Decadent Chocolate Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream

INSTRUCTIONS

• Make the Chocolate Cupcakes:
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Line one 12-cup muffin pan with cupcake liners and set aside.
• Combine and sift the dry ingredients in a large bowl (all-purpose flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt).
• Combine the wet ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer and attach the paddle attachment (eggs, milk, vanilla, oil).
• Add the dry ingredients mixture in step 2 to the wet ingredients mixture in step 3 in the mixer bowl. Add the sugar and mix at low speed for about 2 minutes until the mixture is completely smooth.
• Add the sugar to the final mixture in step 4 and mix at low speed for about 2 to 3 minutes until completely smooth.
• Remove the mixer bowl and add the boiling water, stirring with a wooden spoon until smooth. Let the batter rest for 15 minutes before using.
• Fill the cupcake liners (use the ice cream scoop) set aside in step 1 to about three-quarters full, and bake for about 20 minutes or until the top is firm and a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cupcakes comes out clean or with few crumbs. Allow the cupcakes to cool for 5 minutes in the pans before moving the cupcakes to the cooling rack.
• Make the vanilla buttercream:
• Cream the butter in a stand mixer with the paddle attachment. Start at a low speed and gradually increase the speed. The butter should take about 3 minutes if at room temperature, but it may take longer if the butter is cold. You will know the butter is well-creamed when it becomes smooth, fluffy, and light in color, and you hear a slapping sound as it hits the sides of the bowl.
• Add the sugar gradually at low speed, about 1 cup at a time. Ensure each cup of sugar added is well mixed before adding the next. When all the sugar has been added, add the vanilla extract and salt, stopping the mixer and scraping the bottom and sides of the bowl and paddle attachment to ensure that all the butter and sugar are well mixed. Mix at low speed for another 20 seconds. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl.
• Increase the mixer speed to the highest speed and mix for about 5 minutes. You can cover the mixer bowl to prevent splashing. You may need to stop the mixer once or twice to scrape the bowl and paddle. The buttercream will become lighter in color, creamy, and smooth and appear to have increased in volume.
• Use the buttercream immediately or store it in an airtight container and put it in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Use a large star or round tip and the pastry bag to pipe a swirl of frosting onto the cupcake to finish. If refrigerated, allow the buttercream to come to room temperature, then beat with a mixer until it is light and fluffy again.