Double Chocolate Cupcakes

Soft and fluffy Double Chocolate Cupcakes made from scratch. These buttery cupcakes are topped with swirls of creamy chocolate buttercream and plenty of funfetti sprinkles.

Did somebody double chocolate? 🙌🏻

If you love chocolate cake and could add sprinkles to a-n-y-t-h-i-n-g, these gorgeous Double Chocolate Cupcakes are for you. They boast soft and tender chocolate cake with a generous slathering of creamy chocolate buttercream. 

They’re the perfect cupcakes for your next party, sleepover or celebration ❤️

I love a good chocolate cake. Remember I recently shared my fave Chocolate Fudge Cake recipe with you? Well these Double Chocolate Cupcakes are like the scaled-down version. Cocoa-laden chocolate cakes, studded with chocolate chips, that are sweet, chocolatey and oh-so-tasty. 

But it’s not a cupcake without a generous serving of frosting amiright? And it’s not a Double Chocolate Cupcake with chocolate in the cake AND in the frosting. 

So I’ve paired these cupcakes with my favourite chocolate frosting. It’s like a sweet chocolate cloud. And once you add sprinkles? Well then you have one of life’s greatest desserts.

I even scaled this recipe down further to make my Small Batch Chocolate Cupcakes.

TIPS FOR MAKING PERFECT CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES

• These Double Chocolate Cupcakes are so easy to make! 💜 You don’t even need an electric mixer, but I do recommend using a kitchen scale to measure out your ingredients.
• Start by adding all your dry ingredients to a large mixing bowl. You can use regular cocoa powder or dutch processed cocoa powder. Both will yield delicious chocolatey results. 
• I use both caster sugar and brown sugar in this recipe. You can use granulated sugar instead of caster sugar. If you want to know more about caster sugar, read my post HERE. 
• Next, we need to melt the butter. You can use the microwave to do this. You want the butter to be JUST melted – so you can get rid of any lumps using a fork, but not hot and bubbling.
• Then mix together your wet ingredients and add them to the dry ingredients, and mix briefly. Throw in the chocolate chips and then it’s time to bake.
• You’ll know the cupcakes are ready when they spring back lightly to the touch or a skewer inserted in the centre of one comes out clean.

TIPS FOR MAKING THE PERFECT CHOCOLATE BUTTERCREAM

• Temperature is everything. Make sure your butter is at room temperature. Cold butter won’t yield the same results. Your butter needs to be softened so it whips easily. But make sure it’s not too soft or melty by any means. It should be soft to the touch but still hold its shape.
• Beat the butter. The foundation of this chocolate frosting is making sure you beat the butter properly. Take your time and beat your butter until pale and creamy and smooth. 
• Sift your sugar. I’m guilty on more than one occasion of not sifting my sugar but if you want the perfect buttercream, you HAVE to sift the sugar. It’ll ensure it’s light, fluffy and mixes well with the butter – no lumps. 
• Use your milk sparingly. The perfect buttercream has just the right ratio of butter, sugar and milk. Too much milk will make your buttercream too wet and runny, while too little, will make it too thick. Add a tablespoon at a time to ensure the correct consistency. 
• Use good quality dark chocolate. Melted chocolate make this chocolate frosting taste AMAZING. Just make sure you use good quality dark chocolate. You’ll need to melt it before adding it to your buttercream. Make sure your chocolate is melted and smooth, but not hot. If it is a bit hot, just leave it for a minute or two to cool down.
• Don’t over beat the frosting. Once you add the chocolate, beat only until the frosting is melted and smooth – don’t over mix. 

MORE CUPCAKE RECIPES TO TRY:

• Red Velvet Cupcakes
• Chocolate Peanut Butter Cupcakes
• Cotton Candy Cupcakes
• Caramel Cupcakes
• Nutella Stuffed Chocolate Cupcakes
• Mocha Cupcakes

Did you make this recipe? Don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave a comment below. Hungry for more? Join me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter for more amazing recipe ideas.

Let’s Bake

Double Chocolate Cupcakes

Yield 12 cupcakes 1x

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 5 reviews

Prep: 40 minutesCook: 20 minutesTotal: 1 hour

Easy chocolate cupcakes topped with chocolate buttercream and sprinkles.

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Ingredients

Chocolate cupcakes

• 105 grams (3/4 cup) plain flour or all purpose flour
• 40 grams (1/2 cup) dutch processed cocoa or cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 100 grams (1/2 cup) caster sugar  or granulated sugar
• 45 grams (1/4 cup) brown sugar
• 115 grams (1/2 cup or 1 stick) unsalted butter
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 120 ml (1/2 cup) buttermilk*
• 80 grams (1/2 cup) chocolate chips

Chocolate buttercream

• 115 grams (1/2 cup or 1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
• 100 grams (2/3 cups) dark chocolate
• 375 grams (3 cups) icing sugar or powdered sugar
• 3 tablespoons full fat or whole milk
• Colourful sprinkles

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Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F) standard / 160 C (320 F) fan-forced. Line a 12 hole muffin tin with cupcake liners.
2. In a large mixing bowl, add flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and then add the sugars. Pop the butter into the microwave for a short burst, 10 seconds or so at a time, until it becomes very soft but just before it is completely melted. Give it a stir with a fork to eliminate any lumps.
3.  In a separate mixing bowl, add eggs, vanilla and butter and whisk together until smooth. Then add the wet mixture into the dry mixture, along with the buttermilk and gently fold until just combined. Fold in chocolate chips.
4. Spoon the mixture into the cupcake liners and pop into the oven. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until just cooked through. Set cakes out onto a wire rack and leave to cool completely.
5. To make the frosting, place butter in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer on medium speed for a couple of minutes until pale and creamy. Meanwhile melt the chocolate in a microwave, stirring in between 20 second bursts, until just melted and set aside to cool a little.
6. Once the butter is very pale and creamy, add half of the sugar and one tablespoon of milk and beat on low until the sugar is incorporated. Then, add the rest of the sugar and the milk, and again beat on slow until the sugar is incorporated before turning up to medium for another minute or so.
7. Next, add in your melted chocolate to the buttercream mixture, ensuring the chocolate is still smooth and melted but is not warm. Beat until the chocolate is completely mixed through. Transfer your frosting to a piping bag fitted with a large circular tip. Pipe swirls onto each cupcake. Add sprinkles on top.

Notes

Buttermilk: If you don’t have any buttermilk on hand, you can make your own by adding 1 teaspoon of white vinegar to 1/2 cup milk.

Author: Jessica HolmesCategory: CakeCuisine: American

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Jessica Holmes

Hi, I’m Jess, the creator of Sweetest Menu and the author of Something Sweet. A self-taught baker and published recipe writer who can’t stop making easy and delicious baking recipes.