Red velvet cupcakes with dark ganache filling and chocolate cookie crust

You know, I'm just going to say it. I have fought against this particular kind of cupcake, nay, this cake in general, for as long as I've been baking. I don't care about its Southern heritage (I first met it in Atlanta, as far as I can remember, and I thought it was weird then). I don't care about Steel Magnolias. 

(Ok, that's a total lie. I care deeply about Steel Magnolias. Not, however, in reference to this cake.)

I don't care that everyone and their brother started making red velvet cake (not to mention white velvet! Green velvet! Blue velvet! Oh, we're all so cute that I'm going to beat my own head in with my cast iron skillet). I don't usually like to eat anything with an entire bottle of dye in it (unless it's a Dorito. So sue me. I said "usually"). I wasn't really being fair about all this, either, because I'd never actually tasted a red velvet cake. I just was objecting to it on principle. Loudly.

And then, enter one of the sweetest people I've ever met, a girl who hasn't said an ugly thing about anyone, ever, to my knowledge. A girl who never asks for anything. A girl with really big brown eyes that peep up at you from under her long brown bangs. And this girl was having a birthday. And this girl...well, you can probably guess what she asked for.

So, Micah, dear, I have thrown my principles right out the window in honor of your being born. And you know what? Those principles were darn tasty. 

The cake is cocoa-y without being too chocolatey (the dark crust and the ganache jump right into that role, don't you worry) and it's not too sweet. The cream cheese frosting provides the sweetness and a nice tang and contrast. Really, y'all, this is good. I would make it again. With a lot less hand-wringing. Now I just have to figure out how to shape an armadillo.

Red Velvet Cupcakes

~ Chocolate Cookie Bottoms ~

• 1 1/2 cups chocolate cookie crumbs (about one package of chocolate cookies)
• 1/2 cup melted butter
• 1/2 cup chopped bittersweet chocolate

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 12-cup muffin tins with cupcake liners.

Very carefully so as not to scorch the chocolate, over low heat in a medium pot, melt together the butter and chocolate. Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the chocolate crumbs until all are moistened. 

Divide the crumb mixture evenly among the muffin cups. Using your clean fingers, press the mixture down into an even layer in the bottom of each cupcake liner. Bake at 350 degrees for 8 - 10 minutes (you will be able to smell them - do not let them burn). Let cool for about 10 minutes before filling with the cake batter.

~ Red Velvet Cake Batter ~

• 1/4 cup red food coloring
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup vegetable shortening
• 1/4 cup softened butter
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 1/2 cups sifted cake flour
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 teaspoon white vinegar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda 

In a small bowl, gradually stir the food coloring into the cocoa until smooth. Add the vanilla. 

In a large bowl, beat the shortening and sugar until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.  Beat in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Blend in the cocoa mixture as well as the salt. Add in the flour alternately with the buttermilk, beginning and ending with the flour. Stir the vinegar into the baking soda (it will foam). Quickly fold it - do not beat - into the batter.

Immediately divide the batter among the cookie-lined cupcake cups and place your first pan into the oven (unless you have a big oven with a lot of air circulation which I do not, but if you do go ahead and bake both pans at once). Bake the cupcakes for about 15 minutes or until an inserted tester comes out clean. Repeat the process with your other pan of cupcakes. Let the cupcakes cool completely before attempting to fill with the ganache. 

~Ganache filling ~

• 8 ounces dark chocolate, chopped 
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• pinch instant espresso powder

In the top of a double boiler over gently simmering water, combine all ingredients until smooth. Let cool until room temperature and then, with a hand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the stuffing out of it until it is nice and fluffy, then set aside until you are ready to fill the cupcakes.

Once the cupcakes have cooled, cut out a cone-shaped portion out of the top of each cake. Slice off the excess cake from the cone (leaving the flat cap) and reserve the top. Fill the resulting hole with about a tablespoon of the whipped ganache, then replace the cap. Repeat with the remaining cupcakes.

~ Cream Cheese Frosting ~

• 1 cup cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 4 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted 
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon salt

In a medium bowl, cream together the butter and cream cheese until fluffy. Add in the vanilla and salt and mix in well. Add in the powdered sugar, a cup at a time, until the sugar is blended in well and the frosting is stiff enough to hold its shape when piped.

Pipe the frosting onto the cupcakes using a pastry bag fitted with a large star tip. If desired, sprinkle the cupcakes with grated chocolate and edible red glitter for a garnish. 

Makes about 20 cupcakes.