Chocolate Fudge Cupcakes!
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Easy, delicious and super insane chocolate fudge cupcakes with the ultimate chocolate buttercream frosting!
Chocolate fudge cupcakes
So the time has come, to morph my chocolate fudge cake into the very sort after chocolate fudge cupcakes. Honestly, this has been SO requested that I apologise that it’s taken so long. These are the most incredible cupcakes, so here they are.
From the start I will say that these are quite a bit more intense than the classic ‘chocolate cupcake’. If you are after something delicious, but easier and more basic, then check out my chocolate cupcakes recipe! They’re more chocolate Victoria sponge based, whereas these beauties are intense and wonderful and super fudgy like they should be.
The cupcakes
For the cupcake sponges, you need to use dark chocolate in the cake sponge as this is part of what makes it so fudgey, so PLEASE don’t switch it to milk chocolate. Don’t worry if you don’t like dark chocolate, they don’t taste bitter – they taste like a rich and delicious chocolate cake.
The cupcakes features coffee and even if you don’t like coffee, you need to use it – they don’t taste like coffee, it just makes the cupcakes super chocolate and heavenly.
The cupcakes use buttermilk which helps create moisture and creates the rise in the cupcakes and it’s great. Don’t worry if you can’t find it in the shops though, you can make it yourself – mix 1tbsp lemon juice with 250ml whole milk to create your own.
This sort of cake mixture is a lot thinner once you have made it, in comparison to a normal cake batter like a chocolate Victoria sponge. When I make it, I really just use my hand and a whisk and a spatula… there is no need for an electric mixer for these cupcakes as the batter is so easy to mix together.
Simple method
Melt the chocolate and butter, add in the dissolved coffee, whisk all the dry ingredients together, and whisk the eggs, vanilla and buttermilk together and you have a cake! They bake for about 20 minutes at 160ºfan, (or 30+ at 140ºc) and they are gloriously easy to create.
For the frosting, it’s just basically a cocoa powder American buttercream frosting, but mixed with evaporated milk. This is basically all that makes it special, but IT IS WORTH IT.
The evaporated milk is 100% worth the investment because it levels up the frosting so much. I tend to buy the mini tin size, so as there isn’t as much wastage, but with this recipe there is about half a tin left. I then use it up in another batch of cupcakes or use it in another recipe.
Decoration
The decoration of cupcakes like this is so easy, and I just adore something that is quick and easy to achieve. I went for adding my delicious chocolate fudge frosting to a large piping bag with my favourite piping tip, and swirled it onto the cupcakes.
I used a mixture of sprinkles on top as I love how it looks, but it’s entirely up to you how you decorate them – add fruit, a drizzle of chocolate, chocolates etc and you will have a winner.
Tips & Tricks
- This recipe is based on my chocolate fudge cake with a few changes to suit the cupcakes
- I used this medium 2D closed star piping tip
- And I used these gorgeous baking cups from Iced Jems
- The evaporated milk cannot be switched to condensed milk.
- The soured cream can be used, or the buttermilk.
- These cupcakes will last for 3+ days at room temperature
- These cupcakes will freeze for 3+ months easily
Chocolate Fudge Cupcakes!
Ingredients
For the Cupcakes!
- 100 g dark chocolate
- 100 g unsalted butter
- 1 tsp instant coffee
- 75 ml boiling water
- 100 g plain flour
- 20 g cocoa powder
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 200 g light brown sugar
- 2 medium eggs
- 75 ml buttermilk (or soured cream)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla (optional)
For the Frosting!
- 150 g unsalted butter (room temp - not stork/spread)
- 300 g icing sugar
- 35 g cocoa powder
- 1/2 tsp vanilla (optional)
- 75-100 ml evaporated milk
Decorations
- Sprinkles
Instructions
For the Cupcakes!
- Preheat your oven to 160C/140C fan, and get your cupcake cases ready.
- In a microwave proof bowl, add your chocolate and butter and heat and mix until melted. I usually do 30 second bursts!
- Pour the boiling water onto the coffee granules and mix until smooth - add the coffee mix into the chocolate/butter mix until smooth.
- Add the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and sugar to a large bowl and whisk until distributed.
- Mix together the buttermilk, eggs and vanilla.
- Add the three mixes together - I pour the chocolate/coffee mix and the egg/soured cream mix into the dry ingredients and fold until smooth.
- Split the mixture evenly between the baking cases. I use regular baking cups from Iced Jems, and I fill them 2/3 full.
- Bake in the oven for 28-32 minutes, or until baked.
- Leave to cool fully once baked!
For the Frosting!
- Make sure your butter is at room temperature!
- Beat the butter on it's own for a few minutes to soften!
- Add in the icing sugar and cocoa powder 1/2 at a time, and beat until combined.
- Add in the vanilla if using, and then the evaporated milk a little at a time beating fully in-between each go!
Decoration!
- Pipe onto your cupcakes how you please! I used a medium 2D closed star piping tip.
- Sprinkle on your favourite sprinkles and enjoy!
Notes
- This recipe is based on my chocolate fudge cake with a few changes to suit the cupcakes
- I used this medium 2D closed star piping tip
- And I used these gorgeous baking cups from Iced Jems
- The evaporated milk cannot be switched to condensed milk.
- The soured cream can be used, or the buttermilk.
- These cupcakes will last for 3+ days at room temperature
- These cupcakes will freeze for 3+ months easily
Find my other recipes on my Recipes Page!
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J x
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Hi jane,
Can i use oil instead of butter in the cupcakes? Or it will completely alter the recipe?
I would stick to the butter personally because of the method and how it all works together.
Hi Jane,
I made these for my friends birthday and they were delicious. Is there any way to use different flour to make them gluten free?
I’m sure switching to gluten free flour would be fine, and maybe adding 1/2 tsp xantham gum if you have it!
Can I use self raising flour for these? x
I wouldn’t recommend it. It’s important to follow the recipe as it is x
These had a wonderful flavour. Only issue was the tops of my cupcakes turned out like brownies – that thin meringue crisp layer that we all strive for in brownie making! – but wasn’t ideal for the cupcakes as the frosting would not stick properly the actual cupcake. Wondering if this is as a result of the temperature of the chocolate mix being too hot when added to the dry mix with the sugar? When brownie making i add the sugar to the chocolate butter mixture when it’s still hot, which gives me my crinkly tops so perhaps it’s the same thing here… In the end I just ate them all I frosted and the chocolate flavour was unbelievably rich which you don’t often get in a chocolate cupcake without frosting!!
The melting of the chocolate for this is different to my brownie method (Where the chocolate does cool) but yes it most likely is the heat, or even over mixing! x
Would this recipe be okay for making marble cupcakes? ( Just halving the ingredients for each batter and omitting the cocoa in one and replacing with flour )
As the recipe uses melted chocolate as well as the cocoa and coffee, and they are both quite key to the recipe that wouldn’t be possible with this mix. It’s best to use a standard sponge (I do have a marble cupcake recipe on my blog) x
Could I use dark brown sugar instead of light brown sugar?
Yes you can!
Best ever cupcakes so moist and delicious can’t fault them yummy 😋.
Thanks Jane x
Hi Jane!
I have made so many of your cupackes nad they are simply delish, my work colleagues adore me for it!
I was thinking of doing a dark chocolate cupacke and I was looking at this recipe and your white chocolate recipe, do you think this chocolaate cake with dark chocolate chips and a dark chocolate buttercream would turn out nice? maybe melted dark chocolate in the crem or would that be too heavy? Also how do you make the coffe for this? like how much coffe how much water? any sort of coffe or a particuler one? Sorry for all the questions!
Thanks x
This cake batter is too thin for chocolate chips, and I don’t think they need it anyway as they are such a lovely deep flavour already. The details for the coffee are on the recipe! xx
What would you suggest as a dairy free alternative for the evaporated milk?
You can buy vegan evaporated milk!
Hi Jane,
Would this buttercream recipe work to cover the sides and top of the chocolate fudge cake if I’m doing 3 x 20cm tin layers? Or would I need more?
Thanks.
Have a look at my chocolate fudge cake recipe, and double that one!
Hi Jane,
LOVE the flavour of this recipe it’s amazing, thank you!
I did notice a big whole in the bottom of a lot of my cupcakes though which from the bottom looked like a big dome missing. Absolutely gutted – what did I do wrong?
Thank you 😊
That’s so odd – I’ve never seen it before! I can only assume it had too much air in the mix?! Or wasn’t baked for long enough? x
Can’t wait to try this recipe, just wondering to know if you can use condensed milk instead of evaporated milk. If so how much should i add to the frosting?
Thank You!
They really aren’t the same and it doesn’t have the same results – I would just use double cream if you can’t use evaporated! x
Hey Jane, I’ve just made the recipe and was just wondering and they supposed to come out of the oven when a toothpick comes out clean like normal cupcakes of if they should still be a little liquidy as once the 30 minutes were up mine still were xx
They certainly should not take that long unless the temperature in the oven is wrong, you’ve changed an ingredient, or the cupcakes are larger than mine (as cupcakes really don’t take too long to bake at all!) – however, yes a skewer should come out clean! x
Have made these during lockdown for a few occassions – husband’s birthday, cousin’s 40th and a family picnic. They are absolutely delicious and so easy to make. I’ve made them with the choc fudge icing and the peanut butter icing from the Reese’s cupcakes recipe. Loving this website!
These cupcakes are so yummy. In the frosting I incorporated nutella and cocoa powder and it was mouth watering. For some reason I only had enough batter to make 11 cupcakes.
That just means you have split the mixture between too few cupcakes or your cases are larger – it definitely makes 12! x