White Chocolate Mocha Cupcakes

I am not a huge coffee drinker but I do adore white chocolate mochas (white cafe mochas or whatever they are called in your favourite coffee shop - which I hope is not Starbucks, they don't pay their UK tax!), they taste nice AND give me a caffeine kick, something I find to be a coffee oxymoron. The downside, however, of this fantastic drink is that they are SO expensive at almost three quid a pop it somehow just doesn't seem worth it. I had a go at making one myself at home: 1tsp instant coffee + 1 sachet of options white hot chocolate + milk + hot water + microwave -> something along the lines of 50p perfection. Then it came to me... THE ONLY THING MORE PERFECT THAN A WHITE CHOCOLATE MOCHA WOULD BE A WHITE CHOCOLATE MOCHA CUPCAKE REJOICE!

These cupcakes are fab in the morning, the afternoon, for dessert, for a grab and go breakfast, you name your time and I will find you an excuse to eat it there and then! Take one to work/uni/college and grab it when you are craving a white chocolate mocha (drink) to satisfy your sweet tooth and the caffeine gobbler inside you (and save the pennies).
The dark chocolate bark on top of the white chocolate cream cheese frosting and the generous amount of coffee complement the white chocolate double act, ensuring the sweetness of the cupcake isn't overpowering.

Ingredients 

(makes 12)
For the cake:
125 g self-raising flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
65 g unsalted butter
75 g melted white chocolate
2 medium eggs
70 g light brown sugar
1 tbsp dark brown sugar

For the cream cheese frosting:
125 g cream cheese
50 g unsalted butter
300 g icing sugar
75 g melted white chocolate

To decorate:
5 squares dark chocolate
5 squares white chocolate
2 tsp cocoa powder

Directions

Pre heat oven to 170 degrees C and put 12 muffin cases in a muffin tray (I used silicon ones but I wish I had used paper ones).
Put 1 tsp of instant coffee granules in a small microwaveable bowl such as a ramekin and just enough boiling water to dissolve all of the coffee granules. Add the white chocolate to the ramekin and melt in the microwave (20 second intervals stir in between) the boiling coffee should help speed the melting process up. In the photo below you can still see the coffee granules because this time I forgot to add boiling water to the coffee, actually I forgot everything I melted the white chocolate first then added the granulated coffee with no water - plonker! I STRONGLY advise - unless of course you like the bitterness of coffee - you remember to add boiling water to dissolve the coffee granules KEY STEP KEY STEP DON'T FORGET!!!

In a medium - large mixing bowl cream the granulated butter and sugar and whisk in the 2 eggs. Mix thoroughly then add the coffee and white chocolate paste and mix again.

Now stir in the tbsp of dark brown sugar then add the self raising flour and the baking powder. Mix thoroughly. At this point you could add white chocolate chips or chopped white chocolate depending on personal preference. If your sweet tooth is a greater force to be reckoned with than the coffee fiend inside you I would advise you chop that chocolate and mix it in. If it's the coffee you crave then leave them out.
 

Pour the cake batter into the 12 individual baking cups and bake for about 20 - 25 minutes depending on your oven. Always start checking when you approach the closest time!
Leave to cool completely.

Once the cupcakes have cooled completely you can set about making the white chocolate cream cheese frosting. Cream together the butter and the icing sugar. PLEASE do this step first I've had so many nightmares with cream cheese frosting where it has just gone DISASTROUSLY wrong and refused to thicken or tasted purely of icing sugar but then I saw the light, the light being the wonder ingredient for cream cheese frosting, the ingredient that saves you enormous quantities of icing sugar (I genuinely used a whole box one time) and ugh just the ingredient that makes life easier. BUTTER. Yes. Butter!!!! It - and I could very well be making this up - coats the sugar so that the it cannot draw the water out of the cream cheese which is something you definitely do not want to happen. It's hard enough in England with the excessive proportions of water in cream cheese in comparison to the US without dragging the devil good old H2O out ourselves.
So yes as I was saying, cream together the butter and sugar. This should produce an overly 'dry' mixture - perfect for adding cream cheese to! Add 100 g of the cream cheese and mix in being careful not to over mix as this loosens the frosting and takes you one step further on the route to a runny mess. Add the melted white chocolate mix again and if your mixture is too stiff - you have done something SO SO RIGHT and deserve a medal - add the remaining 25 g of cream cheese. Mix mix mix (not too much) and lather on top of your white chocolate mocha cupcakes with a palette knife. Be sure to be very generous! :)
 

To decorate dust with cocoa powder and finely chop 5 squares of dark chocolate to create 'chocolate bark' and 5 squares of white chocolate to create.. umm.. finely chopped white chocolate and sprinkle on top of your cupcakes. Ta-da! Give one to everyone in your house, wish them a glorious day and send them on their way, enjoy! :)