Maple Fudge Cupcakes

I'm in a great mood this weekend. Dan and I are happily settled into our new condo, the kitty is doing very well, we finally have furniture in our bedroom, and I passed the bar exam. How do I choose to celebrate these wonderful events? Nights of debauchery? Fine dining on the town? Nope! I celebrate by sleeping in until 9:30am and trying out a new Hannah Swensen cupcake recipe.

In terms of taste and texture, these cupcakes taste more like brownies than cake. They're dense, chewy, and intensely fudgy with a nice maple after taste. As for the frosting, I could probably eat it by the spoonful. Even Dan, who isn't nearly as wild about chocolate as I am, ate 3 of these in rapid succession. Now that's a good cupcake.

Maple Fudge Cupcakes (Slightly modified from the Hannah Swensen recipe)

Ingredients:

(Cupcake)

- 4 cups chocolate chips

- 1-1/2 cup white sugar

- 1/2 cup maple syrup

- 1-2/3 cups flour

- 1-1/2 tsp baking powder

- 1/2 tsp salt

- 1/2 cup butter, melted

- 3 large eggs

- 1/3 cup milk

(Frosting)

- 2 cups chocolate chips

- 1 14oz can condensed milk

Steps:

(1) Preheat oven to 350.

(2) Prepare muffin pan with liners, or grease cups if you don't want to use wrappers.

(3) Microwave the chocolate chips, syrup, and 1/4 cup sugar for 1 minute. Stir mixture until chips are melted and everything is smooth.

(4) Add milk, melted butter, and the rest of the sugar. Mix well.

(5) When mixture has cooled a little, add eggs, one at a time. Mix well.

(6) Gradually add flour. Let batter rest for 5 minutes.

(7) Fill  of each cupcake liner 3/4s of the way full.

(8) Bake for 20-25 minutes.

(9) For the frosting, melt chocolate chips and condensed milk in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir constantly to make sure mixture doesn't scorch. Drop large spoonfuls to fill the craters at the center of each cupcake + some extra to cover the rest of the cupcake top. Sprinkle with chopped pecans, or garnish with fresh fruit of choice.