The story goes like this.. One of the first things that attracted me to cupcakes were the little 'thingies' that adorned the frosting. They looked so beautiful and added the much need element of colour and fun to plain ole chocolate cupcakes. Hence, when I decided to make my first ever cupcakes (vanilla), I wanted those sprinkles (yes, by then I knew what they are called) for my cupcakes too. I bought all the ingredients needed to make the cupcakes but the sprinkles eluded my sight and me and the good ones available, were way to expensive to fit my pocket. At that time, I didn't think I'd ever make my own.
The original recipe calls for oil. I just cannot get myself to use oil in any cake; I've tried once but the attempt was such a failure, I've never mustered enough courage to try again. You know what the secret ingredient is?? Coffee, Black Coffee. And the best part is, the cake doesn't taste like coffee one bit! In fact it helps the chocolate to really shine through! Also, I like to add buttermilk, I think it adds to the whole texture and makes the cakes incredibly moist.