Chocolate Fudge Spiderweb Muffins

Boo! It’s getting spooky over here! With Halloween just around the corner, everyone is starting to stock up on the sweets and treats, so I thought that it’s about a time, I also jump on this bandwagon and join the Halloween vibe! 

Because as kids, we’ve never celebrated Halloween, I do tend to overdose on sweets myself, rather than welcoming kids, who made all this effort in dressing up, with all those cute and scary costumes…I eat all the candy, then sit quietly at home, hoping they will never knock on my door (but I promise, this year, I will save some for trick or treaters 😉  )

Because it’s been a while since muffins made an appearance over here (last one was my double chocolate muffins and it feels like it was ages ago!), plus I saw this recipe for chocolate fudge spiderweb muffins on BBC Good Food website and I loved the cobweb design, and the reviews for this recipe are insanely good, so here’s my attempt, but in vegan version!

I have tried non- vegan version of these muffins, and I must admit, it was one of the best chocolate muffins everrrr, so I was a bit worried, that trying to veganize this awesome recipe, would not do it as much justice, but OH-HOW-WRONG-WAS-I?!? And dare I to say, vegan version tasted actually better! Not only they were softer, but they also stayed fresh for longer! Win- win!

So as an egg replacer, I have opted for trusted and tested aquafaba, however, I think that banana or silken tofu will also work pretty well (although, I have not tested it), or just use an egg if you are non- vegan. For those of you, who are not familiar with aquafaba, you can check out this post, where I’ve used aquafaba to create vegan meringues, but it is basically cooking liquid of beans and other legumes, like chickpeas.

To make it easier, you can just use water from canned chickpeas, but sometimes, it may need reducing. So if the consistency of your aquafaba is really watery, it is a good idea to just boil it until it’s reduced by about 30%- 40%, and it has your desired consistency (you are looking for pretty much same consistency as egg whites). However, there is no need to keep whisking aquafaba for long time, like you would when making meringue. Just beat it for about a minute or so, before pouring it into yogurt mixture (tip: any unused aquafaba can be frozen!).

Perhaps my cobweb effect could be a bit neater, but look at the bright side, it gives me another reason to bake them again, just to practice these awesome spiderwebs 😉 On the other hand, who cares about how neat the spiderweb is, when they taste that good? And if you ask me, they look even spookier that way!

As per the tip in the original recipe, they taste best when fresh, but will also be fine the following day. And make sure not to eat them all, unless you are prepared for some tricks heading your way!

5 from 1 vote

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Chocolate Fudge Spiderweb Muffins

Prep Time

30 mins

Cook Time

20 mins

Total Time

50 mins

 

Chocolate Fudge Spiderweb Muffins! Delicious treat for Halloween, super chocolatey and ready in less than 1 hour! Made with use of aquafaba, 100% vegan!

Course: Dessert

: Vegan

Servings: 10 muffins

: 335 kcal

Author: Anna

Ingredients

• 50 g dark chocolate
• 80 g vegan butter
• 2 tbsp almond milk or water
• 200 g self-raising flour
• 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 130 g golden caster sugar
• 3 tbsp aquafaba or 1 egg if not vegan (made from 1 cup of aquafaba reduced by 40%)
• 3/4 cup dairy free yogurt
• 2 tsp cider vinegar

Topping:

• 100 g dark chocolate
• 100 g white chocolate (non- dairy if needed)

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 170C and line muffin tin with muffin cases. You should get about 10 muffins.
2. Break the chocolate into heatproof bowl, add the butter and milk/ water.
3. Set bowl over a pan of gently simmering water and allow to melt, stirring often.
4. Set aside and allow to cool.
5. Mix flour, sugar and bicarbonate of soda in a bowl.
6. In a separate bowl, mix yogurt and cider vinegar and set aside for 5 minutes.
7. Using an electric mixer, beat your aquafaba for a minute or so (consistency should be similar to whisked, runny egg whites).
8. Add aquafaba to yogurt mixture and combine well.
9. Pour wet ingredients over dry and add cooled chocolate.
10. Mix until just combined (do not over-mix as it will get tough).
11. Spoon the mixture into the cases to about three- quarters full.
12. Bake for 20 minutes or until well risen, and allow to cool.
13. For the topping, melt each chocolate in a separate bowl.
14. Using 2 separate plastic bags with small corner cut off, put about 2 tbsp of melted dark chocolate into one, and same amount of white chocolate to the other bag.
15. Working with one muffin at the time, spread it with dark chocolate from the bowl, allowing it to run down a bit, then pipe four concentric circles of white chocolate on top.
16. Using a small skewer, drag through the circles at regular intervals, from the center to the edge, creating cobweb effect.
17. Switch to white chocolate half way through, piping circles with dark chocolate.
18. Enjoy!