"chocolate cupcakes" news and stories

Beyond trends, a cupcake is much more than a mini version of grander, more showy cousins -- we're talking to you, Lady Baltimore cake. It's sweet and self-contained and invites you to experiment with what sits on a cloud of buttercream or cream cheese frosting -- a raspberry, a curl of chocolate, a sculpture in marzipan. Cupcakes ask only that you use your imagination.

For recipes for the cupcake and frosting above, blogger Whitney in Chicago was inspired by fellow bloggers Bella Eats and Love and Olive Oil to up the ante, taking their recipes one step further, one step fruitier, one step more pink, one step closer to her perfect bite.

Get inspired yourself by other recipes for chocolate cupcakes and buttercream frosting.

Become a member of the Slashfood Flickr pool to get a shot of having your photos featured in Feast Your Eyes.

Despite some powerful cravings for anything sweet (particularly chocolate), I've managed to stay true to the South Beach diet for another day. However, when it comes to looking for images for this post, I am unable to escape the pull of the desserts and baked goods. This image of a vegan chocolate cupcake with a peanut buttercream frosting caught my eye and I've been staring at it for the last five minutes, wishing deeply that I could drag a finger through that frosting. It comes to us from Slashfood reader/Flickr user/food blogger Meliass. Thanks for adding your picture to the pool!

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More often than not, when people talk about cupcakes and the bakeries that specialize in them, New York and Los Angeles are the two cities that come up. From Magnolia Bakery and Buttercup Bakeshop in NY to Sprinkles in LA, the rest of the country gets passed over like plain cupcake for a cream-filled one. But non-coastal residents should know that there are plenty of cupcakes to choose from elsewhere in the US and, to prove this point, the Detroit News conducted a taste test of local chocolate cupcakes. Each shop was scored on a scale of 1-5, with one being poor and 5 being excellent:

• Papa Joe's Chocolate Cupcakes (4.5, $1.89) - "Sinfully wonderful!"
• Astoria Bakery Chocolate Cupcakes: (4.4, $2.50) - "Chocolate heaven!"
• Holiday Market Bakery Chocolate Cupcakes (4.2, 89 cents) - "A very grown-up cupcake.
• Party Cakes Chocolate Cupcakes (4.0, $1.49) - "Something to die for or maybe to die from."
• Cupcake Station Chocolate Lovers Cupcake (3.9, $2.75) - "Tastes homemade."
• Trifles Chocolate Cupcakes (3.9, $1.75) - "All-around great."

From the sound of it, Detroit may be better off in terms of quality cupcakes than either coast!

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There are many elements of Joe's photograph that make his Coffee Cupcakes with Espresso Syrup an excellent example of food porn. The wintry backdrop with its illustration of falling snow perfect pairs with the dusting of confectioners sugar that he used to top the cakes, making it look as though they really are snow-covered! He expertly captured the melting center of the cupcake, created by placing a large, chocolate-covered espresso bean in the center of the batter right before baking. Of course, you can never really go too far wrong with the combination of coffee and chocolate, so the taste of the cakes is sure to equal their visual appeal.

[photo: Culinary in the Desert]

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