Strawberry Ice Cream Brownie Cupcakes

Brownies:
3/4 c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
8 tbsp. unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces
3 oz. unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
2 lg. eggs plus 1 egg yolk
1 1/8 c. sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Ice Cream:
1 batch strawberry ice cream, slightly softened

Ganache:
3/4 c. mini semisweet chocolate chips
1/4 c. heavy cream

Garnish:
Fresh strawberry slices

To make brownie bottoms, preheat oven to 350°F. Line two cupcake pans with foil liners. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl; stir together and set aside. In a heatproof bowl set over simmering water, combine butter and chocolate. Heat, stirring occasionally, until melted and smooth. In a large mixing bowl combine eggs, egg yolk, sugar, and vanilla extract. Whisk to blend. Stir in warm chocolate mixture, and then dry ingredients, mixing just until incorporated.

Scoop 1 tbsp. batter into each cupcake liner. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with moist crumbs attached, 6 to 8 minutes. Leaving the brownies in the cupcake pans, cool on a wire rack to room temperature. Freeze for at least 30 minutes. Top with strawberry ice cream until cupcake liner is full. (If ice cream is freshly made, it is just the right consistency for filling the cupcake liners.) Return cupcake pans to freezer for 45 minutes to 1 hour.

To make ganache, place chocolate chips in a small bowl. Bring cream to a simmer in a small saucepan. Pour cream evenly over chocolate, let stand for 1 minute. Stir until smooth with a rubber spatula. If ganache is too thin, allow it to stand at room temperature to cool and become more easily spreadable. Once ganache is at the correct temperature, scoop it by the teaspoonful on top of the ice cream cupcakes and spread over the tops. Garnish with fresh strawberry slices, if desired.

Remove cupcakes from the freezer 5 to 10 minutes before serving. Enjoy!