Chocolate Salted Caramel Cupcakes
You didn’t think that I’d tease you with salted caramel sauce yesterday and not provide you with something deliciously evil to do with it, did you? As I mentioned when we talked about the sauce, I’ve had a lot of fun with salted caramel baked goods over the last year, and I have loved each and every one of them. Yet, there was something missing. One crucial recipe that I had yet to perfect. Salted Caramel Buttercream Frosting. After seeing (and trying) tons of salted caramel cupcakes at various cupcake shops, I kept meaning to make my own. How something like that gets pushed to the back burner, I’ll never know. You all have Michelle C. to thank for getting salted caramel cupcakes back to the front and center of my mind, where it absolutely needed to be. Michelle shared a photo of her brand new KitchenAid mixer that she received as a Mother’s Day gift on the BEB Facebook page. When I asked her the first thing she made, she said she was waiting to break it in with a salted caramel cupcake recipe, and was waiting to see one from me. I can’t have me be the only thing standing in the way of a woman and KitchenAid bliss, so I made it my business to catapult salted caramel cupcakes to the top of my “to do” list. Well, Michelle, I hope you love these cupcakes as much as I did, and that they make your inaugural KitchenAid baking experience fun and delicious!
When it comes to salted caramel cupcakes, there is certainly no shortage of variations. Salted caramel cupcakes with salted caramel frosting. Brown sugar cupcakes with salted caramel frosting. Vanilla cupcakes with salted caramel frosting. Chocolate cupcakes with salted caramel frosting. As you can tell, there was definitely one constant – salted caramel frosting. That was perfect, since I already knew, without a doubt, that my cupcakes would be adorned with salted caramel buttercream frosting. Now, what type of base to use?
I thought long and hard about it, and at first was leaning towards an all-salted caramel cupcake, but then stepped back from the ledge. I thought it might be a little overkill. Salted caramel is awesome, but I think the essence of it really shines when it’s used in combination with a contrasting flavor and texture. That’s what makes it such an amazing pairing with brownies, ice cream, and hot chocolate. At the end of the day, I couldn’t ignore my infatuation with all things salted caramel and chocolate. A chocolate cupcake it was!
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While there isn’t any salted caramel used directly in the cupcake itself, there is one part of the process that creates a caramel-like flavor, which adds to the recipe as a whole. Instead of beating together the butter and sugar in the mixing bowl as most recipes would call for, the butter and sugar are cooked slowly in a saucepan until the butter is completely melted. The result is a little bit of a mix between a nutty, caramel flavor and smell, and that of browned butter. I wish I could have supplied you with a scratch and sniff here! That one little step adds volumes in terms of flavor and how well the chocolate cupcake complements the salted buttercream frosting.
So, there you have it. An incredibly moist, amazing chocolate cupcake with just a hint of caramel undertones, topped with a salted caramel cream cheese buttercream frosting. Drizzle a little extra salted caramel sauce on top and finish off with a pinch of flaky sea salt, and you have one seriously phenomenal cupcake.
One year ago: Peanut Butter Brownies
Two years ago: Guacamole
Chocolate Salted Caramel Cupcakes
Ingredients
For the Cupcakes:
- ½ cup (43 g) plus 1 tablespoon Dutch-process cocoa powder
- ½ cup (125 ml) plus 1 tablespoon hot water
- 2¼ cups (281.25 g) all-purpose flour
- ¾ teaspoon (0.75 teaspoon) baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon (0.75 teaspoon) baking powder
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) salt
- 1 cup (227 g) plus 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 ⅔ cups (333.33 g) granulated sugar
- 3 eggs
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- ¾ cup (172.5 ml) sour cream
For the Salted Caramel Frosting:
- 1 cup (227 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 8 ounces (226.8 g) cream cheese, at room temperature
- ½ cup (113 ml) salted caramel sauce
- 4 cups (480 g) powdered sugar
To Garnish:
- Salted Caramel Sauce
- Fleur de Sel, or other flaky sea salt
Instructions
- Make the Cupcakes: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line standard-size muffin pans with paper liners.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the cocoa powder and hot water until smooth. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
- Combine the butter and sugar in a medium saucepan set over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is smooth, and the butter is completely melted. Transfer the mixture to the bowl of an electric mixer and beat on medium-low speed until the mixture is cool, about 4 to 5 minutes.
- Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition, and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add the vanilla and then the cocoa mixture, beating until smooth.
- Reduce the mixer speed to low, and add the flour mixture in three additions, alternating with the sour cream, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Mix each addition until just incorporated.
- Divide the batter evenly between the prepared liners, filling each about two-thirds full. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 18 to 20 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through baking. Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Make the Frosting: Beat together the butter and cream cheese on medium-high speed for 5 minutes (I like to use the whisk attachment for my KitchenAid stand mixer, but it’s not necessary). Pour in the salted caramel and beat until combined. Reduce the speed to medium-low and slowly add the powdered sugar, a little at a time, until it has all been incorporated. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat for an additional two to three minutes, until light and fluffy.
- To finish, pipe frosting onto the top of each cupcake (or use an offset spatula to spread the frosting), drizzle with some additional salted caramel sauce, and sprinkle with a pinch of fleur de sel. (Note: I used an Ateco #864 decorating tip to frost these cupcakes.)
Did you make this recipe?
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Can u please tell me how much of this butter is in grams?
Hi Ana, For the cupcakes – 241 grams of butter. For the frosting – 227 grams.
Hi Michelle,
a wonderful recipe – just finished these cupcakes and would like to make a couple of points…
When making the caramel sauce I didn’t use a candy thermometer – I found that the colour – reddish brown came up rather quickly so my sauce has a very slightly burnt taste – also when I added the salt I didn’t stir enough to incorporate it, so there was a fair bit of salt crystal at the bottom of the pot.
The frosting is out of this world – couldn’t stop taste-testing it!
I’m taking the cupcakes into work tomorrow and will get the low-down on how they really taste. All in all I’ll definitely try the caramel sauce again and aim to correct the minor problems – hope this is helpful to others about to try your recipe.
thanks so much.
Sandra
I made this frosting last night…mmmm DELISH! However the frosting doesn’t seem to have a firm enough consistency to stay “pretty” on the cupcakes. I stopped and refrigerated the remainder of the frosting to inquire how I can tweak it to make it work. I am wondering if I over whipped the butter and cream cheese. Can I add powdered sugar to firm it up? Thanks..I am so looking forward to sharing these! (BTW, I made the cupcake recipe you have with this frosting but also the Ultimate Chocolate Cupcake recipe and I am planning on frosting the UCC recipe with this = heavenly!)
Hi Darcy, You can use more powdered sugar to firm it up; refrigerating should also help.
WOWWWWWWWWWWWW! These cupcakes have left me speechless! I’m a relatively novice baker and I just produced the most DIVINE cupcake ever courtesy of YOU! THANK YOU! I truly cannot express how delicious this recipe is and how awesome your directions were :)
I need to make chocolate cupcakes for a 4 year old birthday party and, seeing as I love your site, I thought I’d check here first. I like the sound of the cake recipe, but don’t really want to do the frosting 1) Don’t know if an average 4 year old will like the salted carmel, 2) seems like too much work for the occasion (but still sounds delicious). Do you think this would work with just a regular buttercream frosting?
Hi Yulia, If you’re looking a simple chocolate cupcake recipe, I would recommend this recipe (minus the ganache filling): https://www.browneyedbaker.com/2013/08/19/best-chocolate-cupcakes-recipe/. If you want vanilla buttercream, this is my favorite:
https://www.browneyedbaker.com/2010/10/28/vanilla-cupcakes-vanilla-buttercream-frosting/
I hope that helps!
Hi! I always have problems with cheese frostings… The texture is always too runny, not thick…. :( Could you give me some advice?? Thanks a lot!
Hi Flavio, Be sure to use full-fat cream cheese (low-fat cheese has a higher water content and can make frostings thin); I also have found out that Philadelphia cream cheese has a higher fat content than generic brands.
My carmel sauce came out great! unfortunately the frosting came out pretty soupy and didn’t really taste like carmel at all. I think the powered sugar was too overwhelming. Pretty disappointing but i’ll have to try it again with a different frosting recipe!
Wonderful cupcakes, I’ve made them for my little nieces over the weekend. They absolutely loved it, planning on making some more this week.
Thanks,
S.siva
The icing and the sauce is absolutely amazing, but I found the cupcake recipe a little dry and dense. But they were a hit at the party anyway, and I was asked by several bakers in the crowd for the recipe! Thanks for sharing.
Can store bought salted caramel sauce be used?
Yes, you could use store-bought salted caramel sauce.
Hi Michelle :) thanks so much for the recipe! i tried it today and everything seemed great until the frosting. I followed the proportions exactly but my frosting turned out way too runny and it was impossible to pipe :( it tasted great though but no way it could become frosting because it was just way too runny. any ideas why?
for cream cheese, i used Philadelphia cream cheese (the ones sold in a block) — it is it the right one to be using?
in the end, to salvage the cupcakes, i used some ready-to-use cream cheese Philadelphia frosting which had a hint of lemon and then dolloped salted caramel sauce over because i just so wanted my salted caramel cupcakes. they are okay but not the best i guess? help please? :) thanks so much!
Hi Roys, Did you happen to use low-fat cream cheese? That is often the culprit in runny frostings that call for cream cheese.
Absolutely Delish! I made these for a work potluck and they were a hit.
I made these, followed the recipe exactly, and they were delicious!
Hi! This looks so yummy!! I have tried salted caramel frosting before and I find too sweet. I would love to try the recipe and I was wondering if this frosting is stable enough to be out in room temperature? Thank you !!
Yes, you can keep them at room temperature.
After tasting chocolate and salted caramel at a local cupcake shop, I decided to find the perfect recipe to try myself…and here it is! These cupcakes would have to be the best dessert I have ever tasted. I didn’t realise how well chocolate and caramel worked together. thank you for sharing!
These are some of the moistest cupcakes I’ve ever made! They do not disappoint! The caramel froze on me while I was adding the cream, but I think it was due to my stove not staying at an even temp more than anything.
This is the 4th recipe I’ve used from your stockpile and all of them have held true to form. Thanks for being super reliable and unique!
Hi, Hoping u can help me. My father-in-law has requested me to make cake for 100 guests at some event he is organising, so I thought I’d make mini-vanilla cupcakes with caramel cream frosting and a drizzle of butterscotch sauce. But I have a Q – do I have to drizzle the sauce just before serving or can I do the entire thing in advance n leave it in the fridge till serving time? If i do the latter will the sauce harden on top of the cream? If I drizzle just before serving do I have to make sure its room temp? coz if the sauce is warm I’m guessing it will kill the cream…? Sorry for the million Qs, just dont want to let him down!
I think you’ll be fine making them in advance and refrigerating. Butterscotch sauce should not harden in the fridge.
Tried this recipe. Got 18 cupcakes though but the cake is so light. I was so afraid to try the frosting I just bought a cream cheese frosting from the supermarket and drizzled it with caramel syrup! It tastes really good
Hi Michelle,
I just had to drop you a quick note to say that these are absolutely marvelous! I just finished making them – and 4 have already been gobbled up by my mum and kids! The buttercream combo is excellent…..it goes so well with the chocolate base.
Looking forward to trying out more of your delicious concoctions :) By the way, your Vanilla Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream are my staple recipe now :).
Have a great weekend!
I only have 1 3/4 cups unsalted butter left so do you think I could use salted butter for the rest and omit the actual teaspoon salt itself? Would it make a difference?
Hi Vika, You totally could do that. Enjoy!
Also, I found Hershey’s cocoa powder “Special Dark”- a blend of natural and dutched cocoas. Would that be the correct cocoa powder to use for this recipe?
Hi Kiki, Hershey’s Special Dark is okay in a pinch, but I definitely recommend investing in some high-quality Dutch-process cocoa powder if you enjoy chocolate recipes!
Hi Michelle,
I can’t wait to make these cupcakes for my family and friends. But I have a question. Why did you use all purpose flour instead of cake flour? I notice recipes vary with this and I never know which is best to use. Thanks in advance!
Hi Kiki, I have made cupcakes that use all-purpose flour, cake flour and even bread flour. It all depends on what the other ingredients are, and how sturdy they need to be. I would stick with whatever the individual recipe calls for.
I have a couple of silly questions. What is the difference between unsweetened cocoa and Dutch processed cocoa? I want to make these yummy cupcakes but do not have this kind of cocoa. Can Dutch processed cocoa be purchased at a “regular” grocery store or do I need to go to a specialty store?
Hi Dawn, Dutch-process cocoa powder has been treated with an alkalizing agent, which gives it a mild, deep chocolate flavor. Some grocery stores carry it, but most folks find that they need to order it. I haven’t tried this recipe with regular unsweetened cocoa, but you can probably use it here.
Does anyone know if these cupcakes and the frosting be made ahead of time and frozen like the strawberry cupcakes and frosting?
Hi Dawn, You can freeze the cupcakes, but I wouldn’t recommend freezing the frosting.
I have frozen the frosting before with much success!
The deliciousness is mocking me!
Hi Michelle, I’ve never made cupcakes or a bundt cake (always sheet cakes or layer cakes), but I WANT to use this recipe to make a bundt cake. Do I need to adjust the ingredient portions, or baking time? Thanks so much!
Hi Marysue, You can use this recipe as-is, but you will need to increase the baking time. I can’t say for exactly how long since I haven’t made these in a bundt cake. Enjoy!
I made jars of your carmel sauce last year for neighbor Christmas gifts. It was a huge hit! Now I must try some cupcakes. I’m thinking I will make a hole in the middle of the cupcake and add in some hidden salted carmel. Yum!
I made these for a birthday party on Saturday. Although I used a different recipe for the cupcakes, I followed the recipe for the caramel sauce and frosting. These were amazing! The slight but distinct flavor of the salt is perfect. I will definitely make these again. Thank you, Brown Eyed Baker. I look forward to trying other recipes from your website.
AMAZING CUPCAKES!! I just made these for my porker boyfriend and he ate 3 in one sitting! These cupcakes and the red velvet are his favorite!
Adorable Blog!! And uh, these look incredible! I’m totally making these for my mother-in-law’s birthday coming up. She’s a chocoholic, but the salty caramel will make them that more special. YUM!