Terrarium Chocolate Cupcakes
Equipment
- 24 cupcake liners, dark brown or black
- muffin pan
- Wilton Fern Designs Fondant and Gum Paste Mold
- plastic or latex gloves
Ingredients
Chocolate Cupcakes
- ⅔ cup sour cream
- ¾ cup buttermilk, room temperature
- ⅓ cup vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 egg white, room temperature
- 1 box dark chocolate cake mix (15.25 ounces), sifted
- ½ cup dark chocolate cocoa powder, sifted
- ½ cup mini chocolate chips
Chocolate Frosting
- 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 cup butter, softened
- 1 pinch of salt
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- ¼ cup dark chocolate cocoa, sifted
- 6-7 cups powdered sugar, sifted
Cupcake Decorations
- 1 box white fondant (24-ounce box Wilton Decorator Fondant used)
- green gel food coloring
- red gel food coloring
- 6-8 Oreos, filling removed and crushed (or similar dark chocolate cookie)
Instructions
Chocolate Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 325°F. Place cupcake liners in a cupcake pan.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the sour cream, buttermilk, oil, vanilla, and eggs. Whisk until well combined. Sift in the cake mix and cocoa. Add the chocolate chips and stir until combined. Do not overmix.
- Divide evenly between 24 cupcake liners. Bake for 15-17 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean or with crumbs. Cool on a wire rack.
Chocolate Frosting
- In a microwave-safe bowl, place the chocolate chips and cream and heat on high for 30 seconds. Stir. Heat for an additional 30 seconds, stirring again until melted. Set aside.
- In a mixing bowl, beat the butter until fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add the melted chocolate mixture, salt, vanilla, and cocoa powder. Beat until well mixed.
- Add the powdered sugar 1 cup at a time, beating until smooth.
- Spread or pipe the frosting onto the cupcakes. Sprinkle cookie crumbs onto the cupcakes.
Fondant Decorations
- Wearing gloves to prevent stained fingers, pull off a large piece of fondant, and add a small amount of green gel coloring. Fold and work the fondant until the color is consistent throughout. Divide the green fondant in half, then place one half in plastic wrap. Add more green gel to the other half and work the fondant until the color is well mixed. This gives you two shades of green to mold.
- Using the fondant mold, firmly press the darker-green-colored fondant into the desired mold shapes. Then use a metal spatula to scrape off all excess fondant from the top of the mold shapes. To release the shaped fondant, pull the sides of the mold, then turn it upside down and tap until the shape releases. Continue making shapes with the two green colors until you have made enough for 24 cupcakes.
- Pull off a small piece of fondant. Add red gel coloring and work the fondant until the color is well mixed.
- Roll the red fondant into small balls, then flatten them into caps for the red mushrooms' tops. Using white fondant, make tiny balls, flatten them, and scatter them onto the mushroom tops. Make mushroom bottoms from white fondant. Roll a piece into a thick rope and then cut it into ½-inch pieces. Flatten one end so it stands. Place the mushroom cap on top of the base and press it down, so it curves down like a mushroom cap. Repeat to make several red mushrooms.
- Use white fondant to make small white mushrooms. Use the same technique as used for the red mushrooms, minus the dots on top. Create other shapes from fondant using your imagination.
- Let the shapes dry and harden for 2 days. Then decorate the cupcakes.
Notes
Fondant Decorations
The fondant decorations will take at least an hour to create. However, the time required can vary depending on the complexity of your designs and whether you choose to customize pieces rather than use molds. Fondant requires about 48 hours to harden, so I recommend preparing the decorations 2 days before baking the cupcakes. Additionally, refer to the photos to gauge how many pieces it takes to decorate each cupcake, helping you estimate how many fondant decorations to make.Cupcakes Without Decorations
These triple chocolate cupcakes are also delicious on their own, even without the decorations.Nutritional Information
The fondant decorations are not included in the nutritional information.Nutrition
Calories: 478kcalCarbohydrates: 58gProtein: 5gFat: 27gSaturated Fat: 13gPolyunsaturated Fat: 4gMonounsaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 0.4gCholesterol: 61mgSodium: 251mgPotassium: 235mgFiber: 3gSugar: 46gVitamin A: 485IUVitamin C: 0.1mgCalcium: 73mgIron: 3mg
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