Author Notes
My friend and I both studied abroad in Chengdu in the Sichuan province of China during college, and she fell in love with the city (she's living there now!). So, I made these cupcakes for her birthday one year, for nostalgia's sake. MaLa (??) in Mandarin means hot and numbing, and it's best used to describe the taste of Sichuan peppercorns. The combination of the peppercorns with the chocolate in this recipe is unique in that you get the chocolately goodness first, and then the peppercorns kick in a couple bites later. —Mya L
Test Kitchen Notes
Wow! These cupcakes hit it out of the park. They were delightfully spicy, although honestly, next time we will up the Sichuan pepper quotient a bit. We loved the spice combination in the cupcakes and were also very taken with their moist, delicious texture. It took a leap of faith to accept the lack of eggs in the recipe, but sure enough, the ingredients delivered a moist chocolate cupcake with a delightfully spicy flavor. The frosting was delicious as well. We like cake with a little frosting rather than frosting with a little cake, so I halved the frosting recipe and had plenty to top these tasty cakes. These lovely little cupcakes will be in our regular rotation. —lmikkel
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Ingredients
- For the cupcakes
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1 1/2 cups
all-purpose flour
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1 cup
sugar
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1/4 cup
good-quality cocoa powder
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1 teaspoon
baking soda
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2 teaspoons
orange zest
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1/2 teaspoon
ground star anise
-
1 teaspoon
ground ginger
-
1/2 teaspoon
ground Sichuan peppercorns (or more, if you dare!)
-
1/4 cup
vegetable oil
-
1 cup
milk
-
1 teaspoon
vanilla extract
-
1 tablespoon
apple cider vinegar or white vinegar
- For the frosting
-
1/2 cup
unsalted butter
-
2 cups
powdered sugar
-
1/2 cup
good-quality cocoa powder
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1/4 teaspoon
ground ginger
-
1 teaspoon
vanilla extract
-
1 tablespoon
milk, plus more if needed
Directions
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Preheat oven to 350° F and line a 12-cup muffin tin.
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In a large bowl mix flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, orange zest, star anise, Sichuan peppercorns, and ginger together.
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In a separate bowl, whisk together the vegetable oil, milk, vanilla, and vinegar. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir, just until combined.
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Fill cupcake liners 3/4 of the way, then bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
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FOR THE FROSTING: Cream together butter until fluffy. Add sugar and cocoa powder about 1/2 cup at a time until blended. Mix in ginger, vanilla, and milk, adding more or less milk depending on desired consistency.
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