Very Flowery Cake Boss Cupcakes From Scratch

I was in a bookshop down in the city centre when I stumbled up on the Cake Boss cook book.
Absolutely awesome, I have been a great fan of the Cake Boss show but never knew there was a Cake Boss cook book.
So naturally I had to, really had to have it.

I learned I really like to make and decorate cupcakes and big cakes.
The recipe here is greatly inspired by the book but, being a chemist I have made a few modifications. Just to have some more consistent results and avoid the need for a mixer.

Yes that is right no need for a mixer, a whisk will do you just fine.
Pre heat the oven on 180 deg C.

Ingredients:
225g of plain four
100g of brown sugar
230g of white sugar
40g of cacao powder
10g of vanilla sugar
5g of baking powder

2 large eggs
125g of butter (vegetable shortenings)
50g of dark chocolate
120g of buttermilk
120g of hot water

Tools:
Big bowl
Small pan
Whisk
Table spoon
Digital scale
Cupcake form
Cupcake cups
Sieve

Ingredients:
225g of plain four
100g of brown sugar
230g of white sugar
40g of cacao powder
10g of vanilla sugar
5g of baking powder

Tools:
Sieve
Large bowl
Spoon
Scale

Place your sieve in the big bowl on the scale, weight all the dry ingredients in the big bowl and sieve them to make sure there are no lumps in your mix. Mix all dry ingredients with the spoon and set aside.

Ingredients:
2 large eggs
125g of butter (vegetable shortenings)
50g of dark chocolate
120g of buttermilk
120g of hot water

Tools
small pan
spoon
Whisk
digital scale

Place the pan on the scale and set zero (tare). Put 125g of butter in the pan and 50g of dark chocolate. While stirring constantly melt the butter and chocolate. In the meanwhile boil some water.
When the chocolate and butter have melted, but are not hot. They ideally should be around 45 deg centigrade (yes I used a thermometer). Add the buttermilk eggs and whisk. And the hot water while whisking.

Pour the mixed warm liquids in the big bowl and whisk it all together. If done properly all should effortlessly mix together to a smooth chocolate batter. (tastes great too)
No need for a mixer, this takes something like two minutes.
Now put the cupcake cups in the cupcake form and divide the batter over the cups.
Oke really sorry but on this point you are sort of on your own. I have not found out yet how to do this without making a mess.
Which I cleaned up with paper towels to make a pretty picture.

Bake in the oven on180 deg C for 40 minutes.
When baked leave cool for at least an hour before decorating.

So why don't you need a mixer? Well here is my theory.
The goal of all this vigorous mixing is to obtain a homogeneous mixture. This mean that you need to breakup all the lumps in order to get every thing well mixed. So I think here the key is in the sieve and the sugar. By sieving all dry ingredients you break up all the hard lumps. Which if you would add water to your flour after sieving would directly form again. I think this is because it is quite hard to dissolve flour. Too many big starches. I imagine a lump forming when water comes in to contact with the flour and forms sort of a gelatine like skin on the bulk of the flour. Now by stirring you break up the skin until you have small lumps which are harder to break.  Now you mix in the sugar and all other dry ingredient. Now when you add water the sugar will dissolve easily preventing any skin or film from forming out of the starch.

All I can say now is please try it, let me know what you find. I usually find that I can whip a cake mix like this together in like 15 minutes, no need for a mixer just 2 minutes of stirring with a whisk. I tried it with a fork too, works not as quick as a whisk but can give the same result.

Please watch the video's if you would like to know how I made these.
I'd better just show how to do this, instead of trying to describe it.