Valentines Dessert with the Reynolds

 So one day, I luckily stumbled across this recipe on someone else's blog. it was love at first sight when I saw these cupcakes before my eyes, and I knew I had to make them for Valentines dessert.  The cupcake itself was the BEST cupcake I have ever eaten. Unlike most cupcakes, these cupcakes had so much flavor and were so rich. Although it was a lot harder to light the strawberry then i anticipated, some strawberries lit eventually. If you just want to make an amazing chocolate cupcake, then make this recipe without the strawberries and rum. You can also try the strawberries and rum, but lighting the rum was a hard task.

http://www.sprinklebakes.com/2011/01/chocolate-cupcakes-with-flaming.html

Ingredients for Cupcake:

- 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 3/4 tsp baking powder
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 2 eggs
- 3/4 cup hot water
- 3/4 cup heavy cream
- 3 tbsp canola or other vegetable oil
- 2 tsp vanilla extract

 Directions for Cupcakes:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Line muffin tin with cupcake papers and set aside.

3. Put the cocoa, flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a large bowl.

 Add eggs, water, heavy cream, oil and vanilla.

4. Divide batter among muffin cups, filling each half full.  Bake for 20 minutes.  Let cool before frosting.

Ingredients for Frosting:

-2 sticks softened butter

- 4 cups confectioners' sugar
- 4 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted

- Heavy Cream

Directions for Frosting:

1. In the bowl of mixer fitted with whisk attachment, cream together sugar, cocoa and butter; beginning on low speed then increase to high. Add Heavy cream, a little at a time, until frosting becomes thinner. 

2. Beat until fluffy and lightened in color.  Transfer mixture to a piping bag fitted with a decorative tip.  

                                                                                      

3. Frost cupcakes.

Strawberries:

- 8-24 Strawberries(you'll need as many as you have cupcakes)

- Vodka, rum, or your choice of liquor 80 proof or higher (over-proof such as 110 will give you a yellow flame)

Directions:

1. Hollow the strawberries carefully.  If you pierce the side of the strawberry accidentally, start with a new one.  Since you'll be setting the liquor aflame, it is important that the strawberry is leak-proof.

2. Set one strawberry atop each frosted cupcake.  

 3. Fill strawberries with liquor just before lighting.

It took us awhile to light the strawberries, but they are super cool when they light!