Black bottom cupcakes have been around forever. They truly are oldies but goodies. The best of two worlds … cake and cheesecake all rolled into one … yum!
I usually don’t make colored filling for these cupcakes … but it is Halloween after all! And the spider webs could be used on any cupcake or by themselves.
I will give you the recipe and directions for making the spider webs. So let’s get started …
Make the filling. Mix the cream cheese, sugar and egg until smooth …
Stir in the chocolate chips …
Stir in the orange food coloring (I use Americolor about 3 drops) …
Now make the chocolate cake. Whisk together the dry ingredients … flour, sugar, cocoa, salt and baking soda …
Add the wet ingredients … water, oil, vinegar and vanilla … stir until smooth …
Fill lined cupcake pans (1/3 full) …
Add the filling … (you could sprinkle some chopped nuts on top at this point) and bake …
While the cupcakes are baking, we can make the spider webs. You will need …
- Melted white chocolate or candy melts (about 8 ounces for 24 webs) in a squeeze bottle or pastry bag
- Chocolate chips (24)
- Black edible marker
- Wax paper
- A toothpick
I have a tendency to lose control over the size of things … so I drew 2-1/2″ circles on a sheet of paper as a guideline for the size of my spider webs …
I placed the paper on a cookie sheet and covered it with wax paper …
On top of the wax paper, make a small puddle (about the size of your thumbnail) of melted white chocolate and work the spiral out …
Using the toothpick, drag the white chocolate from the center to the outside rim …
Add a chocolate chip (spider body) to the center of the web …
Pop the webs into the fridge for a few minutes to firm up. Then use the marker to give the spider some legs and lay the webs on to of the cooled cupcakes …
Black Bottom Cupcakes
- 8 ounces cream cheese (light or regular) softened
- 1 egg
- 1-1/3 cups sugar
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1-1/2 cups flour
- 1/4 cup cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup water
- 1/3 cup canola oil
- 1 tablespoon white vinegar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- Chopped nuts (optional)
1. In a small bowl, mix cream cheese, egg and 1/3 cup sugar until smooth. Stir in chocolate chips. Set aside.
2. In a medium bowl combine flour, cocoa, baking soda, salt and 1 cup sugar. Stir in water, oil, vinegar and vanilla. Beat until smooth.
3. Fill lined cupcake pans 1/3 full with chocolate mixture. Spoon cheese mixture on top. Sprinkle with nuts if desired.
4. Bake at 350°F 30-35 minutes. Do not overbake. Makes 24 cupcakes.
I do recommend serving these cupcake after they are completely cooled. I like to refrigerate them … but I like cold cheesecake.
