You know how at certain points in your life you have to just shout out “Screw it, I don’t give a damn about anyone or anything and I’m just going to do whatever I like!”? I do. It doesn’t happen to me that often, but when it does I feel reaaaaally good. (Almost as good as when I eat nutella, but no, not quite) My life lately has been exactly like that. Things happen, people happen, problems happen…and when there’s nothing you can do about anything, the only thing left to do is exactly that – to not give a damn. Especially if at that precise moment of your life you happen to have a 25th birthday which makes you feel incredibly old, single, and stuck in life. (Is this a 25 year old rule or something?) And if you can not give a damn surrounded by friends who are equally not giving any of those damns, then everything is much better! Just like chocolate cupcakes, stuffed with another chocolate and covered with some more chocolate spread. Too much chocolate? Who gives a damn???? And there is no such thing as too much nutella, ever. But I’ll leave my torrid love affair with the heavenly spread for another post. (Suffices to say the frosting recipe called for 100 grams nutella. I used 200. Have no regrets.) Meanwhile, you should really go and read more for this absolutely over the top recipe, who doesn’t care what anyone has to say about it.

Ferrero stuffed cupcakes with nutella frosting

For these cupcakes I used two different recipes, from two awesome blogs:

The cupcake part is courtesy of fromaway.com

And the frosting part is courtesy of aroundleglobe.com

I only slightly modified them, so here they go:

For the cupcakes

1 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup buttermilk
12 Ferrero Rocher candies, unwrapped

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line muffin tin with 12 paper muffin cups. Place on a baking sheet and set aside.

Whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter at medium speed until soft and creamy. Add the sugar, and beat until incorporated, about two minutes more. Add the egg and vanilla, then reduce the mixer speed to low and add half the dry ingredients, mixing until combined. Scrape down the bowl and add the buttermilk, mixing until incorporated, then mix in the remaining dry ingredients.

Divide the batter evenly into the paper cups. Press one Ferrero Rocher into the center of each cupcake. Try to cover the chocolates with batter, but don’t worry if it’s not completely covered. Bake for 22 – 25 minutes, or until a tester inserted in the centers comes out clean. Don’t worry if you can see the candies after baking, they’ll be covered with frosting.

For the frosting:

1 cup (227 g) unsalted butter, softened
1 and 1/2 cup (190 g) icing sugar (confectioners’), sifted
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
130 grs premium bittersweet chocolate. Chopped, melted and slightly cooled.
200 grs Nutella
Pinch of salt

In a bowl of stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, combine the icing sugar and butter and beat on low speed for about 1 minute.
Add vanilla, and beat on low speed until well combined. Add the melted and slightly cooled chocolate and beat on medium speed until smooth for about 2 minutes. Add the Nutella, milk and a pinch of salt, and beat on med-high speed for another minute.
Frost onto cupcakes with a spatula or fitted nozzle, whichever you prefer.