Recipe: Perfect Chocolate Cupcakes with Pomegranate Cream Cheese Frosting

Chocolate Cupcakes with Pomegranate Cream Cheese Frosting. Beat cream cheese and butter until creamy. Frost with pomegranate chocolate or vanilla cream cheese frosting and decorate with arils. Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting: With an electric mixer, beat together cream cheese and butter.

Spread frosting on cupcakes and top with pomegranate seeds, if desired. To increase the cinnamon flavor in the cream cheese, double the amount of cinnamon. To easily portion batter into baking cups, use an ice cream scooper. You can have Chocolate Cupcakes with Pomegranate Cream Cheese Frosting using 18 ingredients and 7 steps. Here is how you achieve that.

Ingredients of Chocolate Cupcakes with Pomegranate Cream Cheese Frosting

1. It's 1 of FOR CUPCAKES.
2. Prepare 2 cup of granulated sugar.
3. It's 1 3/4 cup of all purpose flour.
4. It's 3/4 cup of special dark hersheys cocoa.
5. It's 1 1/2 tsp of baking powder.
6. You need 1 1/2 tsp of baking soda.
7. Prepare 1 tsp of salt.
8. You need 2 of eggs.
9. You need 1 cup of milk.
10. It's 1/2 cup of oil such as canola oil.
11. You need 2 tsp of vanilla extract.
12. It's 1 cup of boiling water.
13. It's 1 of FOR POMEGRANATE FROSTING.
14. Prepare 1 1/2 cup of pomegranate juice.
15. You need 4 oz of butter at room temperature.
16. Prepare 8 oz of cream cheese at room temperature.
17. You need 12 oz of powdered sugar, about 4 cups.
18. Prepare 7 oz of bag of chocolate covered pomegranat juice pieces I use a brand called brookside they are in the candy section of the grocery store.

To save cupcakes for later, freeze unfrosted cupcakes in the freezer. Cream cheese and chocolate go amazing together in cheesecake brownies. And cream cheese frosting goes perfectly on red velvet cupcakes. Instant coffee intensifies the chocolate richness of these cupcakes.

Chocolate Cupcakes with Pomegranate Cream Cheese Frosting instructions

1. MAKE CUPCAKES.
2. Preheat oven to 350, line cupcake tins with paper liners, this makes 24 cupcakes.
3. In a large bowl, mix flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add eggs, milk oil and vanilla. Beat until combined. Stir in boiling water ( the batter will be very thin). Pour batter evenly into 24 paper lined cupcake tins. Bake 16 to 20 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.Cool on a rack.
4. FOROMEGRANATE FROSTING.
5. In a small saucepan, over medium heat reduce pomegranate juice by one half this will take awhile so I would advise doing this in advance or while the cupcakes are cooking.This must be cool before using in frosting..
6. Beat cream cheese and butter until creamy.Slowly add powdered sugar and cooled pomegranate juice beat until smooth, you may not need all the sugar once you have a creamy fluffy frosting its done,.
7. Frost the cooled cupcakes with frosting top each cupcake with 3 chocolate covered pomegranate juice pieces, if you can not find them garnish with chocolate shavings.

To repeat the Halloween theme, decorate them with plastic cake toppers, licorice, jelly beans, or candy sprinkles. Refrigerate frosted cupcakes overnight; cover lightly with plastic wrap, or store them in an airtight container. For cupcakes, in a large bowl, beat the sugar, water, oil, vinegar and vanilla until well blended. In a large bowl, combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt; gradually beat into sugar mixture and mix well. Fill paper-lined muffin cups half full with batter.