I don’t know if any of you remember a cake I made a few weeks ago that I called Fireman’s Cake.
It went over pretty well, so I decided to make it again as cupcakes.

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup powdered chocolate
• 1  tsp.  baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp. hot paprika
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 cup strong Lapang Souchong Tea (feel free to substitute another liquid)
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1 cup dark molasses (not black strap)
• 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1/2 cup softened butter
• 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

For the Frosting:

•  ½ pound softened butter
• 4 cups sifted powdered sugar
• ¼ tsp. salt
• 1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
• 2 – 4 Tbsp. heavy cream
• additional heavy cream or sugar as needed
• Sugar for the top

Step 1, Prepare ye the way: Pre-heat the oven to 350, and prepare the cupcake pans. I use papers and spray a bit of olive oil in them so the cakes some out more easily, but it’s your choice. This makes about 2 dozen cupcakes.
Also assemble all the ingredients on the counter.
Step 1, B: Crap! How could we run out of that?!?

Step 2, sifting the dry ingredients: In a large bowl, sift the flour, chocolate, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, paprika, and pepper. Set aside.

Step 3, mixing the wet ingredients: in a big bowl, mix the warm tea and carefully (!) add the baking soda (this is like the elementary school volcano experiment, but also like my soft pretzel/laugen recipe), whisking it smooth. After the foaming subsides, whisk in and dissolve molasses, the brown and white sugars, and the butter, and then, as it cools,  the eggs.

Step 4, combining:  Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, maybe about a third at a time, mixing thoroughly. You don’t want pockets of dry, floury ingredients.

Step 5, putting it in the pan/pans: Add half the mixture to the prepared pan/pans, sprinkle this with half of the chocolate chips, then pour in the rest of the mixture and sprinkle with (you guessed this, didn’t you) the rest of the chips. They should sink into the batter.

Step 6, pop it in the oven for baby & me: bake the pans at 350 for 20 minutes or more, depending on the size of pans you chose, or until you can stick a toothpick in it and pull it out without it being covered with batter. Take it out, let it sit for a minute or so, then take it from the pan onto a wire rack to cool all the way.

Part the Second: the frosting

Step 7, beat it! beat it! in a mixer, beat the softened butter. Add in the powdered sugar, and mix slowly at first (avoiding a sweet dust storm), then go up to medium.

Step 8, Add-ins: Add in the salt, the vanilla, and 2 tablespoons of cream. If it is too runny, add more sugar, likewise more cream if it is too stiff. Whip it to your preference. (send me your 50 Shades or other off-color joke to insert here)

Step 9, Frost: frost it as you like. I like using a cookie press for the designs of the nozzle, but I can’t ever find mine.

Part the Third: the finishing touch (optional)

Step 10, Smoke: Scorch some sugar and sprinkle it on top. A sugar cube scorched with a Brûlée Torch is an idea. I sprinkled some brown sugar and a pinch of sea salt on a very hot griddle, and then drizzled this on the frosting.
This is dangerously hot!

Step 11, Share: take it to work or to the house of someone you love. Or freeze them to thaw later.