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!
If you love chocolate desserts as much as I do, try Chocolate Strawberry Cake next
From a chocolate fan's point of view, the love for chocolate cupcakes is deep and almost instinctual. We just need that chocolate kick in our bellies to feel good, don't we? Well, this maybe the best dark chocolate raspberry cupcakes I've ever made.
Why You'll Love Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes
These chocolate cupcakes are 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: chocolate cupcake lovers - unite!
You might also like Cookie Dough Stuffed Chocolate Cupcakes and Raspberry Mousse Brownies.
Why you'll love this recipe
Chocolate and raspberry are two flavors that work well together. The combination of two distinct types of sweetness (chocolate's earthy notes and raspberries' juicy, jammy sugariness) creates a dessert that's truly special. These two don't unite in cupcakes often, but when they do, magic happens.
These may look like unassuming chocolate cupcakes, but take a bite to find the surprise inside - raspberry jam explosion baked into the chocolate cupcake center!
Key Ingredients and why you'll need them
- Fresh black coffee: double espresso topped up with boiling water
- Natural Cocoa Powder: Or Dutch processed cocoa has a more smooth and robust chocolate flavor than natural cocoa. The color is also much darker than natural cocoa and as a result it creates a more dark brown colored cake.
- Oil: Oil adds moisture. I used canola oil, but you can use olive oil instead.
- Raspberry jam: The secret ingredient in the center of the cupcake.
- Freeze-dried raspberries: Powdered and concentrated raspberry flavor. You can replace these with freeze-dried strawberries.
- All-purpose flour: I use all-purpose unbleached flour in chocolate raspberry cupcakes and get consistently good results.
- Salt: Use salt, even when making cupcakes. It makes the end result taste amazing.
- Powdered & White Sugars: Powdered sugar for the frosting, regular sugar for the cupcake batter. Besides adding moisture of the cupcakes, sugar also helps cupcakes rise.
- Eggs: Large eggs at room temperature bind everything together and add moisture.
- Unsalted butter: Used for buttercream frosting, needs to be softened to room temperature
- Milk: A liquid is needed for the right frosting texture. Whole milk, buttermilk, or your preferred dairy/nondairy milk all work well.
How to make dark chocolate raspberry cupcakes
1. Mix cocoa powder with hot coffee
My little secret to making these cupcakes extra delicious? Cocoa powder and hot coffee together.
2. Make It Into a Paste
Mix thoroughly until the mixture looks like a thick paste. This is heaven for true dark chocolate fans!
3. Mix your Liquid 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.
- Add sour cream (secret ingredient): 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.
4. Combine Liquid Ingredients with Flour
Tip the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt into the mixing bowl, and gently fold the ingredients together until just combined.
Cupcake Batter is Ready
Be sure to thoroughly scrape the bottom of the mixing bowl to check for any pockets of flour that might not have mixed in.
5. Fill Cupcake Pan with Batter
Transfer the light and moist cupcake batter to the prepared cupcake liners. The chocolate batter will be very thin, which is completely normal.
6. Bake Cupcakes
Bake chocolate cupcakes 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.
7. Core the Cupcake Centers Out
When the cupcakes have cooled, core out the middle.
8. Add Raspberry Jam Center
- I used 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.
9. Make Buttercream Frosting
Beat softened butter and then add Powdered sugar and cocoa powder.
Pour in milk and increase speed.
Keep mixing until the buttercream is well combined.
10. Pipe Buttercream Frosting on top of Cupcakes
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.
11. Dust with Raspberry Powder
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.
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.
When raspberry jam is injected right in the middle of a chocolate cupcake, biting into one will produce a release of jam just enough to taste it, but not in an overwhelming way.
Best Tricks & Tips
- Always mix cocoa and hot coffee first: it needs to "bloom" for maximum chocolate flavor.
- Use room temperature eggs and butter to ensure a uniform, smooth chocolate cupcake batter and fluffy frosting.
- Don't over-mix after adding flour: Gentle folding guarantees light, spongey cupcakes vs. heavy ones.
- Scrape the bowl well to avoid pockets of dry flour at the bottom.
- The batter will be thin: It's totally normal! Trust the process.
- For a raspberry jam flavor bomb, core each cupcake after baking and fill generously with jam before frosting.
- Blitz freeze-dried raspberries into powder, then sprinkle on top for both extra flavor and that professional bakery look.
- Mix Buttercream Frosting on low speed: 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.
- Use kitchen towel: 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.
- Use correct ratio: 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?
Troubleshooting Made Easy
- Cupcakes too dense? Check that you gently folded dry ingredients-over-mixing makes them heavy.
- Is my cupcake sinking? The cupcake may be underbaked, or the oven opened too early; bake until springy and test with a toothpick.
- Frosting separating? Make sure your butter is soft but not melted, and add milk gradually.
- Jam leaking out? Core cupcakes after they're completely cool, then fill - this keeps the center neat.
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.
Dee says
How would you suggest I make this into a cake or using a Bundt pan?
Olya says
You'll just have to increase baking time and play it by ear, checking on doneness every couple of minutes.
Gina says
Came out great a bit crumbly I’m at high elevation
Natalie says
I got have reviews from chocolate buttercream! Very moist and good chocolate taste