Chocolate Buttercream Cupcakes
I don’t know about you, but I have a love affair with chocolate. If it’s on the menu or a flavor of choice, you can bet that I will pick chocolate each and every time. Recently, I hosted some friends at my house and made these decadent chocolate cupcakes with an equally decadent chocolate buttercream for us to munch on as we caught up on life. The recipe I used was enough to make a dozen cupcakes and one single layer cake. This was perfect as friends munched on cupcakes upon arrival and had a slice of cake post dinner. This cake was seriously so so good and I continue to receive compliments on this recipe to this day!
MAKING THE CHOCOLATE CAKE
Makes: either two 8 or 9 inch round cakes, or two dozen 12 cup cupcake pans… or you can do what I did and make both one 8 inch cake and one dozen cupcakes!
Prep Time: ~20 minutes (not including baking and cooling time)
INGREDIENTS
CHOCOLATE CAKE
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch-processed cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2 eggs at room temperature
1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup grapeseed oil or any mild flavored oil (I use coconut oil or sunflower oil)
1/2 cup whole milk (I substitute with almond milk and its great!)
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water (I swapped this with 1 cup of hot black coffee for an extra kick!)
CHOCOLATE BUTTERCREAM:
1 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
3 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened dutch-process cocoa powder
3 Tablespoons heavy cream or milk (I substituted with almond milk)
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
INSTRUCTIONS
MAKING THE CAKE
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease your cake pan with butter and line the bottom and sides with parchment paper, and grease the parchment paper. *Optional: spray down your pan with baking spray (generously) if you choose not to line your pan with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl, sift the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
3. Add the sugar and whisk until combined.
4. In another larger bowl, whisk the eggs, milk, oil and vanilla together.
5. Gradually add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and whisk until there are no lumps and the batter is smooth.
6. Carefully pour in the boiling water (or coffee substitute) and stir until combined.
7. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. If you are making cupcakes, make sure to only pour each cup 1/2 full! Because the batter is runny, try to use foil liners instead of paper. If you are like me and doing both cupcakes and one round cake, pour the batter into the cupcake pan first and pour the remaining batter into the cake pan. This ensures the proper portioning of batter and the best results for bake time.
8. Place the pans in the oven, 50 minutes for a cake and 20-25 minutes for cupcakes. You’ll know each is ready when you stick a skewer into the cakes and they come out clean. Let the cakes sit in their pans for 10 minutes after removing from the oven, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
MAKING THE BUTTERCREAM
1. With a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until creamy – about 2 minutes. Add confectioners’ sugar, cocoa powder, heavy cream, salt, and vanilla extract.
2. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then increase to high speed and beat for 1 full minute. Add 1/4 cup more confectioners’ sugar or cocoa powder if frosting is too thin or another Tablespoon of cream if frosting is too thick.
TIP: Use immediately or cover tightly and store for up to 1 week in the refrigerator or up to 3 months in the freezer. After freezing, thaw in the refrigerator then beat the frosting on medium speed for a few seconds so it’s creamy again. After thawing or refrigerating, beating in a splash of heavy cream or milk will help thin the frosting out again, if needed.
DECORATING
CUPCAKES
1. Dollop the frosting into a piping bag or create a makeshift piping bag using a ziplog bag and snipping the corner (large snips make for better frosting!)
2. Frost the cupcakes from the perimeter to the center.
CAKE
1. Dust the entire top of the cake with confectioner’s sugar before you serve it.
2. Serve with little dollops of chocolate buttercream and whipped cream.
You must trust me when I say that whether you are making cupcakes or a cake, these are going to be crowd pleasers and you will eat more than one portion at a time.