CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES 2 ways

CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES

All-purpose flour 1 1/3 cup

Baking Soda 1/4 teaspoon

Baking Powder 2 teaspoons

Unsweetened Cocoa Powder 3/4 cup

Salt 1/8 teaspoon

Butter, softened 3 Tablespoons

Granulated Sugar 1 1 /2 cups

Eggs 2 pieces

Vanilla Extract 3/4 teaspoons

Milk 3/4 cup

Preheat oven to 350 degrees farenheit. Line muffin pans with paper cups. Sift together flour, baking powder, soda, cocoa and salt. Set aside.

Cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy, add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in vanilla. Add flour mixture alternately with milk. Beat well, fill cups 1/2 full and bake 10 minutes. Decorate when cool.

* After making the batter, i deposited broken pieces of Andes dark chocolate mint thins in the middle before baking. So one batch was plain, and the other one was mint-chocolate.

SIMPLE BUTTERCREAM ICING

Butter, softened 1 bar

Egg white 1 piece

Powdered Sugar 1 1/2 cups

Cream butter and sifted powdered sugar, add egg white and continue beating until fluffy. Add desired flavoring and/or food color.