Dark Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting
These dark chocolate cupcakes are loaded with rich chocolate flavor, and topped with a light and creamy peanut butter frosting. If you are a chocolate/peanut butter fan, these are your jam!
I have a secret that I’m about to blab. It’s about me. And it’s a doozie. It’s going to rock your world…
I don’t really like cake…
Shhh…
Can you believe it? It’s the truth. Hard to fathom, with all those cakes that I decorate.
Now, don’t get me wrong. I will eat cake. But it pretty much ranks at the very, very bottom of the dessert hierarchy for me. Given options, I would choose pretty much anything over cake. Now, if you’re talking cheesecakes, flourless chocolate cakes, coffee cakes, crumb cakes, and things of that nature, well then that’s a whole different ballgame. But regular cake? Like birthday cake-cake? Meh. It’s just never really been my cup of tea.
But what I do love is frosting. And phenomenal frosting can absolutely make my day. Peanut butter or cream cheese frosting? It may as well just be Christmas. As a result, I love cupcakes because I can pile them sky-high with dreamy frosting and enjoy each and every bite. These dark chocolate cupcakes are a dream come true for anyone who is a cake or frosting lover – they are truly the best of both worlds.
These cupcakes are insanely rich and moist, and are made using the same type of method used for making brownies – melted chocolate is added to a whisked mixture of eggs and sugar, and then flour is stirred in.
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The resulting batter almost resembled a mousse; both thick and light. It creates incredibly moist cupcakes that also have a light and fluffy texture.
And the frosting. Oh the frosting. Bestill my heart.
I have been using this recipe for a couple of years now (how has it never made it on here before?!), mostly as a filling for chocolate cakes. But on top of cupcakes? Where I purposefully try to create a 2:1 frosting to cupcake ratio? AH-MAZING.
I cannot make this without taking spoonful after spoonful out of the bowl before decorating. It’s seriously irresistible.
Sometimes I’m tempted to make it to just have. Smeared on toast? Used as a dipping vessel for bananas or apples? So many possibilities. The “secret ingredient” in this frosting, just as in the Easy Vanilla Bean Buttercream, is the heavy cream. It creates a smooth and fluffy frosting that is easy to slather or pipe on.
If you are a fellow chocolate/peanut butter-aholic, you will love, love, LOVE these cupcakes. Put them on your baking list NOW!
Can’t Get Enough? More Favorite Chocolate/Peanut Butter Recipes:
- No Bake Chocolate, Peanut Butter and Oatmeal Cookies
- Marshmallow Crunch Brownie Bars
- Peanut Butter Cup Overload Cake
- Salted Peanut Butter Cup Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Buckeye Brownies
- Peanut Butter-Banana Bread with Chocolate Chips
One year ago: Sweet and Sour Chicken
Two years ago: Fresh Strawberry Tart
Dark Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting
Ingredients
For the Cupcakes
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
- 2 ounces (56.7 g) bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
- ½ cup (43 g) Dutch-processed cocoa powder
- ¾ cup (93.75 g) all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon (0.75 teaspoon) baking powder
- 2 eggs
- ¾ cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) table salt
- ½ cup (115 ml) sour cream
For the Peanut Butter Frosting
- 1 cup (120 g) powdered sugar
- 1 cup (258 g) creamy peanut butter
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
- ¾ teaspoon (0.75 teaspoon) vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon (0.25 teaspoon) kosher salt
- ⅓ cup (79.33 ml) heavy cream
Instructions
- Make the Cupcakes: Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and preheat to 350 degrees F. (If you are using a non-stick muffin pan, heat the oven to 325 degrees F.) Line standard-size muffin pan with baking cup liners.
- Combine butter, chocolate, and cocoa in medium heatproof bowl. Set bowl over saucepan containing barely simmering water; heat mixture until butter and chocolate are melted and whisk until smooth and combined. (Alternately, you can microwave the mixture at 50% power, stirring every 30 seconds until completely melted.) Set aside to cool until just warm to the touch.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and baking powder.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs combine; add sugar, vanilla, and salt and whisk until fully incorporated. Add cooled chocolate mixture and whisk until combined. Sift one-third of flour mixture over chocolate mixture and whisk until combined; whisk in sour cream until combined, then sift remaining flour mixture over and whisk until batter is homogeneous and thick.
- Divide the batter evenly among muffin pan cups. Bake until skewer inserted into center of cupcakes comes out clean, 18 to 20 minutes.
- Cool cupcakes in muffin pan on wire rack for 15 minutes. Remove the cupcakes and set on wire rack to cool to room temperature before icing, about 30 minutes.
- Make the Peanut Butter Frosting: Place the powdered sugar, peanut butter, butter, vanilla and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on medium-low speed until creamy, scraping down the bowl with a rubber spatula as you work. Add the cream and beat on high speed until the mixture is light and smooth.
- Assemble the Cupcakes: Frost the cupcakes with an offset spatula, or with a decorating tip (I used a Wilton 1M tip). Store at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
Notes
- Since first making these cupcakes, this chocolate cupcake recipe has become my favorite. Feel free to use either!
- If you do not have sour cream, you can substitute plain yogurt or buttermilk.
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @thebrowneyedbaker on Instagram so I can see it!
[photos by Whitney Wright]
Hey. I was wondering if I can substitute All purpose cream for the heavy cream? Heavy cream is not available at home right now and I’m dying to try this recipe.
Hi Tay, I’m not familiar with “all purpose cream” but if it is similar to heavy cream then I think you should be fine.
I wanted to know if i don’t have a mixer could i do it with a hand held mixer to do the frosting? If I can then im going to do homemade frosting from now on…
Yes, you could definitely use your hand mixer.
These cupcakes are amazing! I made some regular chocolate buttercream to go with them from another recipe on your blog, but honestly I think I like these plain best of all. The cake is just incredible.
One quick question thought, the tops of my cupcakes look a little split, like they aren’t completely smooth. I know that doesn’t matter if I cover it with frosting, but I figured I’d ask if you have any ideas why that happened?
Hi Jamie, What did you use to scoop the batter into the muffin cups? I sometimes use a cookie scoop and notice that at times it can cause a crease in the top of the batter and unless I smooth it out the top can turn out a little cracked.
Yep. That’s exactly what it was…I used a cookie scoop.
Thanks :)
This is the best from scratch chocolate cupcake recipe ever! I frosted them with the best chocolate buttercream frosting, also from this site, and they were a huge hit!
This cupcakes are delicious and very moisty!!!! I just made them with the cream cheese frosting because I dont like much peanut butter.. Yummi!!!!
I just found this website and is now my addiction.
I made these cupcakes with a small change…I used the peanut butter frosting to FILL the cupcakes and then covered the cupcakes in a dark chocolate buttercream frosting. I just had to experiment and the frosting makes a great filling!!!
I made some banana cupcakes and was looking through pinterest to find a peanut butter frosting when I thought of just checking your site because while I LOVE pinterest, you’re recipes are ALWAYS the best. This frosting does not disappoint. On the contrary, I had to immediately wash the bowl so I didn’t eat all of the frosting left in the bowl. Oh my gosh this is the best frosting I have ever tasted!!!!!!!!
I am so confused! First off, I LOVE your site. Second, I made this peanut butter frosting tonight and mine was horrible. I read other reviews (on the food network regarding this same Barefoot Contessa icing recipe) and most were great, but a few were the same as mine–the icing turned out like glue. I added an extra 2 1/2 cups of icing sugar bit by bit and a bit of milk to try to lighten it up but still glue. I finally gave up and iced my cupcakes with it anyway. It was more like a glaze as it hardened slightly on the cakes. Still delicious though.
Any suggestions? Does the type of Peanut Butter matter? As much as I love Skippy and high sugar varieties, a year ago I converted to healthier less sugary varieties. Could that have been the downfall? I make icing all the time and this has never happened. I know I did nothing wrong, so I’m convinced it must be the type of pb….???
Hi Tara, You mentioned icing sugar, what type exactly did you use? It’s important to use powdered, i.e. confectioners sugar. Also, the type of peanut butter could definitely have affected your texture. You mention “healthier, less sugary varieties” – are you using natural peanut butter? The extra oil in natural pb can wreck havoc on icings, for sure.
Hi Michelle, yeah I definitely used confectioners sugar (In Canada it is often called Icing sugar). I’m convinced it was the peanut butter. I didn’t use the purely natural kind, but there is little sugar in this and thus it has a far greasier/heavier consistency, so it must be that. I’d like to buy the ‘other’ kind of PB and try it again since everyone is raving about the icing!
I made these cc’s for a friend who really likes dark chocolate. I followed the recipe to a T, didn’t over bake, and found them to be quite dry. Not sure why when all the reviews were so good….
I made these for my husband’s brithday party yesterday and had to tell you immediately how amazing they are. The cupckae has a fantastic deep chocolate flavor and the peanut butter frosting–simply perfect. We had former Pittsburgh bakery Dozen’s cater cupcakes for our wedding cake and my husband said this recipe far outshined the chocolate peanut butter cupcake we had then. Thanks for sharing such an amazing and easy recipe!
I have been searching for a nice chocolate cake recipe for awhile and I have to say this one totally rocks!! Every bite you take leaves your mouth watering, I’m holding myself back from eating all of them! I am not one to even exaggerate but I am absolutely in love with this cake! As for the icing, I don’t think there are enough words to describe how delicious it is. Is the recipe purposely written to leave enough left over so you can eat it like a bowl of ice cream? Great recipe thanks so much, your website is a treasure chest of deliciousness!!
These were perfect! I agree with the dryness, but I think my US cups to UK grams conversions just needs tweaking – maybe less cocoa powder?? And thanks for the tip about unsweetened apple sauce – great idea! Next time, I might add some chocolate chips too. Anyway, a wholehearted thumbs up from all the boys in our house – they said these were the best yet!
I’m so excited to make these for our girl’s night this evening! There is only a small group of us, so just wondering if it is o.k. to freeze any left-over icing for later use?
Thanks :) YUMMY!
Hi Cheryl, I have never frozen icing before, and don’t know how well it would thaw (you could certainly try, and let me know how it turns out!). You could certainly refrigerate it for a couple of weeks and then re-whip it when you want to use it again.
I refridgerated my left over icing and used it later the same week, just put it on the counter to get to room temperature and it was just as delicious as the first go around!
This is the best chocolate cupcake recipe I have ever made. Thank you.
Hi Michelle, I love your recipes! This is my first time for making cupcakes. I’m a lil bit confused with the ratio of the ingredients. Is that really 1.5 ounces for 1/2 cup cocoa, 3.75 ounces for 3/4 cup all-purpose flour, 5.25 ounces for 3/4 cup sugar, and 4 ounces for 1/2 cup sour cream? Were you using a different cup?
The volumes are correct. I do a lot of my baking by weight, and all dry ingredients have different weights per volume, i.e. one cup of sugar doesn’t not weigh the same as one cup of flour.
OMG! I just made these and they are AMAAAAZING!!!
I doubled the recipe and made mini cupcakes (84 cupcakes) and before I could even make the frosting, my kids and I gobbled down half of them. Thank you so much for sharing! lOVE YOUR BLOG!!!
Rich beyond anyone’s wildest dreams. I used Hershey’s Dark cocoa, and was amazed at the depth of the chocolate in just a bite of the perfectly moist cake. Incredible recipe. And the PB adds more than a light touch! Deelish.
Hi!!!
I stumbled across your site and last week and FELL IN LOVE WITH IT. (>.<) I tried making your vanilla cupcakes yesterday and my husband loves it; considering how he doesn't like all desserts and cake-related stuff. [I wouldn't count green tea ice cream as dessert]
Anyway, I was thinking of making these for his birthday and I was wondering if there is anything I could do to make these cakes less dark chocolate-ish? (O_o) Thank You!
Also, I live in Japan so sour cream is either really expensive or I have to travel to Tokyo to get it. (T_T) Is it okay if I just mix cream and vinegar for this recipe? I tried this technique for the vanilla cupcakes; and they came out fine. (^_^)
I apologize for this LONG comment. Thank you!
Hi Saki, You could choose to use semisweet, or even milk chocolate, if you don’t like dark chocolate (I would recommend the semisweet over the milk though). If mixing cream and vinegar worked for the vanilla cupcakes, you’ll be good doing it for this one as well. Enjoy!
Hi- these look lovely!! Can I ask, what size frosting tip did you use to frost these? I am a newbie baker and not too familiar with frosting
I use a Wilton 1M decorating tip.
I just made these cupcakes! they are super delicious. http://ovenadventures.blogspot.com/2011/08/i-must-have-been-sugar-free-vegan-in.html
I LOVE this because I feel exactly the same way about cake as you do! No one gets it! Haha
Hi!
I’m from Mexico and sometimes the ingredients are a bit confusing or we just can’t find them here. Like the case of sour cream and heavy cream.
What we have here as sour cream is just (yes, i know) a very very sour cream that it is also used for cooking, like the one used in guacamole for example. I dont know if its the same one you use in this recipe.
And heavy cream, we only have the Lyncott whipping cream. Is there any other thing i can replace the heavy cream with? or will this cream help as well?
Thanks :)
Hi Elsa, You can use the whipping cream in place of the heavy cream (here in the U.S. they are almost used interchangeably). As for the sour cream, I have never had the one you are referring to, so I can’t really say for sure if it would work or not. But if you typically do cook with it, I think it should be okay. You could also substitute plain yogurt.
Oh my Gosh! the Frosting!!!!!!!!!!! i LOVE it. I didn’t have any heavy cream so I used regular milk and it came out fine. Maybe not as light as it would have with the cream but still fluffy.
I used it to frost a 9″ chocolate cake.
I loved the cake but the peanut butter frosting was a little too much.
(sorry)
I made these cupcakes for a co-worker who loves chocolate and peanut butter combo. They were definitely the best cupcakes I’ve ever made, and quite possibly the best I’ve ever eaten (and I know good cupcakes!). I used 60% cocoa Ghiradelli chocolate chips for the bittersweet chocolate and Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa powder. Baked in foil wrappers in a non-stick muffin pan for 22 minutes at 325 deg and they came out PERFECTLY moist. I used about 2/3 the frosting on each cupcake as shown here and I think that was the perfect amount since it’s so rich and peanut buttery. I also topped with sugar crystals which (to my surprise) really enhanced the flavor of the frosting. A+ all around, thank you so much for sharing this recipe!!
Just wondering can I use natural peanut butter in the frosting? I’m so excited about trying this recipe. I saw a few other recipes that I would like to try also. :-D
You can use natural peanut butter if it is the “no-stir” type (Jif is one brand that makes this); I wouldn’t use the varieties that require stirring and refrigeration, as there will likely be too much oil in the frosting.
Thanks so much for sharing this recipe.. It was just PERFECT! I made this today and it tasted just AMAZING! Everyone who ate them was very happy and I got such good compliments. I made about 53 mini cupcakes with this recipe and the peanut butter frosting was enough to do swirls and frosted all 53 mini cupcakes! :) I will definitely be using this recipe again. I’ll try your other recipes soon!
I was thinking of making mini cupcakes too. Thanks for sharing how that worked out for you. :-D
Oh my gracious! This frosting is unreal…cupcakes are cooling…hope there is frosting left to put on top of them! Yum!
I ADDED 1 ADDITIONAL EGG YOLK ONLY AND THEY DID NOT CRUMBLE.
THEY ARE PERFECT.
THANKS AGAIN FOR GREAT WEBSITE
BK
Hi Michele,
Just wanted to let you know, I made them in an 8″ cake tin (I made it twice because I wasnt sure if I’d get a thick layer), cut each layer in two and got a fabulous four layer cake! Thank you!
Sounds delicious! Thanks for sharing!