Monday Recipe: Chocolate and Raspberry Cupcakes (no fruit)

This is another variation of my fruity cupcakes; however this one is different in that there is actually no fruit in it at all! The raspberry flavour actually comes from a Raspberry and Dark Chocolate Hot Chocolate powder that I brought from Whittards. I don’t like it as a drink since I found the chocolate flavour to be a bit bitter and I couldn’t taste the raspberry, however I noticed that it’s just coco powder with raspberry flavouring added so I decided to add it to my baking ingredients. I find the raspberry flavour comes through much more strongly when used in cake mixture and has the advantage of allowing for raspberry cakes even when the fruit isn’t in season!

Sadly Whittards don’t currently stock this particular hot chocolate flavour so I can’t link to it. But I’m sure if you shop around it may be possible to find something similar, and if you do go into a Whittards I seriously suggest trying some of their other hot chocolate flavours. I find most of them to be very tasty!

As usual this is the cupcake maker version of the recipe, it makes 6 fairy cake sized cakes and can be scaled up to make more. Also works when baked in the oven.

Un iced as I was feeling lazy

 Ingredients
1 large egg
30g/1oz Self-rising flour, sifted
20g/1oz Raspberry and Dark Chocolate Hot Chocolate, sifted
50g/2oz Caster sugar
50g/2oz Softened butter or margarine

Method
Cream together the butter and sugar then beat in the egg. Fold in the flour and hot chocolate, divide evenly amongst 6 cake cases then bake in the cupcake maker for approximately 10 minutes or in the oven at Gas 4/180 C for about 15 minutes. The cakes are ready when a skewer inserted into the thickest part of the cake comes out clean!
Leave on a wire rack to cool.

Since the raspberry flavour is quite strong, I’d suggest topping these with a chocolate buttercream