Chile Chocolate Cupcakes

I've had this recipe on file for awhile, awaiting the right opportunity. A couple days after I got back from Miami, the temperature started dropping here in DC. So these cupcakes that pack some heat seemed like a good idea during the chillier days. A member of our knitting group is leaving us for Chicago next week (and a better job in yet another restaurant that I can't afford :) so I made some cupcakes for her last week here. She's always brought yummy homemade baked goods to Thursday night SnB so it was nice to return the favor.

Recipe mod: I couldn't find Pequin chilies very easily so I substituted with Chilies de Arbol... thanks to a well-stocked latin grocery near us. While they came out pretty spicy, I didn't hear any complaints that they were too hot so I'd probably stick with that level of heat (3/4 t. of ground chile in both the batter and in the frosting).

Decisions

Several decisions have been made since last I blogged.

Here's the result of one of them:

Another decision that was made carries less importance for the country, but still affects the quality of my sleep.

Here it is:

Thanks for all of your input!!!