Joanne Chang's Vegan Lowfat Chocolate Cupcakes

A V02 Exclusive Recipe!!!!!!

Joanne Chang is the owner of Flour Bakery and Myer's and Chang.  Flour Bakery is an amazing bakery and sandwich shop located on Washington Street in Boston's South End, and on Farnsworth Street in Boston's Fort Point district.  I myself frequently have lunch there!  They feature Vegan soups and dinner specials as well!  Myers & Chang is "a funky indie diner setting offering Chef/Owner Joanne Chang and Executive Chef Matthew Barros's very personal interpretation of Chinese, Taiwanese, Thai, and Vietnamese specialties."  Imagine Asian/Fusion Tapas: fantastic small plates of extraordinary asian cooking.  There are plenty of Vegetarian and Vegan options that you will adore!

Check out Joanne's pending cookbook, due in 2010:  Click for information

Joanne Chang's Vegan Lowfat Chocolate Cupcakes (or Cake!)

Yield: one 6 inch cake that serves 6-8 [or 24 cupcakes or 48 mini-cupcakes]

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ cups all purpose flour
  
• ½ cup granulated sugar
  
• 1/3 cup cocoa powder
  
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
  
• ¼ teaspoon salt
  
• 2 teaspoons instant espresso powder (finely ground espresso beans)
  
• 2/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips
  
• 1 cup cold water
  
• ¼ cup oil
  
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  
• 2 tablespoons molasses (some kind lighter than blackstrap)
  
• 1 tablespoon powdered sugar (optional - for dusting the top)
  

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease (vegan "butter") and flour a 6-inch cake pan [or two 12-cup muffin pans, or four 12-cup mini-muffin pans].
   
2. In a medium bowl mix together flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, salt, and espresso powder and chocolate chips.  
   
3. In another bowl whisk together water, oil, vanilla extract, and molasses.  
   
4. Pour the liquid into the dry ingredients and mix together with a wooden spoon until batter is smooth and homogeneous.  
5. Pour batter into prepared cake pan [cupcake tins] and bake until the cake springs back when lightly touched in the middle, about 60-65 minutes [20-25 for cupcake, or 10-12 for mini-cupcakes].  
   
6. Let cool for an hour [5 - 15 minutes for cupcakes] and invert and cool on a cooling rack.
   
7. Sprinkle with a dusting of powdered sugar and serve at room temperature.
   
8. Cake may be stored in an airtight container for 2 days.
   

Bonnie's note:  These cupcakes are fantastic, and are also available at both of Flour's bakery locations (if you don't have time to bake them, you can go pick some up)!  Be warned though, they sell out quickly!