Java Chip Cupcakes (no endorsement from Starbucks implied)

The other day I drove out to Malibu to hike to a waterfall (aka face my death numerous times) and have dinner with some friends from Heidelberg. It was a fantastic day, but... well, that's for another post. Anyway, since I spent the day exhausting myself and didn't get to my car until around 10:45, I wasn't sure how conscious I was going to be for the hour and a half drive back home.

About halfway down PCH I decided that I was going to get some coffee as insurance against falling asleep at the wheel (although I didn't feel too sleepy at that moment, I wasn't exactly feeling energetic, and I didn't want to take my chances). I stopped at a gas station and bought some cheap cinnamon coffee at the convenience store before I set on my merry way.

So anyway, the coffee worked, in case you were wondering. But since I really only sipped on it (not wanting to over-caffeinate myself before bedtime), I had a lot of coffee left over, and I wanted to do something creative with it. Drinking it would be a good idea. But I had a better one.

Coffee-flavored cupcakes.

But then I got to thinking about how I could take it one step further. I mean, coffee cupcakes would be good, but there had to be a way to make them fattier tastier. Then I remembered everyone's favorite Starbucks drink (and by everyone I mean people who don't really like coffee coffee and really just like sugary drinks. Which is not necessarily a bad way to be, unless you're asking your arteries): the Java Chip Frappucino, aka chocolate, sugar, cream... oh yeah, and some coffee.

After some experimentation, this was the result:

Behold the Java Chip Cupcake in all its delicious, caffeinated glory.

I doctored up a basic white cake recipe to be slightly chocalatey and very caffeine-y, and I liked what I tasted, so I decided to share with you.

Cupcakes

Ingredients:
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs (or 1/2 cup egg substitute, which is what I used to save on calories)
1 1/2 cups flour
1 3/4 tsp baking powder
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1/2 cup (ish) chocolate pieces (or mini chocolate chips)
1/2 cup coffee

Directions


1.

Cream together butter and sugar.

2.

Add vanilla and eggs. Mix until nice, creamy, and smooth.

3.

In separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and cocoa.

4.

Chop up the chocolate into small pieces (if necessary).

5.

Mix in the flour mixture and the chocolate pieces.

6.

The best part... add the coffee :)

The finished batter is so delicious you could just eat it with a spoon!

7.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, then let cool.

Frosting

Ingredients:
3 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup marshmallow creme
1/3 cup powdered coffee drink mix (i used a white chocolate caramel cappuccino mix, but I'm sure     that just about any other flavor would work just as well).
1/4 cup milk

Directions:

Pretty simple. Combine all the ingredients until smooth. Add milk until it's the texture you want.

Frost the cupcakes (when they're cool, of course) and then they're ready to eat and DELICIOUS!









Some suggestions for variety:

• Add oreos instead of chocolate chips
• Top with whipped cream instead of frosting, just like a blended drink at your favorite coffee shop
• For extra decadence, drizzle chocolate sauce over the top
• For even more decadence, chocolate ganache would be great injected into the middle or as a layer  in between the cupcakes and the frosting.

It's been one of those days of the good variety.

Let me clarify that, at least for today, when I say "it's been one of those days" I mean one of those of the good variety. The ones that are incredibly full yet at the same time relaxing, at the end of which you can sit down, eat dinner, unwind, and feel satisfied about everything you managed to accomplish in such a short time.

This morning, I got up shortly after 6 am, which one would not assume is the start to a good day. However, there was reason for me to get up with the sun on a Saturday: my mom and I spent the morning scouring garage sales, which, may I mention, is one of my favorite things to do (if I'm in the right mood, of course... otherwise it's just kind of weird looking through people's old stuff). We've been looking since last summer for a good desk to go in my room to replace the one I've had for years, which is currently in a state of disrepair-- not to mention that with it's locker-style drawers, it clashes horribly with the rest of my shabby-chic style furniture. Well anyway, today we finally found a suitable replacement! It's got some gunk on it, but the bones are good, and I wanted a fixer-upper anyway. Plus, we were able to get it for $10. That's it. And now I'll have a fun summer project painting my desk and making it good as new (if not better).

After that we went to breakfast (perhaps one would call it brunch?) at Flappy Jacks, a new(ish) restaurant in this awkward location by the freeway. The way I say that doesn't make it sound appealing, but trust me, it actually is. The decor inside is quirky, with license plates and Route 66 type things. Plus, the breakfast menu is HUGE. I debated back and forth between pancakes or a crepe with strawberries, bananas, and nutella before deciding upon the better-for-me-but-still-ridiculously-tasty Veggie Benedict, which was basically a bunch of good stuff on top of an English muffin with poached eggs and hollandaise sauce. Plus there were avocados involved-- and when avocados are involved, 90% of the time that's the dish I'm going to order (perhaps this is my one stereotypical "California Girl" trait). Anyway, it was actually kind of fun eating in a booth with a view of the freeway, because it made it feel like we were on a road trip. Which for some reason made me crave a cup of good, solid diner coffee. Probably because in pretty much every movie or TV show when people go on a road trip and stop in a diner, or really pretty much anytime they're in a diner regardless of whether a road trip is involved or not, they always have a simple, comforting mug of coffee. Must be a Pavlov's dogs kind of thing.

I ordered the coffee, in case you were wondering.

This isn't the coffee I drank today, but that doesn't matter. Coffee is always good.

So if you couldn't already tell, the morning was perfect. After that, we decided to get crafty, and I've spent pretty much the entire afternoon going crazy tie-dyeing things and cutting up T-shirts and pants. I feel like I've been pretty productive, if you ask me.

The moral of the story? Sometimes it's not so bad waking up voluntarily at six in the morning, because that means by the time 6 pm rolls around you may have accomplished a whole lot more than you do in a normal day.