White Chocolate Peppermint Divinity Cupcakes

Chocolate Divinity Cake
Ingredients:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cups unsweetened cocoa powder
2 cups white sugar
1/2 butter (melted)
1/4 cups vegetable oil
1 tspn salt
2 Tbsp distilled white vinegar
1 1/2 tspn baking soda
2 tspn vanilla extract
4 cups water
11 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:
Preheat oven at 350 degrees. Sift flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt into a big mixing bowl. Then add melted butter, oil, vinegar, vanilla, and cold water to the mixture and mix. Then add chocolate chips and stir. Pour the batter in a 10x17 buttered cake pan or you can make them as cupcakes. Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 30-40 minutes for 10x17 and approximately 22-25 minutes for cupcakes.

White Chocolate Peppermint Buttercream Frosting
Ingredients:
12 oz White Chocolate (chopped)
1/3 Cup Heavy Cream (add a bit more if too dry)
2 cup Butter -- Cut In Pieces
4 cup Powdered Sugar
1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract (you can also buy clear if you want to keep the frosting whiter)
1 tsp clear butter flavor
pinch of salt
6 oz. soft peppermint peppermint sticks (chopped thoroughly with food processor or food chopper)

Add white chocolate and cream into a microwavable mixing bowl and set microwave for 2 minutes at 50% power. Check and stir, then if not thoroughly melted, put mixture in microwave at 30 second intervals at 50% power. Again, check and stir, repeat if necessary until it’s almost all melted. Make sure not to microwave it too long, otherwise the chocolate will not be the right consistency. Then put it aside to cool down close to room temperature. In a mixing bowl add butter and start mixing then slowly add sugar, vanilla, butter flavor and salt. Gradually pour the cooled mixture into the butter mixture on high speed and mix until light and fluffy.

Assemble Cupcakes:
Frost cupcakes and sprinkle each cupcake with crushed peppermint.

© 2010 (Erika) Cooking Divas