Indulge in the richness of these chocolate red wine cupcakes. They pair beautifully with a glass of pinot noir or cabernet!
Birthdays and Covid-19 Reflections
Birthday Surprise
Today was my friend’s birthday. Since social distancing has made it difficult to gather and celebrate in style, myself and a few other friends had to get creative to make sure she felt celebrated.
We decided to decorate our friend’s driveway with birthday chalk and surprise her with gifts and cards when she got home from work. My contribution was these chocolate red wine cupcakes (more on that later).
I’m sure it must have been an amusing spectacle. We were all hiding in our cars waiting for her to walk up to her driveway. However, some of us saw her sooner than others, so we all popped out of our cars at different times. And, as luck would have it, my car alarm went off as I was getting out. It was fun to see her look of surprise, and we all had a good social distancing catch-up in the middle of her street.
Covid-19 Reflections
The last time I posted, the nation was beginning to go into social isolation and lockdown. Now that we’re a month into it, I think all of us have had ample time to reflect on how this unprecedented season has affected us thus far.
For me, it wasn’t the communal fear of the virus or the social isolation that was bothering me (although I dearly miss hugs, church and social gatherings). Rather, the primary emotion I have felt is one of sadness and disappointment.
Mourning
From the months between November and February, I had three loved ones pass away, one suddenly and two following a slow, months-long decline. After the third death, I felt like I was beginning to see a light at the end of the tunnel. There was so much I was looking forward to in the coming months, but mostly, I was anticipating a life-giving season full of abundance and healing.
Hope Deferred
Instead, shortly after the final death, the nation suddenly jumped into a time of social isolation and lockdown. Although I didn’t experience it right away, I slowly began to feel deeply disappointed. It wasn’t so much the isolation that disquieted my soul. It was the fact that after so much sorrow, I felt like I was beginning to enter a brighter, happier season, only to have everything that seemed so life-giving come to a complete stand-still. My hopes for the future had been deferred.
In the month between the passing of my aunt and social isolation, I was the most socially active I’d been in my life. In hindsight, I believe one of the reasons for this was to numb the grief with activity. The busier you stay, the less time you have to feel unwanted emotions such as sorrow and loss.
However, the things I had hoped would breathe new life into me, such as a busier social life and the possibility of a new job, were temporarily taken away, and I was left with the realization that I hadn’t fully allowed myself to process my grief.
Healing
When the nation went on lockdown, I was suddenly left with plenty of time to sit with these feelings. In complete transparency, these past few weeks I have done my fair share of crying, processing my grief from the past few months and mourning my delayed hopes for the future.
I am now realizing that I was searching for the source of my soul’s rest, healing and hope in the wrong places. Don’t get me wrong, good community and friends as well as the possibility of exciting new opportunities can be such a balm to an aching heart. However, the ultimate source of life and healing comes from God the Father.
As I have given these feelings over to God in times of raw, emotional prayer, He has comforted me and blessed me with a sense of resolution and hope.
Cupcakes
Now, time for some whimsy.
While making these cupcakes, I was jamming to Bob Dylan and John Denver (as much as one can “jam” to these two artists). Then, while typing this post, I ate leftover Chinese takeout while drinking pinot noir. Quite the social isolation diet. Anyhow, I digress.
These cupcakes are incredibly rich. In fact, I may go so far as to say that I believe they taste best when paired with a glass of red wine, particularly cabernet or pinot noir. The acidity does wonders for balancing the richness of the dark chocolate.
If you prefer a less rich cupcake, I’d suggest omitting the dark chocolate ganache filling. Don’t worry, your cupcakes will still be plenty indulgent.
I hope you and yours are all staying healthy, both physically and mentally. I also hope that you allow yourself space to grieve and lament during this season, giving yourself grace and patience in the process.
Blessings on your home and table,
~Natalie
Chocolate Red Wine Cupakes
Ingredients
Chocolate Red Wine Cake
- 2¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup dark cocoa powder
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup canola oil
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 cup red wine I used a sweet red wine
Chocolate Ganache Filling
- 12 ounces bittersweet chocolate chopped
- 4 ounces heavy whipping cream
- 2 ounces red wine
Red Wine Italian Meringue Buttercream
- 1⅓ cups granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup water
- 4 egg whites room temperature
- 2 cups unsalted butter, cubed room temperature
- ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 cup red wine
Instructions
Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 350° and line cupcake tin with liners.
- In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the oil, sugar, eggs and vanilla.
- Add ½ of the flour mixture to the sugar mixture and stir to combine.
- Stir the buttermilk into the sugar mixture then add the remaining half of the flour mixture.
- Stir in the red wine.
- Fill cupcake liners ~¾ of the way full. Bake for 21 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cupcakes sit in the pan for 5 minutes, then remove to cool completely on a wire rack.
- If using the chocolate ganache, cut a small core from the middle of the cupcake. Do this once the cupcake has cooled.
Chocolate Ganache
- Place chopped chocolate in a medium-sized bowl.
- In a microwaveable bowl, combine red wine and whipping cream. Microwave on medium-high heat until the mixture starts boiling. Pour liquid mixture over chocolate, give it a slight whisk, then cover with plastic wrap. Let sit 10 minutes.
- After 10 minutes, whisk the mixture. Let sit for an additional 20-30 minutes to allow it to firm slightly. Your mixture should not be easily pourable. If, at the end of 20 minutes, it's still too liquidy, place in the fridge for ~10 minutes, whisking every so often. Be careful though. You don't want it to solidify too much to the point where you can't fill the cupcake or to the point where you are filling your cupcake with chunks of chocolate.
- Once your ganache has reached the desired consistency, fill each of the cupcakes.
Italian Meringue Buttercream
- Place red wine in a small saucepan. Simmer until red wine has reduced to ½ cup. Let cool completely.
- In a small saucepan, combine water and 1 cup of the sugar. Set over medium-high heat and cook until the mixture reaches 240° per a candy thermometer.
- While your sugar mixture is cooking, place egg whites and cream of tartar in the bowl of a stand mixer. Using a whisk attachment, beat mixture on medium speed until soft peaks form. Slowly add ⅓ cup of remaining sugar.
- Once the sugar mixture has reached 240°, add it to the egg white mixture in a slow, steady stream while the mixer is running, making sure the sugar mixture avoids touching the whisk attachment as much as possible while pouring.
- Beat on medium-high speed until the bowl of the stand mixer is no longer warm to the touch.
- Switch to a paddle attachment, and add butter. Your mixture may begin to look soupy. Do not lose heart! It will come together after a couple minutes of mixing.
- Stir in 6 Tablespoons of the red wine reduction.
- Frost cupcakes.
For more cupcake recipes, check out my chocolate espresso cupcakes!
Recipe for Italian Meringue Buttercream adapted from Preppy Kitchen.
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