Chocolate Honey Cupcakes with Roasted Peanuts (+ a Chef’n Giveaway!)
We have some really incredible locally-produced honey here in Tennessee. We pick up a giant jar of raw dark wildflower honey at the Farmers’ Market every few months or so, and use it in everything from tea to salad dressings to baked goods. I swear, once you buy some really good pure honey, you will never go back to the cheap-o store stuff (yes, I’m talking about you, Mr. Bear).
A few weeks back I made a chocolate cake, and the cake recipe I used included honey in the batter. Which I didn’t think much of until we were eating it that night. And you know what? You could actually taste the honey. It was a delicious complement to the richness of the chocolate itself.
So I took that idea (as I often do), and downsized it into cupcake form. Mixed in some roasted peanuts (because as a child who would choose a pb & honey sandwich over a pb&j anyday, I knew they were a perfect match), and topped it off with a subtly sweet and buttery rich honey buttercream. Yum. The honey adds an unexpected note of sweetness and depth of flavor to these cupcakes that you can actually taste in the final cake (surprisingly it does not bake out). Not to mention that since honey is naturally moisture-loving, these are some of the moistest cupcakes you will ever eat. To put it concisely, these cupcakes are all-around scrumptious.
Granted, Taylor has never been a fan of peanut butter and cake in the same bite, and while I had hoped that the ground peanuts would differ from simply adding peanut butter, I still think he would have preferred these sans-peanut. But I am sure he won’t put up a fight when I ask him to help me finish off this batch. I mean, cake is cake, right?
Chocolate Honey Cupcakes with Roasted Peanuts and Honey Vanilla Buttercream
Makes 12 cupcakes.
Ingredients:
3/4 cup soy milk
1/3 cup canola oil
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup honey
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup roasted unsalted peanuts, finely groundFor Frosting:
2 large egg whites
3/8 cup sugar
2 tablespoons honey
1 cups (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extractDirections:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Line muffin pan with paper liners.
Whisk together the soy milk, oil, sugar, honey, and vanilla extract until incorporated. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Mix in peanuts. Make a well in the center of dry ingredients and pour in soy milk mixture. Stir until just smooth (do not overmix).
Pour into liners, filling each with 3 tablespoons of batter (cups should be no more than 2/3 full). For mini cupcakes, fill each with 1 tablespoon batter. Bake 18-20 minutes (or 10-12 for minis), or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Transfer to a cooling rack and let cool completely.
To make buttercream, combine the sugar, honey, and egg whites in a large heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and whisk constantly, keeping the mixture over the heat, until it feels hot to the touch, 7-10 minutes. The sugar should be dissolved, and the mixture will look like melted marshmallow cream. Remove from heat and transfer to the bowl of a stand mixer, and whisk on high speed until mixture is completely cooled and stiff peaks form, about 6-10 minutes. Add butter, 2 tablespoons at a time, on low speed, mixing well after each addition. If at any point mixture looks separated or curdled, stop adding butter. Increase speed to high and beat until mixture smooths out again. Reduce speed, and continue adding remaining butter. Beat in vanilla and food coloring (if desired). Pipe or spread onto cooled cupcakes.
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And now on to the giveaway portion of this post! A few weeks back, I was contacted by the fine folks at Chef’n looking to collaborate on a giveaway here on this blog. While I didn’t immediately recognize the company name, I did recognize (and regularly use) a few of their products. Chef’n is responsible for a number of fun, unique, and out-of-the-box kitchen tools, designed to solve many common kitchen conundrums. In fact, I had had a set of their SleekStor™ collapsible measuring cups (in the most gorgeous teal blue) on my wishlist for some time now. When your drawer space is limited, every little bit counts.
So when they offered to send me a set, along with some other baking goodies, how could I say no? And the best part of it all is they have agreed to send a second set of baking gadgets and goodies to one lucky Love & Olive Oil reader!
Up for grabs is one Chef’n Gift set. Included in the prize are 1 set of SleekStor™ collapsible measuring cups (in your choice of 6 colors – Curacao shown above), one Switchit™ All-Purpose spatula and one Switchit™ Spreader spatula (again in your choice of colors – Arugula and Radicchio shown above), and one set of 3 multi-colored Nesting Mixing Bowls.
TO ENTER: simply leave a comment on this post by midnight (cst) on Saturday, March 13th. Only one entry per person. I will randomly select the winner first thing Sunday morning. Prize will be shipped to the winner directly from a Chef’n representative. Giveaway is open to all readers – US and abroad!
You can also get yourself a BONUS entry by twittering about this giveaway, sharing it on facebook, or mentioning it on your own blog. Simply leave an additional comment with a link to the tweet and/or blog post. One bonus entry per person (multiple tweets won’t get you multiple bonus entries).
Be sure you enter a valid email address, because if your name is drawn and I can’t get ahold of you, I will choose an alternate winner. You may also want to add me to your address book (lindsay AT loveandoliveoil DOT com) for good measure, I’d hate for your congratulatory email to end up in the spam folder.
Don’t Miss a Meal!
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can’t wait to try this recipe!!
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Though I would love to win the stuff, I want to try those cupcakes!! Been having a craving for choco and peanut butter lately, maybe this will help!! Thanks for recipe!
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I love chocolate and honey. So ditto, I can’t wait to try this recipe!
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I was just thinking about making frosting with honey earlier today! This looks fantastic!
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The cupcakes look great!
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I want both cupcakes and cooking implements. Both look so pretty.
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These look like they combine most of my favorite things!
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I tweeted: http://twitter.com/ZakStrassberg/status/10142320012
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I tweeted about this too :) (http://twitter.com/brittty/status/10142323953)
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pretty cupcakes. thanks for the giveaway!
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7pm on a sunday, and i have everything on hand to make these…perfect end to the weekend – thanks!
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i’m with u – every bit of storage space is valuable in a cramped kitchen… gotta love chef’n
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added a comment on my f-book page –
http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Sweet-Treats/88906934872?ref=ts
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Oh yes, that luscious, DARK honey is the key. Not only does it add flavor, but bread crusts come from the oven darker. And I’m sure you know honey has natural preservative properties, making it an excellent choice for home baked breads that aren’t consumed in one sitting.
Not that I’ve ever had that problem! Nice cupcakes.
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yay chef’n!
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Those cupcakes look wonderful!
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I love that you had Chef’n projects already!
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Look SUPER yummy!! Will have to try it!
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Ooooh, those are so fun looking! Pick me! Pick me!
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Oh man…this sounds absolutely amazing.
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Wow! I would love to have this fantastic set. So cute!! Thanks for having a giveaway!!
biehnl AT yahoo DOT com
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these cupcakes look amazing! they may just grace the table at my next staff meeting.
p.s. the giveaway looks fabulous too =)
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I need those collapsible cups. Mine always get trapped in the drawer.
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omgosh these sound so good!
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Can u write more about honey and the different kinds. Love your blog
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I can’t wait to make these delicious looking cupcakes! beautiful!
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These look amazing, and I love fun cooking supplies (and collapsible items and bowls that nest are a must in my teeny-tiny kitchen!)
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oh I’m a huge fan of those measuring cups! pick me!
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I always like to see recipes that use alternative sweeteners to regular sugar, especially honey
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There’s a strong possibility I’ll be making these tonight. A chocolate + honey combination is just too interesting to resist trying!
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Chocolate & honey? Never thought of it as a combo! Yummy!
And, yes, Chef’n do make some pretty nifty gadgets for the kitchen – I own one of their mandolines :)
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Hmm.. sounds like something I could definitely wrap a fork around. Love the give-away. I have a soon to be married grandaughter & she would love to have these.
Thanks for the chance.
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So colorful!
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If I win your giveaway, will I be able to make cupcakes that look and taste as amazing as yours!?!?! I’d hope so!!!
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Yum, these look delicious!
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Love the recipe and the giveaway,
http://prettyenoughtoeat.blogspot.com/2010/03/check-it-out.html
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went away w/o computer for the weekend and came back to great updates! Excited for this give-away AND those potato pancakes – YUM!
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First, I love honey. Second, I love giveaways. I am a TN girl. Clover honey is my favorite.
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I love the taste of pure honey — and I was reading this, I was thinking, “Yeah, but can you TASTE the honey?” When of course you answered that! Another reason I love reading your blog — you think along the same lines I do!
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this recipe really makes me want to get cute yellow liners now. sounds delicious!
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How awesome of you to snag a set for the readers! Also, the cupcakes look awesome–one of the many reasons I’m happy I buy honey by the jug.
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I have to love any product that comes in the color “arugula.” I think it’s a match made in heaven.
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Awesome set of baking stuff!
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That cake looks pretty awesome. Do you think it would do well with dark agave in place of the honey? I think my niece would love those for her upcoming birthday (five is an important one!).
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Thanks so much for hosting this giveaway; the utensils look really great. Blogged about it here: http://theradioactivegan.blogspot.com/2010/03/purportedly-best-broccoli-ever.html
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i love it when i read your lovely recipes and find that I have all the ingredients in my pantry :) thanks for another yummy-sounding and interesting cupcake recipe!
p.s. Saw chef’n stuff for the first time the other day and thought they were neat-o! thanks for the chance to win!
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That cupcake recipe sounds A-Mazing!!! Thanks for sharing. I would also love to be entered into your giveaway :)
P.S. Here is my tweet on the giveaway too:
http://twitter.com/lindsaybabble
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Those sound so tasty! I love honey and like to get the good stuff from the local farmers market.
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Love cupcakes! Thanks for the giveaway, I would love to win : )
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Weee! Collapsible cups!!!
All of the Chef’n gifts look great! :)
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I recently bought some local honey too. My husband agrees that local is luscious. Never thought about putting in it cake! Looks great!
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Please pick me!!! I would love to bake with these lovely items!
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http://twitter.com/Fettbot/statuses/2147483647
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These are all such adorable, useful, cleverly designed and constructed pieces!
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You turned me on to that very honey you have pictured last summer at the farmers’ market & I LOVE it! Have used it so much since~
My mother-in-law gave me some of those collapsible measuring cups for Xmas this year and they are great! Very cute stuff :-)
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I tweeted about this giveaway: http://twitter.com/doppeldeer/status/10148647641
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The mixing bowls are so cute! I would love to have that in my kitchen :)
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I am going to make these tonight, hubby loves anything with peanuts in it and can hardly wait for me to make them. Would really like to have the giveaway in my kitchen in BC.
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Those cupcakes look absurdly delicious! And who would not love such a fantastic giveaway?
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I cannot wait to make these. I’m getting my wisdom teeth taken out tomorrow so I have to wait :( But these are definitely on my to-make list.
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i posted on my blog too – bakingsweettreats.blogspot.com
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I love these measuring cups and bowls! i always need new ones and these would be great!
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I also tweeted @ http://twitter.com/jess_kim/status/10149905280
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Yum!!
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Honey vanilla buttercream sounds divine! And those cooking tools look awesome too!
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I has just eaten peanut butter and honey toast when I saw this recipe. I am so excited to try it. Also, the kitchenware is adorable.
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Your Grandma Karen told me about this blog. Will mention it on my facebook, too.
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Mmmmm… Now I want cupcakes and a peanut butter and honey sandwich.
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Thank you for the opportunity for this giveaway. tara r s at comcast dot net
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Love this and love your blog!!!
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These look yummy!
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I can’t wait to try these!
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Chocolate and honey sounds interesting and delish!
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http://foodieinphilly.blogspot.com/2010/03/another-giveaway-whoa.html
Blogged about the giveaway!
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The blue on those measuring cups are so pretty, and I really need more bowls – mine are red and really don’t photograph well.
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This recipe sounds very interesting. I’m going to try them but instead of soy milk, I will be using rice milk. Everyone at work looks forward to trying out the newest creations. Thanks
I will be letting all my fellow friends on facebook about this site.
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I also luv to find good recipes that use wonderful local honey! This one looks like a keeper!
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Sounds good! love your blog :)
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That set looks great! I need prep bowls like nobody’s business!
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LOVE your blog and LOVE the look of that gear! :D
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This giveaway is too cute!
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I also tweeted about it @maddypage
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a comment. Ha, ha just kidding. Always enjoy your recipes Lindsay
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Beautiful cupcakes, as always. They remind me of the peanut butter, honey, and Nutella sandwiches I’ve been making!
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Yummmmm!
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Hope I win. :)
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love the blog and the bowls. they are great colors and i need some collapsible bowls in my little apartment kitchen!
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the colors on the bowls are fun seeing as they would probably be sitting out on the counter in our kitchen!
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Those bowls are so cute! I love the bright and vivid colors!
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Looks interesting but delicious! I love the colorful giveaway items!
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You never fail to impress, Lindsay! :) Great cupcake and fingers crossed on the contest :)
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LOVE getting your weekly updates
would also LOVE to win the chef’n products
maybe it would help me become less of a closet chef?
i also twittered my first tweet about this!
http://twitter.com/danigorgi
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Looks delicious. I’m going to make them this week without the peanuts. Love the giveaway too. Such vivid colors. I hope I win!!
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wow, your cupcakes look amazing (:
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i can’t wait to try to bake the cupcakes!
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woo! those cupcakes look delicious. I’ll have to try that recipe soon.
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Your love of honey goes way back to your Winnie the Pooh Birthday Cake!
Count me in on this giveaway!
I will be making these soon, with our Farmer’s Market honey.
Mom
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Wow!! I’ve been lurking here for quite some time and while the added bonus of potentially winning amazing-looking baking tools is great, what I really want to say is that I, too, LOVE PB&Honey sandwhiches. Always have. They are a million times better than PB&J.
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Those cupcakes look wonderful!
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Fun! Thanks for a great giveaway and a delicious blog!
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