Cupcake Taste-Off
I was inspired to try out a few chocolate cupcake recipes to help me decide what is a critical component in a cupcake. I selected a recipe from Molly Wizenberg’s recent book and a recipe from Nigella Lawson’s earlier book.
The hands down winner was Molly Wizenberg’s Chocolate Cupcakes with Bittersweet Glaze. Her recipe had an unfair advantage by using yoghurt and coffee to enhance the texture and flavor. Not to mention the bittersweet glaze was nothing less than melted bittersweet Ghirardelli chocolate. (Photos of the final product are forth coming). We shared these scrumptious treats with our friends Erin and Tony who agreed, these were the best cupcakes, ever. Who needs piles and piles of too-sweet buttercream frosting? Not I.
Unfortunately it was a one sided battle. Nigella’s cupcakes didn’t even resemble cakes. I must point out that I followed her recipe exactly so that it would be a fair competition. (Usually I tweak recipes as I bake). The poor cupcakes (or fairy cakes) were either over beaten or did not contain enough flour. I am not sure what to do with them now. Perhaps load them up with frosting? Or a scoop of ice cream? But don’t blame Nigella… she taught me to make brilliant cupcakes.
In conclusion, my results do not help me decide what the “critical component” actually is. I suppose one could speculate that having a good recipe is the critical component, but that is just silly. Further research is necessary to better understand this question. (I can’t say no to that and neither can Robb.)
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