Black Bottomed Cheesecake Cupcakes

Also known as the ugliest cupcakes you will ever lay your eyes on.



That was intentional. They were never gonna be beautiful. Just like my feet were never going to be foot models (thanks Mum).

Sean said to claim them as being rustic. So I will.





I had a bit of a cruisey day today. I can only do lab work every four days at this stage so once I did all my prep I had the afternoon free to apply for a job, pay a power bill and twiddle my thumbs. I decided that I should probably pay a bit of attention to my wee blog. It has been a bit neglected really. I kind of went to Hawaii for 10 days, then I had a whole heap of stuff to do at uni and then I guess I have been in a bit of a baking rut, making the same things over and over again. I offered the chem honours kids that I would bring them in something so it was a perfect opportunity to try something new and to blog about it.



Now to be honest with you, these didn't go as expected. I made up the cheesecake mixture and it was such a failure. It was sloppy and not smooth and fluffy like it was supposed to be. It was somewhat lumpy also. Not ideal. I was also not prepared for the eggless sponge batter. It was the strangest recipe I have ever made. I put the first lot in with little faith in the outcome. But you know what? They didn't turn out half bad so we gobbled them all up and I gave them another go with the left over cheesecake mixture applying what I had learnt from the first lot. The cheesecake mixture was still a mess. Let me know if it works out alright for you.



Goodness, I made so many adjustments. I hope I can remember them in (slash guess how much extra I threw in). This was originally a Hummingbird Bakery recipe. This is the second cupcake recipe that has turned out a little suspicious. My trust in them is being compromised but I shall remain loyal.

The sponge of this cupcake is excellent and rich. It is also quite dense. For those of you who have ever made a mug brownie, this is basically the same thing.

Changes I made:
Add the yolk and only half the white to the cheesecake mixture
Add in about a quarter of a cup of icing sugar to the cheesecake mixture also
Add 3 tablespoons of oil instead of the three
Add 1/2 cup plus say 2 tablespoons of water to the sponge batter
Added chocolate chips to the sponge (hey why not?)
I made up a cream cheese icing then separated off a little and mixed in 5 squares of melted dark chocolate then marbled this through to create an even messier effect.
I also added small half teaspoon amounts of plain cream cheese to each cupcake case, just to break up the sweetness a little.


Black Bottomed Cheesecake Cupcakes
Adapted from the Hummingbird Bakery Cookbook
makes 11-12

For the sponge:
190g plain flour
120g castor sugar
40g cocoa
1/4 cup chocolate chips
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons water
1 1/2 teaspoons white vinegar
3 tablespoons sunflower oil
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
pinch of salt

For the cheesecake filling:
140g full fat cream cheese
60g castor sugar
1/4 cup icing sugar
1 yolk + 1/2 egg white
1 teaspoon vanilla

Cream cheese icing:
50g butter, softened
60g cream cheese
3 cups icing sugar
5 squares dark chocolate
1 teaspoon vanilla

Other:
6 teaspoons cream cheese


Preheat the oven to 180 degrees on bake and line a muffin tray with paper cases.

Filling:
In a mixing bowl, beat together the cream cheese, vanilla, castor sugar and icing sugar. Slowly add in the egg and mix until smooth and creamy (hopefully). Set aside.

Sponge:
Mix together all the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, cocoa, chocolate chips and baking soda).

In a jug, mix together all the wet ingredients (oil, water, vinegar, vanilla).

In a free standing mixer, gradually add the liquid mix into the dry and mix until the batter is thick.



Spoon dessert spoonfuls of the batter into each cupcake case. Spoon half a teaspoon of cream cheese into the bottom of each case also. Next, spoon a tablespoon or two (as much as fits) of the cream cheese mixture into the cases. Try not to fill too high (leave 6mm space) or else the cheesecake mix overflows.



Bake for 20-22 minutes or until the cheesecake looks set and is no longer 'eggy' looking.



As you can see, these are pretty hideous looking.

Leave to cool before icing.

To make the icing, cream together the cream cheese, butter and icing sugar and vanilla until light and fluffy. Melt the chocolate using small bursts in the microwave. Stir this chocolate into a small bowl with about half a cup of the cream cheese icing. When spreading the cream cheese icing over the cupcake, dip the edge of your spatula in this chocolate icing and swirl it around to create a marbled effect.



Sprinkle over with chocolate chips if you wish.



Enjoy!!