Ingredients
3 eggs, room temperature
¾ cup butter, room temperature
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 ½ tbsp cocoa powder
½ tsp ground red pepper
1 tsp ground cinnamon
¾ tsp salt
2 ¼ cup sugar
1 ½ tsp vanilla
1 tbsp red food coloring
1 ½ cup buttermilk
1 ½ tsp baking soda
1 ½ tsp vinegar
½ cup butter , or margarine
6 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
6 tbsp buttermilk
4 ½ cups powdered sugar, sifted
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp Chipotle-flavored pepper sauce, or jalapeno-flavored pepper sauce
Preparation
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
Line 28 2-½-inch cupcake pans with paper liners; set aside.
In medium bowl combine flour, cocoa powder, red pepper, cinnamon and salt; set aside.
In large mixing bowl beat butter on medium-high 30 seconds.
Add sugar and vanilla; beat until combined.
One at a time, add eggs; beat on medium after each.
Beat in food coloring on low.
Alternately add flour mixture and buttermilk to egg mixture; beat on low to medium speed after each just until combined. Stir together baking soda and vinegar.
Add to batter; beat just until combined.
Spoon batter into prepared pans, filling each about ⅔ full.
Bake 15-17 minutes.
Cool in pan on wire rack for 5 minutes.
Remove from pans.
Cool completely before frosting cupcakes.
For a more grown-up taste, you could replace one or two tablespoons of the buttermilk with orange-flavored liqueur or cinnamon schnapps in both the batter and frosting.
In a medium saucepan stir together butter or margarine, unsweetened cocoa powder and buttermilk.
Cook and stir until boiling; remove from heat.
Beat in sifted powdered sugar, vanilla and pepper sauce to taste with an electric mixer on low speed until blended.
