Gus' Golden Cupcakes A favorite from Comfort Food just for book groups!

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Gus’s Golden Cupcakes

Nice moist crumb texture—almost muffinlike—with light sweetness and dotted with bursts of chocolate chips.

INGREDIENTS

2 ½ cups of flour
2 ½ tsp baking powder
¾ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
⅔ cup of butter, softened
2 cups white sugar
2 tsp vanilla
2 eggs, room temperature
1 ¼ cups of buttermilk
1 cup of miniature chocolate chips, semi-sweet


DIRECTIONS

Preheat Oven to 375 degrees.

Line muffin tin with paper cups.

Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl and set aside. (You need the baking soda to offset the tang of the buttermilk.)

In a separate bowl, using a mixer, cream the butter until light and fluffy.  Then add the sugar, and cream until smooth. Add vanilla, mix.

Add room temperature eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. After both eggs are incorporated, mix again on medium-high for 30 seconds.

Alternate adding the flour mixture and the buttermilk, a little at a time, mixing on low until just combined.  When all milk and flour is added, mix together on medium-high for 30 seconds.

Chocolate chips offer a pleasant counterbalance to the cupcake. Fold in now.

Fill cups ¾ full. Do not over fill or muffins with overflow when they rise!

If intending to serve the chocolate chip cupcakes without frosting, put a few chocolate chips on top before baking for appearance’s sake.

Bake for 22-26 minutes.  Check through the oven window before opening the oven door.  (With homemade cakes and cupcakes made from scratch, opening the oven before baking is complete can result in fallen cakes.)

Icing flavors from chocolate to vanilla to peppermint will work; go to www.comfortfoodnovel.com for ideas.


Yield: 18-24 cupcakes