These little muffins are deep, dark, and delicious. Think of a Guinness stout cake in cupcake format--only no Guinness is necessary. The sourdough provides the yeasty taste and tang. The muffins are dense, more like a pound cake in texture than a light, airy muffin. The flavor? The muffins are full of chocolate taste, but they are more complex than the run-of-the-mill muffin or cupcake. Molasses and brown sugar provide not only sweetness but a great depth of flavor. A tiny bit of espresso powder deepens the flavor and provides a subtle hint of mocha. If you want Betty Crocker cupcakes, these aren't the answer, but if you want something that is different, special, and intensely flavored, try these muffins. I dust the cupcake muffins with a little powdered sugar to serve them, and the muffins are great alongside vanilla ice cream or with a dollop of whipped cream. Of course given the "muffin" aspect of their name, the muffins are equally good alongside your morning coffee. Enjoy!
Sourdough Chocolate Puff Muffins -- Makes 18
1 cup of starter (I use a whole-wheat based starter but any will do)
2/3 cup of canola oil
2 eggs
1/3 cup of molasses
1/2 cup of sugar
1/4 cup of dark brown sugar (use light if you don't have the dark)
3/4 cup of buttermilk
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1/2 cup of cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon of espresso powder
1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/2 cup of mini-morsel chocolate chips
Confectioner's sugar (optional)
In a large bowl combine the starter, canola oil, eggs, molasses, sugars, buttermilk, and vanilla and beat them until everything is well combined. Stir in the cocoa powder and espresso powder until well blended. Stir in the flour and salt until fully incorporated. Beat everything well for a minute or two. A wooden spoon works just fine. Fold in the mini chips. The batter will be a batter, not a dough, so it will be quite wet, albeit a bit thicker than the usual cupcake batter. Coat 18 muffin wells with baking spray (the kind with flour in it--or use cooking spray first and dust the coated wells with a little flour after). Divide the batter among the muffin wells, filling them a little more than half full. Let the batter sit for a couple of hours at least (depending on the temperature of your kitchen, 2-4 hours is plenty). The batter won't rise much, if at all. That's okay. Stick with the recipe. Heat the oven to 400 degrees and bake the muffins for about 20 minutes--checking them a little early or giving them a little more time, depending on your oven. The muffins will puff up a little, be firm to the touch, and a pick inserted in the center should come out with no wet batter attached. Let the cupcake muffins cool a few minutes before removing them from their pans to cool completely. Dust the tops of the muffins with a little confectioner's sugar, if you like.
