Week 13: Chocolate Buttermilk Halloween cupcakes

I have a...slight problem with sprinkles.  I tend to purchase far more than a normal person can make use of in a lifetime.  Anytime a holiday rolls around, I find new sprinkles and drop them in my cart.  Chuck's job is to remind me that I already have enough sprinkles (just like I remind him that we already have enough canned tomatoes).  Sadly, Chuck isn't always with me at the store.  All of this is a long way of explaining this:

And these are just my Halloween-themed sprinkles.  I haven't been brave enough to pull all of my sprinkles out at the same time, but I'm fairly certain I have at least twice this many Christmas-themed sprinkles.

So I figured I'd bake up some Halloween-themed treats and see what I could do about using some of my sprinkle stash.  I frosted the cupakes & then handed them off to Brett for sprinkling.  Here's what I learned: Brett preferred using one type of sprinkle on every cupcake.  After he covered 6 cupcakes with purple sugar, Chuck gently encouraged him to shift between some others.  And we ended up with a nice collection of cupcakes:

My favorite cupcake of the bunch is the one on the right corner of this pic - yeah, the one upon which Brett dumped the black sugar.  This shot was after I shook a good chunk of sugar onto other cupcakes.

Lessons learned and recipe thoughts:

1. Quick & simple recipe that makes a nice, moist cupcake.

2. I use powdered buttermilk (mixed with water) in place of fresh - you can store it far longer, and it's easier than running to the store to buy buttermilk when I'm baking.

3. Everything is better with sprinkles.

Chocolate Buttermilk Cupcakes (from The Cake Mix Doctor Returns)

Makes: 22-24 cupcakes (2 1/2 inches in diameter)
Prep: 15 minutes
Bake: 20-25 minutes
Cool: 20 minutes

24 paper liners for cupcakes pans

1 package (18.25 oz) chocolate cake mix, plain or with pudding
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 tbls unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract

1. Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350.  Line 24 cupcakes caups with paper liners and set the pans aside.

2. Place all cake ingredients in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer on low speed until the ingredients are incorporated, 30 seconds.  Stop the machine and scrape down the side of the bowl with a rubber spatula.  Increase teh mixer speed to medium and beat for 1 1/2 - 2 minutes longer, scraping down the side of the bow. again if needed.  The batter should look well blended.

3. Spoon or scoop a heaping 1/4 cup of cupcake batter into each lined cupcake cup, filling it two thirds of the way full.  (You will get 22-24 cupcakes; remove the empty liners, if any.)

4. Place the pans in teh oven and bake the cupcakes until the tops spring back when lightly pressed with a finger, 20-25 minutes.  Remove the pans from the oven and place them on wire racks to cool for 5 minutes.  Run a dinner knife around the edge of the cupcake cups, lift the cupcakes up from teh bottom of the pans using the end of the knife, and pick them out of the pans carefully with your fingertips.  Place the cupcakes on a wire rack to cool for 15 minutes longer before frosting.

5. Prepare frosting of your choice (I used a basic buttercream and tinted it orange with gel paste food coloring).

6. Spoon a heaping tablespoon of frosting on top of each cupcake and swirl it with a short metal spatula or spoon to spread it out, taking care of cover the top completely.  Serve.