Chocolate Cupcakes with Raspberry Buttercream Frosting

There's no other flavor combination I like better than chocolate and raspberry. The smooth, rich taste of chocolate balances well with the slight tartness of raspberries. And there's no other season in the year when I crave this combination the most than fall. There's something so comforting about driving to the nearest Starbucks and ordering a tall hot chocolate with a shot of raspberry. Yum.

It's been a long time since I last baked a dessert with these two goodies. The last thing I baked many moons ago was the chocolate raspberry loaf. I don't know what took me so long to experiment with another kind of dessert. But here we are!

I adapted a simple chocolate cake recipe from here. It's a recipe for cake, but I turned it into cupcakes.

Directions for the chocolate cupcakes: (Makes about 24-26 cupcakes)
Ingredients

1 3/4 c	all purpose flour
2 c	sugar
3/4 c	cocoa powder
2 tsp	baking soda
1 tsp	baking powder
1 tsp	salt
2	eggs
1 c	boiling water; dissolve 2 tsp instant espresso
1 c	buttermilk
1/2 c	vegetable oil
1 tsp	real vanilla extract

Directions
1.   Combine flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a large mixing bowl or stand mixer.

2.   Combine eggs, coffee, buttermilk, oil, and vanilla. Add to dry ingredients

3.   Beat at medium speed for two minutes. Batter will be thin.

4.   Pour batter into the cupcake pan that is lined with cupcake liners.

5.   Bake at 350 degrees for about 17 minutes.

6.   Cool before frosting.

Directions for Raspberry Buttercream Frosting:

Ingredients

1. 2 sticks of butter, softened (unsalted)

2. 1/2 cup of seedless raspberry jam (not preserves)

3. Confectioners' Sugar (around 3-5 cups). Add 1 cup at a time until you reached your desired consistency.