Why You’ll Love These Cupcakes
- Rich chocolate cupcakes – This is my go-to chocolate cake recipe. I tested and tweaked this recipe many times to get them just right to make them moist, tender, and super chocolatey.
- Cream cheese frosting – Creamy, tangy frosting is a perfect compliment to the rich chocolate cupcakes.
- Made from scratch – nothing beats homemade cupcakes, made with real fresh ingredients! Many chocolate cake recipes are made with oil but I went with butter for this recipe because I think it gives a much better flavor
How to Make Chocolate Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Make the cake batter. The batter comes together in an electric stand mixer. First, the butter and sugar are creamed together until the mixture becomes soft and light in color. Then eggs and vanilla are mixed in, followed by cocoa powder. The bowl needs to be scraped down with a rubber spatula at this point so everything gets incorporated well. The dry ingredients and water are added in, alternating between them. The batter gets one final mix before it’s ready to be baked.
- Bake the cupcakes. The cupcakes get baked in a muffin pan lined with cupcake liners. I like to use a cookie scoop to portion out the batter between the liners so each one is filled evenly. The cupcakes bake at 350°F for 20-22 minutes, or until the cupcake springs back when lightly pressed in the middle. Allow the cupcakes to cool while you make the cream cheese frosting.
- Make the cream cheese frosting. Beat room-temperature butter and cream cheese together with an electric mixer until smooth and well combined. Add half the powdered sugar (this helps so the powdered sugar doesn’t go everywhere) and vanilla. Mix just until incorporated then add the remaining powdered sugar, mixing until combined. It’s important not to overmix cream cheese frosting or it can “break” which will make the frosting very soft and difficult to pipe.
- Frost the cupcakes. I like to use a star tip for these cupcakes, but you can use whatever your favorite piping tip is, or simply use the back of a spoon to spread the frosting on your cupcakes. Finish the tops with chocolate sprinkles or chocolate shavings and enjoy! Check out my cream cheese frosting post for more detailed tips and tricks.
INGREDIENT
- Non-stick cooking spray
Cream Cheese Filling
- 8 oz cream cheese at room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/8 teaspoon fine grain salt
- 1 large egg
- 6 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
Chocolate cupcake
- 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- 3/4 teaspoon fine grain salt
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
- ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 ½ cups water
- 1/3 cup plus 3 tablespoons light flavored vegetable oil
- 1 ½ teaspoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
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