Part of the Christmas series featuring Flour & Co Bakers and their favorite holiday recipes.
As a continuation of the 2017 holiday series featuring my talented Flour & Co baking team (read our collaborative Thanksgiving post), I’ve roped in six of my favorite bakers from over the years to reminisce about surviving the holidays in a demanding professional kitchen, and to share their cherished Christmas recipes. Kita’s up next with her Chocolate Peppermint Cupcakes.
Meet Kita (see her Spiced Chocolate Cream Pie Thanksgiving recipe here)! She joined our baking team a few weeks after we opened and left a year later because she had to move out of the city. Lucky for me, she came back one year after that as our catering coordinator, and spent lots of time baking as well, up until we closed. Kita was uber organized, a fantastic pinch hitter, baker, leader, and quality control guru. She took on so much in the name of making Flour & Co a success, and did whatever it took, even if that was back flips.
Side note: Kita was a star at the bakery all while having two other jobs. She was always there when I needed her, and apparently never rested! Her fourth job? She bakes cakes and cupcakes, amongst other things for weddings and special events, @kitaskitchen on instagram.
Q&A with Kita~
Why/how was your experience at Flour & Co significant to you? Flour & Co helped me grow and learn as a person. I gained so much perspective and insight into the small bakery business world. It was truly an honor to have been part of the team for as long as I was.
Describe Flour & Co at the holidays. I have two different points of view for the holidays, one being a baker our first holiday open. Not knowing what to expect, it was long hours! So many pies! So many cakes! As the catering coordinator when I returned a year later, it was our third holiday season (but with two locations, one being new), so we had a better idea of what to expect from our original shop in Nob Hill. I was not as hands on with the baking this season, but I got to deliver all of the holiday goods from Berkeley, where we were baking the pies, to Nob Hill. That was quite a sight to see…a van full of pies and cakes boxed up ready for guests!
What was the hardest part about working in the kitchen during the holidays? The long hours, the months of preparation. So much pie dough!
What do you miss most about Flour & Co? I miss seeing the people who became a big part of my life every day. I miss the english muffins. Mostly I miss learning. I felt like I learned something new every day. It was a place I was growing and learning.
If you could put together your favorite Christmas dessert table, what would be on it? Chocolate cupcakes with peppermint whipped cream, chocolate peppermint pudding, gingerbread cookies, basically anything peppermint.
I love holiday baking because…It makes me feel all warm and cozy with the warm holiday spices and flavors.
What’s your favorite family tradition for Christmas? I like to make homemade fried doughnuts the morning of christmas.
Why are you sharing this recipe? I wait all year for stores to explode with peppermint and candy canes. They are sweet, but refreshing. I will put candy canes or peppermint into anything I can. Hot chocolate, whipped cream, peppermint bark, pudding, chocolate cream pie, cupcakes, tea, or just plain candy canes. Candy canes are also my favorite holiday decoration.
Chocolate Peppermint Cupcakes
It’s not Christmas without peppermint. I wait all year for stores to explode with peppermint and candy canes, and then I make anything that I can with them, including these Chocolate Peppermint Cupcakes.
- Prep Time: 25 min
- Cook Time: 16 min
- Total Time: 41 minutes
- Yield: 16 1x
- Category: Dessert
Ingredients
Cupcakes:
- 1 1/3 cups All purpose flour
- 1/4 tsp Baking Soda
- 2 tsp Baking Powder
- 3/4 cup Cocoa Powder
- 1/8 tsp Kosher Salt
- 3T Unsalted Butter, Softened
- 1 1/2 Cups Granulated Sugar
- 2 Eggs
- 3/4 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
- 1 tsp Peppermint Extract (optional)
- 1 cup Milk
Peppermint Whipped Cream
- 1 1/2 cups Heavy Whipping Cream
- 4 1/2 Candy Canes – Crushed
- Peppermint Bar – Store bought
Instructions
For the cupcakes:
- Preheat oven to 350°
- Line a muffin pan with cupcake liners, use holiday themed ones to be more festive.
- In a medium bowl mix together flour, baking soda, baking powder, cocoa powder and salt. Set aside.
- In a large mixer bowl, using either a standing mixer or a handheld mixer, cream butter and sugar until it is light and fluffy.
- Add eggs one at a time until well mixed.
- Add in vanilla and peppermint (if using).
- Alternating dry ingredients and milk add in 3 additions. Mix well.
- Fill the muffin liners 3/4 of the way full with batter.
- Bake for 15-17 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Let cool completely and frost with peppermint whipped cream.
For the Whipped Cream:
- Unwrap candy canes and place in a food processor. Grind until candy canes are a powder. If you do not have a food processor you can place them in a heavy duty gallon ziplock bag and crush with a rolling pin until the pieces are fine.
- Whip heavy cream until a soft peak forms.
- Gently fold the crushed candy canes into the whipped cream until it is all combined.
- Pipe or spread onto the cooled cupcakes.
- Chop the peppermint bark until it is pea sized pieces and sprinkle them on top of the whipped cream
If you bake these Chocolate Peppermint Cupcakes, tag #kitaskitchensf and #flourandco with your photo. We’d love to see your creation!
