Bake All Night

If you have yet to hear Denver, Coloradan quartet Speedwolf, I'll fill you in:  They sound like the unruly,  baseborn spawn of Motorhead and Venom. So basically, they're fucking perfect.
What you're really hearing is a bunch of dedicated fans of metal, that simply want to be a part of it all.

Their debut full-length album Ride With Death, features songs about Satan, drugs, and motorcycles. Awesome.

Colorado was mostly settled by prospectors during the Gold Rush, so its history is primarily based in the Wild West. Today, Colorado has one of the largest populations of bikers in the entire country. The horses of the olden days, have become the motorcycles of today. Most members of Speedwolf grew up around bikers, and have "Hogs" of their own, so it's no surprise that this is where they draw their inspiration from.

The last song on Ride With Death is "Denver 666." It's a fucking great tune, and it's become a full-fledged anthem for the Denver metal scene. The video (made by drummer Richie Tice and his boss Zach Palin), is so great! Although part of me always worries for Mr.Tice's safety as he pulls a "Teen Wolf," and rides the roof of his van.

In honor of Speedwolf, I did my best to make these cupcakes as "Colorado-y" as possible. They feature Coors in both the cake and the frosting. Yes, that sounds totally weird and disgusting, but trust me, they're good!!

I've also posted them with High-Altitude directions. If you're not baking these in the mountains, see the list of necessary adjustments below.

Speedwolf- Bake All Night

 Makes 24

Metal Constituents:

• 2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour*
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 cup non-fat dry milk
• 1 box (3.4oz) vanilla instant pudding mix
• 1 cup Coors
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil*
• 4 eggs

For the Frosting:

• 2 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 3 Tablespoons of Coors

For the Wolf Heads:

• 1 cup dark chocolate chips, melted
• 4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 Tablespoons hot water
• 6 Tablespoons peanut butter
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 2 lbs brown candy melts
• 4 graham crackers
• 12 red hot candies
• 24 mini chocolate chips

Merciless Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 375* degrees. Line a cupcake tin with baking cups, and set aside.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, dry milk, and pudding mix.
3. Add beer, and vegetable oil, then continue to whisk.
4. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
5. Beat at high speed until mixture is thick, creamy and smooth.
6. Fill each baking cup about 2/3 full.
7. Bake for 14-17* minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of one cake, comes out clean.
8. Allow cakes to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.
9. To make the frosting: Beat butter in the bowl of an electric mixer until smooth.
10. Add powdered sugar and Coors and continue to beat on high speed until light and fluffy.
11. Frost completely cooled cakes.
12. To make the Werewolf heads: Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and set aside.
13. Place chocolate chips in a microwave-safe bowl, and nuke for 30 seconds. 
14. Stir, then nuke again at 15 second intervals until melted and smooth, stirring after each time.
15. Place melted chocolate chips, cream cheese, vanilla, hot water, peanut butter, salt, and powdered sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer.
16. Mix the ingredients until the candy is uniform in color & consistency.
17. Check the texture of the candy- you want it to be firm enough to be easily shaped into a ball, but not too dry and stiff. If it's too wet, add more powdered sugar, a Tablespoon at a time, to get the right texture. If it's too dry, add more hot water, a teaspoon at a time.
18. Using a spoon, scoop up a small amount of candy and roll it into a ball.
19. Pinch a bit of it in the front to make about a ½ inch “snout,”and place onto your baking sheet.
20. Repeat with remaining candy until you have 24 werewolf heads.
21. Place the candy melts in a microwave-safe bowl, or a tall plastic tub like the ones you get when you order a large soup to go, from a Chinese restaurant.
22. Heat the candy in the microwave for 30 seconds, then stir.
23. Repeat until the candy is completely melted and smooth.
24. Break each graham cracker into 4 pieces, along the perforations. 
25. Cut these pieces into small triangles between 1/4-1/2 inch tall. These will be your werewolf ears.
26. Once the candy is melted, dip the bottom of a graham triangle in the coating, and press it into the top of a werewolf’s head.
27. Repeat with a second triangle to form a pair of ears, and continue until every werewolf has two ears sticking up out of the top of its head.
28. Refrigerate the werewolves to set the coating, about 5 minutes.
29. Once the candy holding the ears in place is set, use a couple of forks or dipping tools, to dip one werewolf head into the melted candy coating, submerging it completely.
30. Place the head back on the baking sheet and repeat with remaining heads.
31. To create the texture of the werewolf’s fur, the candy coating needs to set just a little bit--you want it to be tacky to the touch, but not liquidy. I suggest you either let the tray of dipped candies sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes, or place it in the refrigerator for 15-30 seconds.
32. Once the werewolves are tacky to the touch, use a fork or toothpick to give your werewolf heads a textured, “furry” look.
33. Repeat with remaining heads.
34. To finish your werewolves, press a mini chocolate chip into the top of the snout for the wolf’s nose.
35. Cut a red hot in half, and press the two halves into the head for eyes.
36. Refrigerate the truffles to set the coating completely.
37. Place one werewolf head on top of each cupcake.
38. Bake 'till the morning light.

 *When making these cakes at a normal height above sea-level:

• Use 2 cups AP Flour
• Use 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• Reduce oven temp to 350 degrees
• Bake 20-25 minutes

Here's the totally kick-ass video for "Denver 666:"

And here's "Up All Night" to listen to while you're baking (all night). Enjoy!