Grasshopper Cupcakes – Rich, Minty, Green, Chocolate Cupcakes

Directions

For Cupcakes

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a standard size cupcake tin with paper liners.

Mix the milk and vinegar in a small bowl. Let it stand (the milk will separate).

Sift the cocoa, all-purpose flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl. Add the eggs, warm water, milk and vinegar mixture, oil, and vanilla extract. Mix until smooth.

Place one mint-chocolate cookie on the bottom of each cupcake liner. Fill cupcake tins 2/3 full of the batter.

Bake for 20 minutes, rotating the pans half way through the baking time.

For Peppermint Ganache

Place the chopped chocolate in a medium bowl. Heat the cream until just simmering. Pour the warm cream over the chopped chocolate. Allow the mixture to sit for about a minute. Add the peppermint flavor. Then mix until a smooth, glossy mixture forms.

Set the warm ganache aside. Allow to cool before using it in cupcakes.

For Assembling the Cupcakes

Once cupcakes have cooled completely, core out a 1 1/2 inch diameter circle in each cupcake, saving the top of the cored cupcake piece. Fill the hole with a heaping teaspoon of cooled chocolate ganache. Replace the top of the hole with the reserved cupcake piece.

Spread a thin layer of the ganache over the edges of the cupcake. Immediately press mini-chocolate chips into the wet ganache.

Pipe the frosting on each cupcake. Drizzle left over ganache over cupcakes. Top with a chocolate mint cookie.