"...it Don't Matter if You're Black or White"

For those of you who are unfamiliar with that title, I highly recommend you visit this link - it's Michael Jackson's "Black or White". My love of MJ goes back as far as I can remember, and these cupcakes were a token of said appreciation.  I had considered making a white chocolate and dark chocolate entry for a while based solely on this song. 

I baked these for a friend's BBQ birthday party who just so happened to be turning 24, and I wanted to bake 12 of each: Dark Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Filling and White Chocolate Cupcakes with Raspberry Filling.

                             

The dichotomy of white chocolate and dark chocolate is a beautiful presentation. Yet it should be noted that white chocolate is in fact NOT a true chocolate due to the lack of chocolate liquor. It consists of cocoa butter, sugar, milk solids, and vanilla. Nonetheless, it has an amazing flavor that is highly complimented by tarter flavors, such as raspberry.
Dark chocolate, on the other hand, is the "true chocolate", where sugar and fat are the only additives to cacao, with no milk. Coffee, like my last entry indicates, pairs beautifully with chocolate.

While I appreciated the concept of white and dark chocolate being opposing flavors, I wanted to add another profile to the two cupcake types. As such, I chose to use the "cone method" (see left) and fill the cupcakes. The basic process behind this is dragging a knife in a conical fashion to create a basin, which can then be filled with whatever filling is desired. The cone end is then cut off, leaving a cap with which to cover the filling. For these cupcakes, I chose to use raspberry for the white chocolate, and peanut butter for the dark chocolate. While I simply used plain raspberry preserves for the former, I made a mixture of cream cheese, peanut butter, and milk for the latter. The basic measurements were 2 ounces of cream cheese, 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter, and a splash or two of milk. I mixed these items together until the mixture resembled a caramel whipped cream. The result for each filling was absolutely delicious! 

One small side note: the white chocolate cupcakes turned out beautifully shape-wise, whereas the chocolate cupcakes had appearances that resembled mushrooms. Nonetheless, they still tasted wonderful!

White Chocolate Cupcakes with Raspberry Filling and White Chocolate Frosting 
adapted via CAKE ON THE BRAIN and Diana's Desserts
Serves 12


Ingredients:
Cupcakes

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 2 oz white chocolate
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/2 cup sour cream, at room temperature
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 3/4 tsp baking soda

• Raspberry preserves (optional)

Frosting

• 4 1/2 ounces white chocolate, finely chopped
• 1 3/4 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 6 tbsp (3/4 stick/3 oz./85g) unsalted butter, softened
• Pinch of salt

Directions

For cupcakes: Preheat oven to 350F. Melt chocolate with butter and water. Allow to cool slightly.In mixer, combine flour, sugar and salt. Add melted chocolate mixture to flour mixture and mix lightly. Add sour cream, vanilla, baking soda and egg and beat for 2 minutes. Divide batter evenly into cupcake liners and bake for 30 - 35 minutes Place pan on a rack for 10 minutes to cool. Allow cupcakes to cool completely before frosting.

For filling: if choosing to fill these cupcakes, use the "cone method" mentioned above, then fill each cupcake with about a spoonful of the preserves.

For frosting: Melt the white chocolate in a double boiler. Stir until smooth. Cool to room temp. Sift the confectioners' sugar into a medium bowl. Stir in the milk and vanilla. Add the butter and salt and beat until smooth. Stir in the cooled white chocolate. Refrigerate until firm enough to frost the cupcakes, about 30 minutes.

Dark Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Filling and Dark Chocolate Frosting

adpated via Ghirardelli 

Serves 12

Ingredients:

Cupcakes

• 1/4 cup Unsweetened Cocoa
• 1 1/8 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated white sugar
• 5/8 cup whole milk
• 1/3 cup strong brewed coffee or espresso
• 1/2 cup (or 1 stick) unsalted butter 

Filling

• 2 ounces cream cheese
• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
• 2-3 tbsp milk

Frosting

• 4 1/2 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
• 1 3/4 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 6 tbsp (3/4 stick/3 oz./85g) unsalted butter, softened
• Pinch of salt

Directions:

For cupcakes: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line 12 cupcake molds or muffin tins with paper liners or spray with nonstick spray. To make the cupcakes, sift together the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt. In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg, brown sugar, and white sugar. Whisk in the milk, coffee, and melted butter. Whisk in the dry ingredients. Divide the batter evenly among the cupcake molds, filling them about three-quarters full.

Bake for 15 minutes, or until a tester inserted in the middle of the cupcakes comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes. Using a small spatula or knife, remove the cupcakes from the pan. Continue to cool on a wire rack to room temperature. 

For filling: combine peanut butter and cream cheese and mix for several minutes - it should look light and fluffy. Add the milk as needed.

For frosting: Melt the chocolate in a double boiler. Stir until smooth. Cool to room temp. Sift the confectioners' sugar into a medium bowl. Stir in the milk and vanilla. Add the butter and salt and beat until smooth. Stir in the cooled white chocolate. Refrigerate until firm enough to frost the cupcakes, about 30 minutes.