Simple & Delicious Mint Chocolate Chip Cupcakes

I love a good chocolate cake. Chocolate has become my favorite indulgence, so chocolate cake with chocolate frosting is my very best dessert friend. I found these cupcakes years ago in a cookbook (500 Cupcakes by Fergal Connolly), and they soon became my favorite. They are gooey in the middle, cakey around the outside, and always come out perfectly. I love them with chocolate icing (I've got a big crush on Duncan Hines milk chocolate icing), but for a fun variation I love to top them with mint chocolate chip icing.

A good friend had minor surgery yesterday, so I wanted to make something special to help with her recovery. Although I hadn't made these cupcakes in a few years, I knew they were the perfect treat!

These are the easiest cupcakes I've ever made, by far! There are just a few ingredients, most of which you probably have in your pantry already, and they take no time at all to make! The chocolate chips make the batter gooey and chocolatey, and baking them low and slow ensures that they come out soft and melty every time.

Cupcake Ingredients:

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
2 1/2 sticks unsalted sweet cream butter
5 eggs
2/3 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cups self-rising flour

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees. Line cupcake pan with paper baking cups.
Melt chocolate chips and butter together in a double boiler. If, like me, you don't own a double boiler, use a medium glass or metal bowl placed over a pot of gently simmering water. Stir often until fully melted. Set aside to cool slightly.

In a large bowl, beat together eggs and sugar. Fold the flour into the egg mixture until well blended, then slowly mix in the melted chocolate and butter.

Spoon the batter into the baking cups, and bake for 20 minutes. Remove pan from the oven and cool cupcakes before frosting.

Mint Chocolate Chip Frosting Ingredients:

2/3 stick unsalted sweet cream butter, softened
2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
1 tsp peppermint extract
green food coloring
semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:

Beat butter and confectioners' sugar together in a small bowl until smooth and creamy. Stir in the mint extract and just enough food coloring to turn the frosting a mint green. If the frosting is too thick, add more butter or a few drops of milk until frosting is the desired thickness.

Frost cupcakes and decorate with chocolate chips. Enjoy!