Dark Cocoa Banana Cupcakes

These dark chocolate cupcakes are not your traditional cupcake. There is no frosting on top. But rather sweet banana chunks drizzled with sweet raw honey.

Baked banana treats always get better with age. Allow these cupcakes sit overnight in a sealed container. Then pop them in the microwave for about 10 seconds and enjoy the warm flavorful goodness drizzle with warm honey.

A deliciously flavorful cupcake to make for National Chocolate Cupcake Day(in the USA every Oct. 18th).

These cupcakes came out perfectly, so soft and moist! Dark chocolate and banana is a great flavor combination.

You can bake this recipe into a dessert bread as well. Just pour the batter into a 9-inch bread pan and enjoy.

Dark Cocoa Banana Cupcakes

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup packed brown sugar *see Cook’s Notes below

1/4 cup dark unsweetened cocoa powder

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon instant coffee powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

2/3 cup buttermilk

½ cup sour cream

2 eggs

3 tablespoons butter, melted

2 bananas, peeled

Honey for topping

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Grease twelve 2 ½ -inch cupcake wells, set aside.

In a large bowl stir together flour, brown sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, coffee powder, baking soda, and salt. Make a well in the center of flour mixture; set aside.

In a 2-cup measure whisk together buttermilk, sour cream, eggs, and butter. Add all at once to flour mixture. Gently stir just until moistened.

Peel and trim ends from bananas and cut each into 6 pieces. You should do this before mixing dry ingredients in with the wet.

Once the wet ingredients hits the dry portion, it activates the soda. As a rule of thumb, once you have mixed the wet and dry together, get it in the oven as soon as possible.

Next, spoon the batter into prepared cupcake wells, filling each about three-fourths full and press a banana piece into each prepared cupcake batter, but the banana should not be covered completely, only push in half way.

Bake the muffins for 15 minutes or until tops are firm, then remove on a wire rack for 5 minutes.

Once cooled remove cupcakes. Drizzle with honey and serve warm.

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Cook’s Notes

1/3 cup dark brown sugar dosen’t sweeten the cupcakes enough. But adding the honey will add more sweeten. If you don’t wish to drizzle with honey, increase your dark brown sugar to 3/4 cup to add the sweetness you desire.

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