Tuxedo Cupcakes

I am ashamed to admit that I’ve never watched a single episode of Mad Men.

Seriously…not one.

I don’t even know how I’ve let this happen. I mean, here’s this show……that has style……and cocktails……and I’m not watching.

At this point, it’s almost become a runaway train. I realize that I could rent the past seasons, but I’m not sure I have the time it would take to get caught up.

It’s quite a predicament.

So here I sit….Mad Men-less.

Don Draper-less.

Martini-less.

And Sunday nights on Twitter are so totally depressing. It’s all #MadMen this and #MadMen that….it’s like when you’re in high school and everyone’s talking about this awesome party they went to over the weekend. And you weren’t there, so you just sit and listen and nod your head and kinda do a fake laugh every now and again.

Not that that ever happened to me, of course.

Ahem.

Anyways, my knowledge of all things Mad Men is pretty limited. But I’m pretty sure that in the 60s, the dessert of choice was something like a snazzy Jell-o salad. With some fruit cocktail or nuts thrown in or whatever. But maybe….just maybe….if presented with these classy Tuxedo Cupcakes, they would have seen the error of their dessert eating ways.

I realize that there are a few of you who looked at picture at the top of this post and thought that these cupcakes looked like too much work.

Too complicated.

Too many fancy ingredients.

So right now is a pretty awesome moment for me. Because I get to do my second favorite thing in the world.

Which is to say, “You’re wrong. Wrong-o. Wrong-orino.”

These cupcakes are gorgeous, delicious, and dare I say it?

EASY.

(adapted from The Pastry Queen)

INGREDIENTS

Your favorite chocolate cupcakes. Use a mix, make homemade…whatever. Here’s a link to the recipe I use, just replace the yellow mix with chocolate.

Whipped Cream Frosting:

4 cups chilled heavy whipping cream
1 1/4 cups powdered sugar

Chocolate Glaze:

4 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped into very small pieces
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup Lyle’s Golden Syrup (my grocery store does not carry this, so I substituted 1/8 cup honey and 1/8 cup light corn syrup)
2 teaspoons vanilla

Place the bowl and whisk attachment to your mixer in the freezer at least 15 minutes prior to beating the cream. Once the bowl and whisk are chilled, whip the cream on high speed until soft peaks form. Add powdered sugar and whip thoroughly until combined.

Make sure you beat this just until it’s the consistency of thick whipped cream. It won’t take very long, and you really don’t want to over whip it.

Frost the cupcakes very generously with the whipped cream. Be sure to level the tops off, to give the glaze a place to sit. Place the cupcakes in the refrigerator for at least an hour before glazing.

Once the frosted cupcakes are chilled, place the chopped up chocolate in a medium bowl.  Heat the cream in a small saucepan over medium heat until it is very hot and just beginning to steam. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and stir until it melts completely. Stir in the syrup (or honey and corn syrup) and vanilla. Pour the glaze into a bowl and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Do not let the glaze sit longer, or it will become too stiff to spread easily.

Spoon the glaze on the tops of the cupcakes and spread to the edges to allow it to drip down the sides. You don’t want to spoon on too much glaze, or it will drip all the way down the the bottom and make a huge mess. You just want it to drip a little bit.

You can top these with raspberries, or strawberries, or anything, really. Just be sure and top them right after spreading the glaze, so the fruit will stick. Refrigerate for an hour to allow the glaze to set before serving.

These will stay good in your refrigerator for 2 days.

I purchased these fluted muffin cups on Bake It Pretty awhile back, but it looks like they don’t have them on their site anymore. If you are interested in purchasing some, you can find them on Fancy Flours.

Do you watch Mad Men? Am I majorly missing out? I need to find a way to salvage this situation.

Sigh.

Have a happy Monday!!