Chocolate Cupcakes

Directions

• ganache:
• add the chocolate and cream into a bowl and heat this in the microwave for 30 seconds
• take this out, stir it, then heat for 15 seconds. keep repeating this until the chocolate is fully melted and the mixture is smooth
• cover the bowl and leave aside at room temp to set. this should take 1-2 hours, i recommend not putting it in the fridge to speed up the process, it sets better at room temp
• cupcakes:
• start by pre-heating your oven to 170c/325f
• in a large bowl, mix together the cocoa powder, flour and both sugars together
• now mix in the milk/coffee mixture. at this point, there's not enough liquid so the dry ingredients won't mix with the milk very well, that's ok just mix it slightly
• in a separate bowl, or jug, whisk together the butter, oil and eggs
• add this into the bowl and whisk everything together until the batter is smooth. try not to over mix this, as soon as most of the lumps are gone you can stop mixing
• fill your cupcake cases 3/4 of the way full with this batter. i think the easiest way to do this is by putting the batter into a measuring jug
• bake these for around 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean
• to assemble:
• once the ganache has fully set, whip it until it lightens in colour and almost doubles in volume. if you have an electric mixer, i would say use it for this, it'll make this step a lot easier
• once the cupcakes have completely cooled, you can pipe the whipped ganache on top using any tip you want and then you're done!