Description
These Best Easy Chocolate Cupcakes are rich, moist, and perfectly chocolatey. Made with simple ingredients like cocoa powder, dark chocolate, and a touch of vinegar to enhance the chocolate flavor, these cupcakes are topped with a smooth and creamy chocolate buttercream frosting. Perfect for any occasion, they bake up fluffy and tender with a velvety crumb.
Ingredients
Scale
Cupcake Batter
- 3/4 cup plain/all purpose flour
- 3/4 cup caster sugar (super fine sugar, or sub with normal white sugar)
- 1/2 tsp baking soda / bicarbonate soda
- Pinch of salt
- 120g / 8 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into 1″ / 2cm pieces (1 US stick / 1/2 cup)
- 60g / 2 oz dark chocolate, preferably 70%+ cocoa, broken into pieces
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder, preferably Dutch processed
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil (or other neutral flavour oil)
- 2 large eggs (55 – 60g / 2 oz each)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 tsp white vinegar
Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
- 120g / 8 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into 1″ / 2cm pieces (1 US stick / 1/2 cup)
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder, preferably Dutch processed
- 2 1/2 cups soft icing sugar / powdered sugar (NOT pure icing sugar)
- 3 – 4 tbsp milk (any)
- Sprinkles and other decorations, if desired
Instructions
- Preheat the oven: Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F (160°C fan). Place the oven rack in the middle of the oven to ensure even baking.
- Prepare cupcake tin: Line a 12-cup cupcake tin with cupcake liners to prevent sticking and for easy removal.
- Sift dry ingredients: Sift the flour, sugar, baking soda, cocoa powder, and salt into a large bowl and whisk briefly to combine.
- Melt butter and chocolate: Place the unsalted butter and dark chocolate pieces in a heatproof bowl. Microwave for 45 seconds, stir, then microwave for another 30 seconds. Continue microwaving in 20-second bursts if needed until smooth and melted.
- Add cocoa powder: Mix in the cocoa powder thoroughly with the melted chocolate and butter mixture.
- Add wet ingredients: Stir in the milk, vegetable oil, eggs, vanilla extract, and white vinegar. Whisk until the batter is smooth and homogenous.
- Combine wet and dry: Add the sifted flour mixture to the wet ingredients and whisk until the batter is free of lumps.
- Fill cupcake liners: Use an ice cream scoop or spoon to divide the batter evenly among the cupcake liners, filling each just over 3/4 full to allow room for rising.
- Bake: Bake in the preheated oven for 18 to 20 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Cool: Remove the cupcakes from the oven and immediately transfer them to a cooling rack using a spoon or knife to lift them out of the tin without damaging them.
- Make frosting: For the chocolate buttercream, beat unsalted butter in a bowl until creamy. Gradually add cocoa powder and sifted soft icing sugar, alternating with 3 to 4 tablespoons of milk until smooth and spreadable.
- Frost and decorate: Once cupcakes are completely cool, spread the chocolate buttercream evenly over each cupcake and decorate with sprinkles or any desired decorations.
Notes
- Use Dutch-processed cocoa powder for a richer, smoother chocolate flavor.
- The white vinegar reacts with the baking soda to help the cupcakes rise and creates a tender crumb.
- You can substitute caster sugar with regular granulated sugar if you don’t have it.
- Microwaving chocolate and butter in bursts and stirring prevents burning and ensures even melting.
- Ensure cupcakes are cooled completely before frosting to avoid melting the frosting.
- For a dairy-free version, substitute butter with margarine and use non-dairy milk.
