Devil's Food Cupcakes Worth Worshipping

We cannot get enough of the cuteness.

Ahhh, the cuteness. Also? The deliciousness.

This recipe for devils food cupcakes is the best ever. If you had the pleasure of eating those little cups of nirvana at the infamous Blogher 08 cheeseburger party, this recipe is damn close to the red velvet cupcakes served there. Supergirl, however, has an extreme sensitivity to red food dye (as in, ZOMG SHE'S TURNED INTO A DEBBIL-CHILE!) and I just say no to the addition of red in chocolate.

I have adapted it from the side of the Softasilk cake flour box. The cake flour will yield the most velvety texture of cake, but cake flour is bleached, so you can make your own very close substitute by using 3/4 cup all purpose (not whole wheat) unbleached flour plus 2 Tablespoons cornstarch, triple sifted = every one cup of cake flour needed.

Deluxe Devil's Food Cupcakes

2 sticks (one cup) unsalted butter
2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla

2 1/2 cups cake flour
1 cup unsweetened cocoa
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

2 1/4 cups buttermilk (this is an easy substitute - you can mix vinegar into regular milk, or regular milk into sour cream if you don't have buttermilk on hand)

Beat butter and sugar until fluffy, add eggs and vanilla and beat until creamy, stopping to scrape bottom of mixing bowl well.
Combine flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt with a whisk in a separate bowl.
Add 1/3 of flour mixture to mixing bowl, mix until combined.
Add 1/3 of buttermilk and alternate dry and wet ingredients, mixing until combined.
Scrape the bowl well and beat for one more minute

Teeny tiny Joy kid mini-cones or other cupcake liners.
When not using the cones, I prefer those little pleated paper snack cups to regular liners - you just line them up on the cookie sheets.

Fill cups 3/4 full with batter; bake at 350 for 15-18 minutes (for mini cupcakes) or until tops of cakes spring back.

Frost with vanilla bean buttercream or seven minute frosting.