Rich and endulgent Dark Chocolate Raspberry Cupcake is everything a chocolate cupcake should be: a super moist and incredibly chocolatey batter made with hot coffee and bursting with a raspberry jam center, topped with silky buttercream frosting. A must try recipe and a chocolate lover’s dream!
Maybe the best dark chocolate raspberry cupcakes I’ve ever made! Incredibly soft, moist, and extra fudgy, with just the right amount of chocolate and coffee flavor, and the perfect amount of buttercream. Freeze-dried raspberry powder takes these cupcakes to another dimension. They are INSANELY good.
Dark Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes
Ingredients
Chocolate Cupcakes
- ½ cup natural cocoa powder
- ½ cup fresh black coffee, (double espresso topped up with boiling water)
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup neutral oil, (such as vegetable, canola)
- ½ cup sour cream
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup all purpose flour, spooned and leveled
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
Filling
- 12 teaspoon raspberry jam
Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
- ¾ cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3½ cups powdered sugar
- ½ cup natural or dutch processed cocoa powder
- 4 tablespoon whole milk
To Garnish
- ¼ cup freeze-dried raspberries, blitzed to a powder
Instructions
Make cupcakes
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line a cupcake pan with 12 liners and set aside.
- To a small mixing bowl add the cocoa powder and hot coffee. Mix thoroughly until the mixture looks like a thick paste then set aside.
- To a large mixing bowl, add the eggs, sugar, oil, sour cream and vanilla then whisk on a medium speed until smooth.
- Add the chocolate paste to the mixing bowl and whisk on a medium speed until completely combined and uniform in color.
- Tip the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt into the mixing bowl. Use a rubber spatula to gently fold the ingredients together until just combined. Be sure to thoroughly scrape the bottom of the mixing bowl to check for any pockets of flour that might not have mixed in.
- Transfer the cupcake batter to the prepared cupcake liners. The batter will be very thin, which is completely normal.
- Bake in the center of the preheated oven for 18 minutes or until the cupcakes feel springy to the touch. A toothpick inserted into the middle of the cupcakes should come out clean. Remove from the oven and leave to cool for a few minutes in the pan then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Make chocolate buttercream
- In the large bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment add the softened butter. Beat on a medium speed until creamy. Turn off the mixer and add the powdered sugar and cocoa powder.
- Cover the mixer and bowl with a kitchen towel before turning it back on to a low speed. Leave the kitchen towel there for a minute.
- Remove the towel and mix on a low speed until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Pour in the milk and gradually increase the speed to medium/high.
- Beat for 5 minutes, or until the buttercream is smooth and creamy. Transfer the buttercream to a piping bag with an open star tip(we used a Wilton 1M).
Core out the middle
- When the cupcakes have cooled core out the middle. We use an upturned piping tip for this but you can use a cupcake corer if you have one, or a sharp pairing knife.
Cupcake assembly
- Fill each hole with a teaspoon of raspberry jam.
- Pipe a swirl of chocolate buttercream on top of each cupcake.
- For a final flourish, dust the tops of each cupcake with the freeze-dried raspberry powder.
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy only. This information comes from online calculators. Although whatsinthepan.com attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures are only estimates.
Main Ingredients
- Natural cocoa powder or dutch processed cocoa powder.
- Fresh black coffee — double espresso topped up with boiling water
- Large eggs — at room temperature
- Granulated sugar
- Neutral oil, such as vegetable or canola
- Sour cream
- Raspberry jam
- Unsalted butter — softened to room temperature
- Freeze-dried raspberries — powdered.
How to make dark chocolate raspberry cupcakes
My little secret to making these cupcakes extra delicious? Cocoa powder and hot coffee.
Mix thoroughly until the mixture looks like a thick paste. This is heaven for true dark chocolate fans!
Start working on mixing your wet ingredients: mix the eggs, sugar, oil, sour cream and vanilla. Now add the dark chocolate paste from step 1 to the mixing bowl and whisk on a medium speed until completely combined and uniform in color.
Now, I know we don’t want these chocolate raspberry cupcakes to have super thick chocolate batter because that would yield a cupcake similar to brownies. We don’t want dense! We want spongey, cakey, and rich. And that can’t really be done without the sour cream (or buttermilk)! And the correct ratio of wet to dry ingredients.
To add dry ingredients — tip the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt into the mixing bowl, and gently fold the ingredients together until just combined.
Be sure to thoroughly scrape the bottom of the mixing bowl to check for any pockets of flour that might not have mixed in.
Transfer the light and moist cupcake batter to the prepared cupcake liners. The chocolate batter will be very thin, which is completely normal.
Bake in the center of the preheated oven for 18 minutes or until the cupcakes feel
springy to the touch. A toothpick inserted into the middle of the cupcakes should
come out clean.
How to make chocolate buttercream frosting
And the frosting? It’s not just the frosting, it’s chocolate buttercream heaven, and the only real way to truly complete dark chocolate raspberry cupcakes.
Here’s how to make it: You can absolutely use a hand or stand mixer if it’s easier for you to mix softened butter, powdered sugar and cocoa powder on low speed.
I like to use the kitchen towel to prevent splatter. Once the mixture resembles breadcrumbs, pour in the milk – the buttercream should be smooth and creamy.
I should also mention that I make these cupcakes with the ratio of cake to buttercream to be close to one to one. Yes — my buttercream recipe makes a lot of frosting and the frosting looks very tall on a chocolate cupcake. You can downsize it but who doesn’t like tons of buttercream?
How to add raspberry center
When the cupcakes have cooled core out the middle. We use an upturned piping tip for this but you can use a cupcake corer if you have one, or a sharp pairing knife. Fill each hole with a teaspoon of raspberry jam.
I finally feel like these cupcakes are complete with the raspberry jam added in! It’s the little things that matter in baking.
Pipe a swirl of chocolate buttercream on top of each cupcake. Transfer the buttercream to a piping bag with an open star tip. I used a Wilton 1M.
For a final flourish, dust the tops of each cupcake with the freeze-dried raspberry
powder. These cupcakes are the BEST, and they really just cannot be beat.
Storage
These Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes should be kept in an airtight container
and refrigerated where they will stay fresh for 3-4 days. Bring to room temperature before eating as the buttercream will harden. Unfrosted cupcakes can be frozen for up to 2 months.
How would you suggest I make this into a cake or using a Bundt pan?
You’ll just have to increase baking time and play it by ear, checking on doneness every couple of minutes.
Came out great a bit crumbly I’m at high elevation
I got have reviews from chocolate buttercream! Very moist and good chocolate taste