The Best Chocolate Cupcakes with Nutella Frosting
If you’re looking for the fluffiest, chocolatiest, most easy to eat chocolate cupcakes, you have got to make these! Top with a swirl of Nutella cream cheese frosting, and you’ve got a winner! These cupcakes seriously feel light as air and I was able to store them in the fridge for several days without them drying out at all. I made these as part of my New Years Eve dessert spread, and they definitely made for a sweet start to the New Year!
What You’ll Need . . .
buttermilk or yogurt
egg
vegetable oil
vanilla extract
coffee
flour
granulated sugar
cocoa powder
salt
baking powder
baking soda
butter
cream cheese
powdered sugar
heavy cream
Nutella
In one bowl, combine most of your wet ingredients. As a side note – I’ve made these cupcakes with buttermilk and I’ve done it with plain yogurt. Works great either way! Sometimes I just don’t have one or the other around, so choose whichever you have! Combine your buttermilk or yogurt, egg, oil, and vanilla in a medium bowl. Whisk together. Make the coffee but let it cool a bit. Meanwhile in a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, salt, baking powder and soda. Add the wet ingredients into the dry and continue mixing. Next add in the coffee until mixed in. Preheat oven to 350F. Use a cookie/ice cream scoop to fill 14-16 cupcakes liners 2/3 full, as these cupcakes have a fairly flat top when they rise. Bake for 23-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cakes comes out clean. Remove and let cool completely. They are very soft when you remove them so they must be totally cool before frosting.
To make the frosting, beat butter and cream cheese together in your stand mixer with the paddle attachment. Add powdered sugar in 1/4 cups and mix. Add in the vanilla. Slowly pour in heavy cream and mix until desired frosting consistency. Add in 1-2 tbsp of Nutella, to your taste. If the frosting is not stiff enough, add more sugar. If it is too stiff, add a teaspoon at a time of heavy cream. Also, to make it a bit easier to pipe, you can refrigerate it if your kitchen is too warm. Place frosting in a piping bag with your favorite tip, and pipe onto cupcakes. I also added some silver sugar and gold sprinkles since it was a celebration cupcake. Enjoy!
Some Notes. . .
- Works great with either plain yogurt or buttermilk!
If you liked this recipe, you might want to try. . .
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The Best Chocolate Cupcakes, with Nutella Frosting
Ingredients
Chocolate Cupcakes
- ½ cup plain yogurt or buttermilk
- 1 large egg
- 4 tbsp canola oil
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup flour minus 1 tbsp
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 6 tbsp cocoa powder
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ¼ cup coffee
Nutella Cream Cheese Frosting
- ½ cup butter
- 8 oz cream cheese
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 4 cup powdered sugar
- 1 tbsp heavy cream
- 2 tbsp nutella 1-2 tbsp, or more, depending on your taste
Instructions
Chocolate Cupcakes
- In a medium bowl, combine your buttermilk or yogurt (either is fine), egg, oil, and vanilla extract. Whisk together. Make the coffee but let it cool a bit.
- Meanwhile in a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, salt, baking powder and soda. Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until combined. Next add in the coffee and continue mixing until mixed in.
- Preheat oven to 350F. Use a cookie/ice cream scoop to fill 14-16 cupcakes liners 2/3 full. Bake for 23-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cakes comes out clean. Remove and let cool completely. They are very soft when you remove them so they must be totally cool before frosting.
Nutella Cream Cheese Frosting
- Cut butter into cubes. Beat butter in your stand mixer with paddle attachment until smooth. Add cream cheese and continue mixing together. Add powdered sugar in 1/4 cups and mix. Add in the vanilla extract. Pour in heavy cream and continue mixing. Add in 1-2 tbsp of Nutella, to your taste.
- If the frosting is not stiff enough, add more sugar. If it is too stiff, add a teaspoon at a time of heavy cream. Also, to make it a bit easier to pipe, you can refrigerate it if your kitchen is too warm. Place frosting in a piping bag with your favorite tip, and pipe onto cupcakes. I also added some silver and gold sugar and sprinkles, since it was a celebration cupcake. Enjoy!