My colleagues and I recently moved office. One day, he dropped by and exclaimed: “Your office is so bright! I’m repainting my wall to have the exact same color”.

Now that’s interesting! I always thought we all had the same wall color. I gotta find out. So I did. I went over to his office and checked it out.

Okay. Well. Hmmm…

Should I tell him that half of the light bulbs in his office are off??

Maybe he’ll be happy with the new color instead, and probably some cupcakes too.

Dark Chocolate Ganache Cupcakes

(adapted from The Cupcake Diaries: Recipes and Memories from the Sisters of Georgetown Cupcake)

For 9 regular cupcakes

75g all-purpose flour
50g cocoa powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt
4 tbs unsalted butter (room temperature)
100g sugar
1 egg (room temperature)
1/2 cup whole milk (room temperature)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1. Preheat the oven to 350F.
2. Line a standard cupcake pan with 9 cupcake paper.
3. Sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
4. Use a handheld mixer at medium speed, beat the butter until fluffy.
5. Add sugar, and beat at medium speed until well combined.
6. Add egg, and beat again until well incorporated.
7. Combine milk and vanilla extract.
8. Reduce the speed to low, add 1/3 of the flour mixture in step (3) to the butter mixture in step (6).
9. Gradually add 1/3 of the milk mixture.
10. Add another 1/3 of the flour mixture followed by 1/3 of the milk mixture.
11. Add the rest of the flour mixture followed by the remaining milk mixture. Beat until just combined (do NOT over mix).
12. Use a standard icecream scoop to fill each cupcake paper with batter. Bake for 19 minutes.
13. Cool on rack.

For the chocolate ganache

80g dark chocolate, chopped
60g heavy cream

1. Combine the chopped chocolate and heavy cream in a heatproof bowl.
2. Double boil until melt.
3. Dip the top of each cupcake in the warm ganache.
4. Allow the ganache to set for 15 minutes before serving.