Almond Joy Cupcakes

 Things I dream about:

• Looking like Mila Kunis
• Getting paid to people watch
• Winning the Mega Millions (though, I have to figure out when the drawings are. Real talk: I totally tried to buy a ticket Saturday morning. Apparently they announce the numbers on Fridays...who knew)
• Anything with coconut and chocolate

That fourth one I can do something about.  (Though I'm doing my damnedest to work on that Mila Kunis thing)

Ever since I made these Snickers Cupcakes, I've been brainstorming what other candy bar concoctions I can come up with.  Why it took me so long to come up with Almond Joy, I have no clue. Considering they rank very high on the list of Sarah's Favorites. Though that list is pretty long. And anything with chocolate is tied for 1st. But I digress.... 

Adapted from this recipe

What You'll Need:

For the Cupcakes

• 1 cups Boiling Water
• ½ cup Cocoa Powder
• 1 ⅓ cups Flour
• 1 tsp Baking Soda
• ¼ tsp Baking Powder
• ¼ tsp Salt
• ½ cup Butter
• 1 ¼ cups Sugar
• 2 Eggs
• 1 tsp Almond Extract

For the Frosting

• 1 stick Butter
• 3-4 cups Powdered Sugar
• 1 tsp Coconut Extract
• 2-6 Tbsp Coconut Milk
• Whole Almonds

What To Do:

1. Preheat oven to 350F.  Prepare a cupcake pan with liners.  In medium bowl, pour boiling water over cocoa, and whisk until smooth. Let mixture cool. Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt; set aside.
2. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs one at time, then stir in almond extract. Add the flour mixture alternately with the cocoa mixture. Pour the batter into the tins, filling ⅔ full.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 15-20 minutes. Allow to cool before frosting.
4. Cream together slowly all the frosting ingredients until fully combined.  The more powdered sugar, the thicker your frosting will be. You can thin it out by adding more coconut milk.  Frost cupcakes and top with an almond