Sweet&Salty

Not to toot my own horn, but last weekend's culinary confection was possibly my greatest work yet: cupcakes that capture the salty sweetness of chocolate-covered pretzels. To compliment the salty/sweet dichotomy, I wanted some sort of textural duality as well, so crunchy/creamy it was.Here's the breakdown, since inquiring minds want to know:
1. First layer: pretzel crust. Lined two dozen cupcake wrappers with this recipe, and as per my roommates instructions, baked the leftovers into "a giant ball."
2. Next up: Martha Stewart's One-Bowl Chocolate Cupcakes - I used nonfat Greek yogurt in place of buttermilk, and they came out just as moist and rich without being too dense.
3. Here's the kicker: Salted Caramel Buttercream frosting. For anyone who has ever made caramel before, you know what a royal pain in the ass it is. For anyone who has tasted homemade caramel, you know it's worth it.
4. To top it all off, I melted a Hershey's kiss on top of a circular pretzel, then pressed a colored M&M in the center. Didn't realize how much they'd resemble nipples until the damage was done, but still, pretty damn delicious looking. Oh yeah, and I drizzled the extra caramel on top - go big or go home, right?
Happy baking!