today i am thrilled to share a special in the kitchen with: sarah magid. i’ve been a fan of sarah’s work for a while now and have been dying to work with her on a cooking project. and thankfully, she agreed! so yesterday i visited sarah’s beautiful home in greenpoint, brooklyn (stay tuned for a sneak peek of sarah’s home in the coming weeks) and watched as she baked delicious dark chocolate cupcakes with espresso whipped buttercream and hand-sculpted sugar flowers (the cupcake is vegan-friendly!). normally i’m more of a cook than a baker, but sarah’s work really inspires me to get in the kitchen and try out a simple recipe like this. the steps take hardly any time at all, and produce incredibly tasty results (so tasty i ate them in the car on the way home) so i hope you’ll enjoy sarah’s recipe as much as i did. and if you’re looking for a bit more a baking challenge, sarah also teaches you how to make hand-sculpted sugar flowers in the video- so you can decorate your treats like a pro.
thank you to sarah and her adorable daughter ruby (you can meet ruby at the end of the video) for welcoming d*s into their home on such a dark and rainy day.
also, many congratulations are in order for sarah on the release of her new book: organic and chic: cakes, cookies, and other sweets that taste as good as they look- a wonderful, approachable guide to organic baking. i spent the last hour drooling over her recipes for cakes, cookies and updated junk food, so if you’re looking for more sarah magid in your life, or just a visual and baking treat (the book photos were shot at saipua, with flowers styled by weeder’s digest’s sarah ryhanen!) click here to pick up a copy- i guarantee you’ll find at least a recipe or two that make you want to drop what you’re doing and start baking (or at least eating).
CLICK HERE for the full cupcake and frosting recipe, and links for buying gumpaste and decorative baking powders online!
All recipes from Sarah Magid’s Organic and Chic cookbook
Easiest Chocolate Cake
makes 32 cupcakes
2 1/4 cups organic all-purpose flour
2 cups organic cane sugar
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2/3 cup organic canola oil
2 teaspoons organic white distilled vinegar
2 cups cold water
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line cupcake tins with cupcake liners, set aside
2. In a large bowl, place sifter on top and add dry ingredients. (Or you can sift each ingredient and mix together in the large bowl).
3. In a medium bowl, mix all wet ingredients together.
4. Slowly add wet ingredients to dry, using a whisk to incorporate.
5. Using a ladle or spoon, pour batter into cupcake liners, filling batter 2/3 up in each liner.
6. Bake for 25 minutes, until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean.
Let cool before frosting.
Espresso Whipped Buttercream
Makes 3 1/2 cups
2 sticks unsalted organic butter
1 cup organic cane sugar
1 cup organic whole milk
1/4 cup sifted organic all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons strong espresso (either from a shot or from powdered espresso)
1. In small saucepan, combine 1/4 cup of the milk and flour, whisk until there are no lumps, then slowly add remaining 3/4 cup milk. Over medium-high heat, whisk frequently until mixture is thick and bubbling, remove from heat. Keep stirring and let cool to room temperature. (You can cheat by flash chilling in the freezer).
2. In standing mixer, add softened butter and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Then add sugar and beat for 3 more minutes until mixture is light and thick.
3. Add cooled milk/flour mixture, and beat for 4-5 minutes until it is thickened and creamy.
4. With mixer on low speed, add espresso, and whip at high speed for 1 minute.
5. Frost cupcakes, or cover with plastic wrap and keep in refrigerator up to 3 days. If refrigerated, make sure it comes to almost room temperature then re-beat for fluffy texture.
Sugar Flowers:
Sarah used pre-mixed gum paste, available here.
But if you would like to make your own, here is a recipe. (it requires a lot of specialty ingredients so Sarah advises buying the pre-made mix and adding food coloring to customize it)
If you would like to add colored powder to your flowers like Sarah (added in the center of each flower with a paintbrush), click here to buy edible colored powder for baking.
Images from Organic and Chic below, by by Noah Sheldon
