沙粒狀，兩者最終都能做成麵糊，但從經驗方面EC會選擇用凍的。

Q: Why aren’t my cupcakes as flat as yours but domed and cracked on top?
A: Every oven is different. Try lowering your oven temperature by 25ºF/10ºC and see if that helps.
問：為什麼你的杯子蛋糕較平而我的卻中間突出和爆面？
答：每個焗爐都不一樣，建議嘗試把焗温降低25ºF/10ºC再試。

Q: Why are my cupcakes greasy on the bottom?
A: You have chunks of butter left in your batter that has not broken down into fine pieces and coated with flour, which leads to a pool of melted butter sinking to the bottom of your cupcakes. When you mix your butter and dry ingredients, mix them until they resemble wet sand or bread crumbs. If you see butter chunks, make them smaller by rubbing them with your fingers or cutting them with a spatula or the back of a knife.
問：為什麼杯子蛋糕底部漏油？
答：麵糊中有未被徹底切碎及被粉類包裹的大牛油顆粒，牛油粒溶掉便往下流並在蛋糕底部聚集。混合乾性材料及牛油時要拌至濕沙狀或麵包糠狀，發現有大牛油顆粒時可用手指頭捽小或用膠刮/刀背切小。

Q: Can I replace the cocoa powder with flour and turn it into vanilla cupcakes?
A: I’ve tried but that didn’t work out for me. Click here for my vanilla cupcake recipe.
問：可以用麵粉取代可可粉做成雲尼拿味嗎？
答：EC試過但味道未如理想，雲尼拿杯子蛋糕食譜可到這裡。

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