Description

Hands down this is the single best chocolate cake recipe in my arsenal. And while these cupcakes don’t need any frosting to be eaten, the chocolate ganache frosting is a perfect complement to these fluffy and intensely moist mini cakes. In fact, it’s sophisticated enough for the adult crowd, but is 100% kiddo-approved! If you have a dinner party planned, or birthday, or an office party to attend, these are a guaranteed hit. In fact, this is my go-to recipe for celebrating all of our friends’ birthdays. Happiness guaranteed ♡.

Ingredients

Scale

CAKE INGREDIENTS

5 1/2 tablespoons butter, room temperature (75g)
5 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil (grapeseed, canola, or vegetable) (75g)
2 cups sugar (400g)
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (20g)
2 large eggs, at room temperature (100g)
1/2 cup boiling water (118g)
1 cup buttermilk, room temperature (250g)
2 cups all-purpose flour (240g)
1/2 cup cocoa powder (50g)
1 teaspoon baking powder (4g)
1 teaspoon baking soda (4g)
1 1/2 teaspoons espresso powder (3-4g)
1 teaspoon kosher salt (6g)

GANACHE ICING INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream (118g)
4 tablespoons sugar (50g)
6 ounces 70% bittersweet chocolate (170g)
1 tablespoon butter chopped into small pieces (14g)
pinch of salt

*I use 00 flour when I’m in Italy, and the weight of different flours varies based on the humidity content and absorption potential of the flour you’re working with. Just be sure to use the ‘scoop and level’ method to measure your flour into measuring cups and spoons and the recipe works perfectly every time.

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Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350°F/176°C. Heat the oven and line the cupcake tin with paper or foil liners.
Prepare the dry ingredients. To a large mixing bowl, add the flour, cocoa powder, espresso, baking powder, and salt and whisk well to combine and set aside.
Prepare the baking soda + water solution. Boil the water (or microwave it until very hot), add the baking soda, and stir until dissolved, set aside.
Prepare the wet ingredients. In the bowl of an electric mixer (or by hand using a whisk), beat the butter, oil, sugar, and vanilla until light and fluffy approximately 2-3 min – scraping down the sides of the bowl once or twice while mixing to ensure all ingredients are well incorporated. Add the eggs and whisk just until incorporated. Add the buttermilk and baking soda water mixture and mix just until combined.
Combine the wet and dry ingredients. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and use a rubber spatula or whisk to gently combine the ingredients until no flour streaks remain. *after combining everything you should still have some visible lumps and that’s exactly what you want.
Portion the cupcake batter. Use a portioning scoop or pour the cake batter evenly between the lined cupcake tins.
Bake the cupcakes. Bake the cupcakes for 20-25 minutes, or until a cake tester (or toothpick) comes out clean and the tops are set.
Cooling the cupcakes. Remove the cakes from the oven and place them onto a cooling rack for 15 minutes to slightly cool and then gently remove the cupcakes from the pan to finish cooling directly on the cooling rack. When cakes are completely cooled, they may be frosted.
Prepare the chocolate ganache frosting. Heat the cream and sugar until almost boiling, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Pour the cream mixture over the chocolate and add the butter and whisk the mixture until it’s smooth and shiny. Frost the cooled cakes and add sprinkles for a little extra fun. Enjoy!

Notes

If you don’t have buttermilk, make your own by simply squeezing 1 tablespoon of freshly squeezed lemon juice (or white vinegar) into a liquid measuring cup then add the milk until you reach one cup of liquid. Stir the mixture and set aside for 10-15 minutes at room temperature. The mixture may curdle a bit and that’s normal.
If you don’t have espresso, substitute instant coffee or omit it altogether, or use hot coffee to replace the hot water that gets mixed with the baking soda.
If you want the ganache to be pourable (thinner in consistency) just add more hot cream to the chocolate mixture until it’s as thin as you want.
If you have a mix of different chocolate and want to use it for the ganache, go ahead, just make sure you use the total amount of chocolate called for in the recipe. I typically use 150g of bittersweet chocolate and 20g of white chocolate.

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Category: Cakes + Tortes
Method: Oven Bake
Cuisine: American

Nutrition

Serving Size: 1 cupcake