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In case you don't know about Iron Cupcake: Earth, it's an awesome monthly cupcake challenge/contest in which bakers create a cupcake recipe based around a specified ingredient. As you can tell from my Mexican-molé-inspired cupcakes, this first challenge was chili pepper.
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The result was DEE-LI-CIOUS!!! I know cause I licked the bowl. Then I mixed that sauce with whole-wheat pastry flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar and Holy Molé cupcakes were born!
I topped them with the cinnamon buttercream to really bring out the cinnamon flavor in the cupcakes. And I garnished with a cut-out pepper flower and extra ancho powder.
This was my first time ever creating my own cake recipe from scratch! And now I feel so proud of myself. I didn't even know I could do that! I can't wait to see what the next challenge will be.
By the way, this is a contest so you can totally vote for me (or whichever cupcake you think sounds/looks the best) if you feel so inclined. Voting opens Sunday at No One Puts Cupcake In a Corner and runs through September 4th.
We're competing to win some awesome prizes, like cupcake art by Cakespy, vintage aprons by Jessie Steele Aprons, super-handy cupcake trays from The Cupcake Courier, and stuff from Taste of Home.
Also, if you want in on the action next month, head to No One Puts Cupcake In a Corner and sign up! The next ingredient will be announced September 5th! Happy Cupcaking!