The hourly weather forecast called for 100% chance of rain today here in Seattle. It’s been nonstop drizzle since about 9AM. Which I kind of like! We were supposed to go play tennis today. We actually played last weekend in our new neighborhood. I haven’t played tennis since about 2001, so it was good to finally do so, but also I was really sore, so maybe it’s a good thing to just stay home and relax, maybe bake a little. Ha!
We made some tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches. Pogi kept trying to pester us for a sample, which of course, we wouldn’t allow. People food is not a good idea for cats. Gives them all sorts of bad indigestion, plus it can be very harmful, deadly even. Especially garlic, which this soup had tons.
For baking, I decided to make some chocolate walnut cupcakes. Mainly because I had some leftover chopped walnuts and some walnut liquor (Nocino) in the cupboard.
Anyways, I found a recipe from a book called “Death by Chocolate” written by Marcel Desaulniers, a book I’ve had for about as long as since the last time I played tennis! I mainly chose it because of the amount of Nocino liqueur in it, which I wanted to use up. Hope you like. You can probably leave it out, but it really adds another dimension to an otherwise plain chocolate cake. If you have to substitute something else for the liqueur, I’d use some hot, freshly brewed, extra strong coffee or espresso. But you’d be missing out. I’m a big fan of the nocino, which aside from walnut flavor, has a strong clove flavor.
Chocolate Walnut Cupcakes (based on Chocolate Walnut Coffee Cake, from the book, Death by Chocolate by Marcel Desaulniers)
ingredients
3/4 cup all purpose flour, sifted
3 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
4 ounces unsalted butter, room temp.
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 Tablespoon vanilla
2 ounces dark bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped and melted
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup walnut liqueur
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
3/4 cup chocolate chips
method
Line 10 muffin or cupcake molds with paper liners. Set aside. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Sift the flour, baking soda, cocoa, and salt into a bowl and stir with a whisk to mix thoroughly. Set aside. Cream the butter and sugar in another bowl and add the egg, then mix more with a handheld mixer. Add the melted chocolate, and vanilla and mix more to incorporate fully. Sift in half of the flour/cocoa mixture and blend a little, then alternate adding some of the milk and walnut liqueur, and then finally adding the rest of the flour/cocoa mixture, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Stir in the walnuts, and half the chocolate chips. Divide into the 10 liners and top each with the remaining chocolate chips. Bake in center rack of oven for about 20-22 minutes, being careful not to over bake. Let cool slightly before removing from try and unto a wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy!
DAVE BAKES
15 responses to “rainy day baking 3: chocolate walnut cupcakes”
100 pc chance of rain?! Wow, at least you know what you’re in for! These look great – love walnut and choc together.
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Yup. Very low key drizzle. But constant. It’s a great day to just bake, lounge around. Thanks for stopping by!
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Great photography! Can’t wait to try out this recipe. It sounds divine.
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Thanks!! BTW, still laughing hard over: “Oh, no, mommy. He was in the manger. He was bad and couldn’t have a cupcake.” LOLOLOL What an imagination!
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Fortunately, laughing burns calories! More cake for both of us! 🙂
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I’m sure these must have been to die for 😉
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Thanks! I still have a few left in a Tupperware container. I’m curious if they get better or worse after a day!
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Well, even if they don’t get better I’m sure they’ll still be tasty!
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It is interesting how the weather effects our palettes. When it’s cold I go right for oven bakery. These cupcakes would definitely do the trick.
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Thanks Julie! It sure does for me. The weather seems to have improved somewhat, so maybe Ben and I will be able to go play tennis soon. Hope you are doing well.
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Thank you Dave Aleeve and tennis work well together! 🙂
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that’s a whole lot of chocolate in a little cupcake, great recipe Dave, how are you settling in your new place?
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Lily, It is feeling more and more like home, thanks for asking! It’s a lot farther from the city. But the neighbors are really nice, and the buses are closer to get to. By the way, your blog didn’t show up on my wordpress reader. Weird, huh? Hope you are having a good weekend!
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I’ve moved to a self-hosted site and still figuring everything out. I already miss being a part of the WP.com community. Stay in touch okay?
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Sure thing. Enjoy your posts immensely.
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