Cupcake #1 Attempts #1 & #2

It's no secret that I'm working on at least 2 (probably 3) cupcake recipes for this contest. The recipes themselves ARE secret. Top secret.


Not really.

#1 is a Meyer Lemon Truffle Cupcake. I wanted to mimic the flavor of See's lemon truffle.


So, it's a dark chocolate cupcake, filled with a Meyer lemon pastry cream, dipped in dark chocolate ganache.

Lemon and chocolate are an odd combination. I like the combination in the See's truffle, so I figured I could make them work together for this contest. It's complicated to try to balance the flavors--the tart and the sweet, the acidic and the creamy. What I've produced thus far is not perfect, not by a long shot. In fact, Attempt #1 was an epic failure on all fronts. But with Attempt #2 I got closer to the final product, and I will use at least one of the elements in my Cupcake #2, so I should be able to get all the parts working together by the time I need to send in the recipe.


Once I find out that I have not won the contest (which I'm confident will be the case), I'll post the recipe here. And you can tell me what you think of it. And how it can be improved.

TGIP Rating--Meyer Lemon Truffle Cupcakes--stay tuned.

Next up: Cupcake #2. It involves Sumatra coffee beans. And pie crust. And I have great faith in the idea.