Moist Vanilla Cupcakes with Rich Chocolate Frosting

These are perfect cupcakes for celebrating a birthday. Mine is actually this weekend, and while I will be away for the weekend, I would love to celebrate with a batch of these when I get back. These were made by me and my friend for my mom's friend. He was having a birthday barbeque, and I (of course) offered to bring dessert. We have this sort of ongoing joke about making everything from scratch (I made this birthday cake for his wife a few months ago), so we made the cupcakes super colorful. I claimed that I made every sprinkle from scratch, and he pretended to believe me. As always. :)
This vanilla cake is moist with a light vanilla flavor. It's perfect for any sort of yellow cake you want - whether it's in a layer cake piled high with swirls of frosting, or in a simple bite-sized dessert like this. The frosting is simple but always delicious. Enjoy! <3

Moist Vanilla Cupcakes
(adapted from Allrecipes)

1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups white sugar
4 eggs
3/4 cup milk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour 24 cupcake cups, or line with paper wrappers. Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Beat in the flour mixture alternately with the milk, mixing just until incorporated. Pour batter into prepared pans.
Bake in the preheated oven for about 15 minutes, or until tops spring back when lightly tapped. Cool slightly minutes before turning out onto cooling racks.
-makes 24 cupcakes

Rich Chocolate Frosting
(from Baking Bites)

1/4 cup butter
1 cup chopped semisweet chocolate (or chocolate chips)
1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar
1/4 cup milk (lowfat is fine)
1 tsp vanilla extract

Melt together butter and chocolate in a medium-sized, microwave safe bowl. Work in 30 second intervals, stopping to stir frequently, and continuing until the mixture is smooth. Let cool slightly (about 3-5 minutes).
Add in confectioners’ sugar, milk and vanilla and beat on medium-high speed with an electric mixer until smooth.