Is it ~After Eight~ already?!

When AFTER EIGHT was launched in 1962, the indulgent wafer thin chocolate mints were responsible for creating the category of the 'After Dinner Mint' within the confectionery market. Since then, AFTER EIGHT has maintained its excellence in mint chocolate and is renowned for its exquisite taste and premium quality.

This is what Nestle has to say about their After Eight...and it's so true.

A box of them doesn't last more than a day in my house and I personally like almost anything that has the chocolate mint combo in it. So why not make it into a cupcake? Surprisingly I did not find too many recipes that really embraced the two flavours so I kinda invented my own.

This recipe has three layers, a simple not too heavy chocolate cake, on top goes a thin layer of melted chocolate that is reminiscent to the thin chocolate of the After Eight with the same crunchy effect, and the last layer is a huge swirl of minty buttercream frosting....lord have mercy!

Everytime I make them they are a huge hit, and even people who are not too crazy about chocolate and mint likes them.

After Eight Cupcakes:

Chocolate Cupcakes:

1/4 cup cocoa powder

1/2 cup boiling water

60 gr butter

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

2/3 cup flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

Thin Chocolate Layer*:

100 gr dark bitter chocolate, melted.

Mint Frosting**:

200 gr butter

4-6 cups confectioner's sugar (400-600 gr)

1/2 milk

2 tsp mint extract

green food coloring (optional)

Preheat oven to 180°.

Line muffin tray with cupcake liners.

Combine boiling water and cocoa powder, set aside to cool down.

In a bowl whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. I another bowl cream butter and sugar until ligh and fluffy, add the egg and beat until smooth then add the flour mixture and the cooled cocoa mixture beat until combined.

Fill cupcake liners with chocolate batter and bake for 17-20 minutes.

After baking let cupcakes cool down completely before frosting.

For the chocolate layer simply melt a 100 gr of dark chocolate and a spread a thin even layer with a round knife or a palette knife on each cupcake, then place cupcakes in freezer so the chocolate hardens, take them out after you finished making the frosting.

To make the frosting beat the butter until fluffy, then add 4 cups of the sugar and beat for about 3 minutes. Add the mint extract and milk and beat for another 3-4 minutes until fluffy, add the rest of the sugar if needed, if frosting isn't thick enough. If using food coloring add it at the end.

All you have to do now is take the cupcakes out the freezer and pipe on the frosting! They keep a few days in the fridge.

notes:

*I've once made these cupcake without the chocolate layer and they were great as well.

**This recipe makes 12 cupcakes, but the frosting is worth the amount of 24, so either half the recipe or use the frosting for other things (filling cookies, with ice cream, in cake)