Rich chocolate orange cupcakes

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This chocolate orange cupcake recipe makes an indulgent treat, injected with orange caramel for an extra gooey finish. The candied orange zest takes a little time to prepare, but makes an extra-special finishing touch for a special occasion.

First published in 2016

Ingredients

Metric

Imperial

Candied orange zest

Orange caramel

Cupcakes

Chocolate orange frosting

Method

1
Begin by making the candied orange zest. Peel the oranges with a peeler into long strips. Trim the pith to a thickness of 1mm – any thicker than this and it will be too bitter – and cut the strips into a julienne of 2mm
2
Bring a pan of water to the boil and blanch the orange strips for 3 minutes. Drain and repeat
3
Bring 200ml of water to the boil with 200g of the sugar and add the orange strips. Cook until the strips become translucent and the water becomes a thick syrup
4
Drain well (the syrup can be reserved and used as a flavouring in cocktails) and toss through the rest of the caster sugar. Leave for around 15 minutes before dusting off any excess sugar and scattering over a tray lined with baking paper
5
Leave to air-dry for at least 24 hours, until the peel is crisp. Store in an airtight container until needed
6
To make the orange caramel, add the sugar to a pan and caramelise until golden brown. Add the orange juice, reduce to a syrupy consistency then whisk in the butter in 2 additions. Leave to cool and transfer to a squeezy bottle
7
Preheat an oven to 175°C/gas mark 4
8
To make the cupcakes, beat the sugar and butter together in a mixer
9
Melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water and leave to cool before adding to the butter and sugar
10
Whisk the eggs and add gradually to the mixture until fully incorporated before mixing in the sour cream
11
Sieve together the flour, cocoa powder and baking powder and mix in the salt. Add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture in 2 additions
12
Add the milk a little at a time until the mixture drops from a spoon
13
Divide the mixture between a muffin tin lined with 16 cupcake cases and bake for about 18 minutes, until a metal skewer inserted into the centre of a cake comes out clean
14
Remove the cupcakes from the tin and leave to cool on a wire rack
15
Meanwhile, make the frosting. Bring the milk and orange essence to the boil in a pan. Place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl and once the milk is boiling, pour over the chocolate and mix together until glossy. Leave to cool
16
Place the butter in a stand mixer and beat for 1 minute before adding the icing sugar and cocoa powder in 2 batches. Fold through the melted chocolate mixture
17
Transfer to a piping bag with a star nozzle
18
To finish the cupcakes, inject about 1 tsp of orange caramel into the middle of each cupcake, top with the frosting and decorate with the crystallised orange zest

After a five-year stint in the kitchen at two Michelin-starred restaurant The Ledbury, Sally is now head chef at The Harwood Arms in London.

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