If you read this blog, you know we have a fondness for hostess cupcakes and trying to recreate them. This month for Martha Stewart Cupcake Club, Jess from Cookbook Habit chose Jumbo Cream-Filled Chocolate Cupcakes, from page 133 of the book, and you can be sure I was excited to try them. They helped me to continue my quest for the perfect hostess substitute.
Now, in many ways, I made this cupcake quite different from the one in the book. First, I don't have a jumbo muffin pan, so I used a regular sized one. I got 19 cupcakes (although I filled some of them too full, so I should have gotten more) and I baked them for 20 minutes. They were a little dry, so I think 18 minutes would have been better. However, the color is awesome. The ones in the book are really light colored, but I used a very dark cocoa power and I love the color of the cupcakes.
Then, I didn't have any Marshmallow Fluff, which is the only kosher brand of Marshmallow Cream. I just could not justify buying that huge container for such a small amount, so I used the recipe that Sarah used when she recreated hostess, minus the orange food coloring. It was delicious and I did not miss the marshmallow flavor at all. I also did not hollow out the bottoms, as Martha suggests, and instead just shoved a piping bag into the top of the cupcake. I should have followed her directions though, because the filling to cake ratio was not right. I wanted more filling, especially since the cupcakes were a bit dry. I really enjoyed making the squiggles on these, and I think they came out pretty nicely. I am loving my new piping bag.
Finally, Martha does not put any frosting on hers. That was not an option for me. First, I really like frosting. Second, my cupcakes fell big time in the middle, and I needed something to cover up their ugliness. I used the chocolate ganache glaze I had left over from making the s'mores cupcakes and it worked really well. It did not get too hard and I thought it added a nice flavor to the cupcakes. I would definitely recommend a chocolate glaze on these. It also adds to the moistness of them.
Overall, I really enjoyed these cupcakes. I would like to try them again and bake them less, in order to increase the moisture, but I thought they had a really nice flavor. I think I am getting closer to my hostess goal.
Gorgeous cupcakes! I think I might be the only person who didn't add chocolate ganache this week :) I made the jumbos and I kept a close eye on them as they baked and mine were still dry. They were fun to make though, even if they weren't a huge hit flavor-wise.
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