I get it; nothing is free.

All sorts of folks are figuring out what they can do to make ends meet. This includes government. With the events of last month, that’s no surprise.

I was surprised, though, to learn that a few months ago a president-related historic site was in danger of being closed.

The James K. Polk birthplace site in North Carolina is the site I’m talking about. Folks realized that this would have been a loss for all those who otherwise could have had a hands on look at history. They organized and petitioned and succeeded. The Polk site remains open.

In celebration of their work, I’m going to post the recipe to the Dark Horse cupcake.

 

Dark Horse Cupcake
Chocolate cupcake in tribute to President James K. Polk.
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For the Cupcakes
  1. 3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
  2. ⅓ cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder
  3. ¾ cup hot coffee
  4. ¾ cup bread flour
  5. ¾ cup granulated sugar
  6. 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  7. 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  8. ½ teaspoon salt
  9. ½ teaspoon baking soda
  10. 6 tablespoons vegetable oil
  11. 2 eggs
  12. 2 teaspoons white vinegar
  13. 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the Frosting
  1. 1 cup butter, softened
  2. 3½ cups powdered sugar
  3. 1 tablespoon cinnamon
  4. 1 teaspoon milk
  5. 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Garnish
  1. mini chocolate chips
For the cupcakes
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a standard-size muffin pan with cupcake liners. Place the chopped chocolate and cocoa powder in a medium bowl. Pour the hot coffee over the mixture and whisk until smooth. Refrigerate mixture for 20 minutes.
  2. Meanwhile, whisk together the flour, sugar, cinnamon, cayenne, salt and baking soda in a medium bowl; set aside.
  3. Whisk the oil, eggs, vinegar and vanilla extract into the cooled chocolate mixture until smooth. Add the flour mixture and whisk until smooth.
  4. Fill the muffin pan cups until liners are about 2/3 full. Bake until the cupcakes are set and just firm to the touch, 17 to 19 minutes. Cool the cupcakes in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then remove the cupcakes from the pan and place on the wire rack to cool completely.
For the frosting
  1. In a bowl combine the butter, powdered sugar and cinnamon. Beat until blended.
  2. Add the milk and vanilla extract. Beat until smooth.
Decorate
  1. Frost cupcakes as desired.
  2. Garnish each cupcake with 4 mini chocolate chips.
Adapted from The Brown Eyed Baker
Head of State Cakes http://headofstatecakes.com/