Spicy Chocolate Cupcakes

Makes about 3 dozen cupcakes

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, at room temperature
2 ¼ cups sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
⅔ cup cocoa powder
2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon to 1 teaspoon cayenne*
½ teaspoon to 1 teaspoon ground chipotle pepper*
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups buttermilk

*The amount of cayenne and chipotle you use depends on your spice tolerance – go with ½ teaspoon of each or less if you want mild heat; the full 1 teaspoon of each if you want these to be nice and spicy.

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat well. Combine the cocoa, flour, baking soda, baking powder, cayenne pepper and chipotle pepper, and salt in a small bowl. Add the dry mixture to the butter mixture alternately with the buttermilk, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients.

Add the batter to your prepared cupcake pans, and bake for 20-25 minutes, when a tester inserted in the middle of a cupcake is clean. Cool all the way before frosting.

Chocolate Ganache Frosting

1 pound semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
1 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 8 cubes
½ teaspoon cayenne (optional)

In the top of a double boiler, heat the cream, sugar, and corn syrup over medium-low heat until there are just bubbles around the side of the pot. Whisk the mixture until the sugar dissolves, then remove from the heat and add the chocolate to the pot, and stir until the chocolate is melted. Add the butter and cayenne (if using) to the mixture and stir until smooth. Pour into a bowl and chill, stirring every ten minutes or so until the frosting is spreadable.