TWIX Cupcakes

aka Gluten-Free Chocolate Cupcakes w/ Salted Caramel Frosting & Ganache!

A while back, the Mr.-to-be and I visited my bestie in San Francisco. There is an amazing little ice-cream shop called Bi-Rite in the Mission District. I love the Mission. Lots of people watching, eclectic shops, farmer's markets, dogs, beautiful parks and delicious eateries (such as Bi-Rite). I opted for the delicious Salted Caramel Icecream. Every since I ate this I've been craving that same saltiness from my baked goods.


I received a large package from King Arthur Flour full of gluten-free muffin mixes, gluten-free cake mixes, cake enhancer (this stuff is a dream!!) and juice powders.
I'm usually prefer to make all of my cakes/cupcakes from scratch, but King Arthur's products are so great and I told their rep I'd love to try their gluten-free cake mix to see how it compares to my chocolate cake recipes.
Wowza was it delicious. Moist, fluffy and no at all what you would associate with the daunting words "gluten-free". If I'm ever opting for a fast chocolate cake from the box, I will definitely reach for this one!


SO.... I decided to use the Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake Mix and make my own spin on a "Twix Cupcake". The salted caramel frosting adds just the right amount of savory to balance out the sweetness of the chocolate cake. And well, the ganache and Twix are just for fun. Cupcakes and fashion are so much alike- the more layers, the better.
Enjoy!

TWIX CUPCAKES:
(makes 24 cupcakes)
Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake:
INGREDIENTS:
Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake Mix from King Arthur Flour
4 eggs
2/3 cup oil
1 1/3 cup water
2 tsp. vanilla


DIRECTIONS:
1. Mix all ingredients together on medium speed for 1-2 minutes. Be sure to scrape down those sides!
2. Fill each cupcake liner 3/4 way full and bake for 17-19 minutes at 350 or until the centers are set.


Salted Caramel Frosting:
INGREDIENTS:
2 sticks of room-temp salted butter
5 cups of powdered sugar (sifted)
1/2 tsp. of fine salt
3-5 Tablespoons of heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup caramel syrup topping (any kind that you'd use for ice cream will do!)


DIRECTIONS:
1. Beat the butter on medium speed until it is nice and fluffy.
2. Beat in the powdered sugar, salt, heavy whipping cream and caramel syrup. Add more syrup if you like it extra-caramely (who doesn't?)
3. Step aside and wait til the cupcakes are completely cool to frost with the Caramel Frosting.


Chocolate Ganache:
INGREDIENTS:
9 ounces of semi-sweet chocolate
1 cup of heavy cream
1 Tablespoon light corn syrup


DIRECTIONS:
1. In a small pan, heat the cream over medium heat until it reaches a simmer. 
2. Remove the cream from the heat and add the semi-sweet chocolate and corn syrup. 
3. Whisk until smooth.
4. Refrigerate for 30-60 minutes until it is completely cooled. (I was so anxious to eat these I stuck it in the freezer for 20 minutes and it worked out perfectly).
5. After topping the cupcakes with Caramel Frosting, top each cupcake with a large spoonful of chilled ganache. Optional: add 1/2 a twix to add that extra YUM!