Minty Fudge Cups

By Vicky Nardone

The above recipe was another one of the desserts I made when I was catering for the latest film Matt's been working on a couple weeks ago.  One of the actresses in the film told me she liked these even better than the peanut butter chocolate cupcakes I had made the night before.  Now that's my type of girl!  I have to tell you that what really made these was the chocolate icing that goes on top of them.  The recipe for the fudge cups says to just use some store bought icing for the tops but I knew that I could do better.  Plus I've never really been a fan of the store bought icing since I started making my own.  I found a delicious icing recipe in one of my other cookbooks that just made this recipe pop.

It was also the perfect consistency for ice cream topping in my opinion.  It also happened to be mother's day on the day I was making these (yes I shared some fudge cups with my mom too) and so I wrapped up the frosting I had left over from the fudge cups and gave it to my mom as an ice cream topping.  She loved it and said she went through the whole jar in about a week.  We are both big mint chocolate fans.

In other news, Matt and I are going to Pittsburgh tomorrow for the long weekend.  I'll be taking pictures from our trip so I can share them with you when we get back.

Now, onto the recipe (makes 24 mini cupcake size):

Ingredients For Minty Fudge Filling

• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup unsweetened baking cocoa
• 2 tablespoons butter or margarine softened
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped Andes Mints

Ingredients For Fudge Cups

• 1/4 cup butter or margarine softened
• 3oz cream cheese softened
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened baking cocoa
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Ingredients For Frosting

• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter softened
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2/3 tablespoon plus 2/3 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 2/3 cups confectioners' sugar
• 3/4 cup sour cream

Instructions

1. Heat oven to 350F.  Place paper baking cup in each of 24 mini muffin cups. 
2. Coarsely chop the half cup of andes mints and set aside.
3. In a small bowl, beat all the filling ingredients except chopped mints with a spoon.  Stir in mints.
4. In a large bowl, beat 1/4 cup butter and the cream cheese with electric mixer on medium speed or mix with spoon. Stir in flour, powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons cocoa and the vanilla.
5. Shape dough for Fudge Cups into one inch balls.  Press each ball into the bottom and up the sides of the muffin cups.  Place about two teaspoons of filling into each cup.
6. Bake about 18 to 20 minutes and let cool for about 30 minutes before apply frosting.
7. While the fudge cups are cooking make the frosting.  Heat butter and chocolate in a bowl over a double boiler.  Stir constantly with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon until the butter and chocolate are fully melted and combined.
8. Remove the bowl from the heat and add the cocoa powder and vanilla, whisking until combined.
9. Add half the confectioners sugar and continue to whisk. 
10. Add half the sour cream and mix with a rubber spatula until combined.  Then add the remaining confectioners sugar and mix until combined.
11. Begin to add the remaining sour cream, stirring constantly and adding more until you've reached a desired consistency in the icing.
12. Let the icing chill in the fridge for 20 to 30 minutes before using.