Chocolate Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

Once my two kids started eating solid food, I found myself hosting a ton of kids’ parties, and these cupcakes were always on the table. Why? They’re made with basic ingredients you probably already have on hand (no buttermilk needed!), they bake up so moist and light, and the silky chocolate cream cheese frosting isn’t too sweet. They are the kind of cupcakes that make every kid (and grown-up!) at the party happy. If you need a go-to chocolate cupcake recipe for a birthday party, this is it.

You can switch the frosting flavor and colors to suit any occasion: chocolate for Valentine’s Day or Halloween, plain cream cheese with crushed candy canes for Christmas, or a little raspberry juice, strained through a sieve, plus sprinkles for birthdays! 

For more easy chocolate desserts, try my Chocolate Brownie Cookies, Flourless Chocolate Cake, Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes, Salted Caramel Chocolate Tart, or my Chocolate Pear Tart. 

Why This Is the Best Chocolate Cupcake Recipe

• These chocolate cupcakes use basic ingredients you probably already have on hand! (No need for buttermilk!)
• The cake is moist, light, and delicious, and the batter needs no stand mixer; you can whisk it in two bowls with a spoon, saving the stand mixer for the cream cheese frosting. 
• Thanks to the combination of melted dark chocolate and unsweetened cocoa powder these cupcakes are extra chocolatey!
• The frosting uses a cream cheese base, meaning you need less powdered sugar than most buttercream frostings! Making it a great option for kids.

Chocolate Cupcakes Recipe Ingredients

• Use dark chocolate chips, plus unsweetened, rich chocolate, for the best chocolate flavor. My favorite brand is Nestle’s Dark Morsels. They’re the best! They aren’t overly sweet and pack a lot of chocolate flavor. The recipe calls for only 2 tablespoons of the chips, so you can use the rest of the bag in my Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies or my Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins. 
• Unsweetened Cocoa Powder: Use unsweetened natural cocoa powder, not Dutch-processed cocoa powder. My favorite brand is Hershey’s; I find I get the most consistent results with it. 
• Hot Water The hot water will help the cocoa powder “bloom” and bring out its best flavor. It will also help melt the chocolate chips. I also find that water over milk provides a lot more moisture to the cupcake. It’s the same recipe I use in my Banana Bread and Pumpkin Bread recipes to get a super-moist quickbread. It also works with Blueberry Muffins, too!
• Vegetable Oil I prefer oil over butter in this recipe because it creates a super moist chocolate cupcake! If you don’t have vegetable oil, any kind of neutral oil will work (corn oil, canola oil, etc)
• Eggs: You’ll need two. Be sure to take them out of the refrigerator to come to room temperature. Use room-temperature ingredients; they will combine much better with the oil and water in this recipe.
• Sugar: I prefer white granulated sugar. The whiter, the finer, the better! This gives you the best light, fluffy texture. Avoid coarse, natural-looking sugars; they create a denser cupcake.
• Vanilla extract: Be sure you are using pure vanilla extract (not imitation vanilla extract). My personal favorite is Trader Joe’s Pure Vanilla. It will give you the best flavor and consistency for the price. 
• All-Purpose Flour I know there are bakers out there that swear by cake flour for cupcakes, but honestly, I cannot see the difference so I say you can make things easy on yourself and stick with the all-purpose flour.
• Baking Soda: I don’t use too much baking soda to prevent “the dome effect” on the cupcake. Domed tops are nice for muffin recipes but not great for cupcakes since they make them harder to frost. 
• Kosher Salt will boost all that wonderful chocolate flavor! 

Making Chocolate Cupcakes from Scratch

• These chocolate cupcakes are so moist and delicious because they don’t call for much flour, but the trade-off is a runny batter!
• For this, I recommend filling the cupcake liners with an ice cream scoop; it’s a little less messy that way and will ensure an even quantity of batter is distributed among the 12 cupcakes
• I also like brown parchment paper liners because, after the cupcakes are baked, the liners blend into the cupcakes and let the frosting “pop,” creating a dramatic presentation.
• Fill the cupcake liners only about 3/4 full so they don’t spill over the cupcake tin while baking. They are done when a toothpick comes out clean.

Cream Cheese Frosting and Chocolate Cupcakes

The standard for chocolate cupcakes is typically buttercream frosting. Still, I always find buttercream too sweet, since it takes so much powdered sugar to cut the greasy butter flavor and turn it into “frosting.” Cream cheese already has a lovely texture and taste. It just needs to be sweetened up and lightened. The combination of lightly sweetened cream cheese and rich chocolate works better because each component plays a separate role. The cupcake is rich and chocolatey, and the tangy cream cheese frosting balances its sweetness. 

Tips for The Best Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting:

• Use whipped cream cheese. This will make your cream cheese frosting extra light and fluffy. I also use full-fat cream cheese for the best flavor. 
• Instead of adding butter, which I think makes the frosting too dense, I use heavy cream, which lightens the cream cheese and makes the frosting extra smooth and silky
• Use a star tip for the best presentation. I use the 1C tip from the Kayaso Pastry Tip Kit, and it creates a beautiful swirl.
• The swirl also provides the perfect place to catch the chocolate curls once you add them.

Storing the Cupcakes:

• These cupcakes are best eaten the day they are made.
• Once the cupcakes cool, frost, garnish, and refrigerate until ready to serve.
• Refrigerate cupcakes with cream cheese frosting because of the dairy. Remove them 30 minutes before serving so the cream cheese can come to room temperature and soften and lighten. 
• You can also make them 1 day ahead and frost them, and they’ll still be pretty good! But it’s always best to make them the day you plan to serve them.

Freezing the Cupcakes:

• You can also freeze the unfrosted cupcakes for up to 1 month. 
• Place them in an airtight container, then freeze them.
• To thaw, place them in the refrigerator overnight or heat 2-3 cupcakes on high in the microwave for- 18-:30 seconds until just warm.
• Then allow them to cool, frost, and store in the refrigerator until ready to serve.