Snickers Cupcakes
These Snickers cupcakes taste JUST like the candy bar… A chocolate cupcake filled with peanut nougat, topped with a caramel buttercream frosting, covered in a chocolate ganache, chopped peanuts and a drizzle of caramel sauce.
Oh my God, these cupcakes.
Last week, my husband walked into the kitchen and asked what I thought about making some cupcakes fashioned after candy bars. It sounded like a fabulous idea to me, and at almost the same exact time, we both said, “Snickers!” What better candy bar to recreate in cupcake form than the one and only chocolate, nougat, caramel, peanut classic? I couldn’t think of one.
So, off to create Snickers cupcakes I went!
I ended up modifying the best-ever Snickers cake that I made a few years ago, mashed up with the ultimate chocolate cupcakes that I just love, love, love. How did I do it?
I started with the chocolate cupcakes and omitted the chocolate ganache filling. Once they were baked and cooled, I cored out the center of the cupcakes and filled them with the peanut nougat filling, which I also used in the filling of that Snickers cake, and originally in homemade Snickers bars.
Then, I topped the cupcakes with salted caramel frosting… I usually love my cupcakes with sky-high swirls of frosting, but with everything else going on in these cupcakes, I didn’t want to overpower the other elements. So, I went with a smallish mound of frosting on top of each cupcake. Once the frosting on the cupcakes was set and chilled, I poured milk chocolate ganache over each of the cupcakes and finished them off with chopped peanuts and a drizzle of caramel sauce.
I served these for dessert yesterday at Sunday dinner and they were a massive, massive hit. People who said they normally don’t like cupcakes devoured them, and there was quite a bit of oohing and ahhing. Everyone kept saying they couldn’t believe how much they really tasted like a Snickers bar… which they TOTALLY do!
There are a number of components to putting these together, but none of them take very much time; most of the recipe time is spent waiting for things to cool and chill. If you’re a Snickers fan, these Snickers cupcakes should be number one on your to-bake list!
Four years ago: Beer-Battered Cod
Eight years ago: Julia Child’s French Bread
Snickers Cupcakes
Ingredients
For the Cupcakes:
- 3 ounces (85.05 g) semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
- â…“ cup (28.67 g) Dutch-processed cocoa
- ¾ cup (177.75 ml) hot coffee
- ¾ cup (93.75 g) bread flour
- ¾ cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) table salt
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) baking soda
- 6 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 eggs
- 2 teaspoons white vinegar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the Nougat:
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons evaporated milk
- ¾ cup (95.25 g) marshmallow fluff
- 2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) vanilla extract
- ¾ cup (109.5 g) salted peanuts, roughly chopped
For the Salted Caramel Frosting:
- ½ cup (113.5 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 4 ounces (113.4 g) cream cheese, at room temperature
- ¼ cup (56.5 ml) salted caramel sauce
- 2 cups (240 g) powdered sugar
For the Milk Chocolate Ganache:
- 8 ounces (226.8 g) milk chocolate, finely chopped
- ½ cup (119 ml) heavy cream
For the Garnish:
- Additional salted caramel sauce
- Chopped peanuts
Instructions
- Make the Cupcakes: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a standard-size muffin pan with paper liners.
- Place the chopped chocolate and cocoa powder in a medium bowl. Pour the hot coffee over the mixture and whisk until smooth. Place in the refrigerator to cool completely, about 20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, whisk the flour, sugar, salt, and baking soda together in medium bowl; set aside.
- Whisk the oil, eggs, vinegar, and vanilla into the cooled chocolate mixture until smooth. Add the flour mixture and whisk until smooth.
- Divide the batter evenly among muffin pan cups. Bake until cupcakes are set and just firm to touch, 17 to 19 minutes. Cool the cupcakes in the muffin pan on wire rack for 10 minutes, then remove the cupcakes from the pan and place on the wire rack to cool completely.
- Make the Nougat: Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the sugar and evaporated milk, stirring until dissolved, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove the pan from heat and add the marshmallow fluff, peanut butter, and vanilla extract, stirring until completely smooth. Fold in the peanuts. Let the nougat mixture cool to room temperature before using it in the cupcakes.
- Make the Salted Caramel Frosting: Using an electric mixer, beat the butter and cream cheese on medium-high speed for 5 minutes. 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.
- Assemble the Cupcakes: Using a paring knife, remove the centers of the cupcakes, leaving a ½-inch border around the edges. Fill the centers of the cupcakes with the nougat mixture. Using an offset spatula, frost the cupcakes with the salted caramel frosting, shaping the frosting into a mound on top of the cupcakes. Refrigerate the for at least 1 hour, until the frosting is set.
- Make the Milk Chocolate Ganache: While the cupcakes chill, make the chocolate ganache. Place the chocolate in a 4-cup measuring cup; set aside. Place the cream in a small saucepan over medium heat and warm until it just comes to a boil. Pour the cream over the chopped chocolate and let sit for 2 minutes. Begin whisking the mixture in the center, gradually working your way outward until the ganache is completely smooth. Set aside to cool, whisking occasionally, until it has thickened slightly, yet still a pourable consistency.
- Finish the Cupcakes: Slowly pour the chocolate ganache onto the center of each cupcake, letting it push itself outward and flow over the sides of the cupcakes. Refrigerate the cake for at least 30 minutes, giving the ganache a chance to set up. To finish garnishing, drizzle additional salted caramel sauce over the cupcakes, and top with chopped peanuts. Keep the cupcakes refrigerated, removing them from the refrigerator about 20 minutes prior to serving.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @thebrowneyedbaker on Instagram so I can see it!
Tried a couple of different recipes & these tasted the most like a real snickers bar. Â They are time consuming but are delicious! Â Must try!
I used the nougat part of this recipe for cupcakes I made and I could have eaten it all with a spoon. Consistency was perfect and it tasted just like a snickers would. Thank you!
Hi. Can you please tell me where you purchased the cupcake liners. They are perfect for this recipe.
I see they require refrigeration – is this due to the nougat
Hello what can I replace the coffee with we have a family member with a sever allergy? They look great can’t wait to make them
Hi Jodie, You can use hot water. Enjoy!
How do you get the nougat to become fluffy? Mine, while tasting spectacular, has the consistency of a syrup. I’ve beaten in a couple of egg whites to no avail.Â
Hi Charmaine, Did you use natural peanut butter by any chance? It may have been extra oily and kept it from setting.
I love this cupcake!! Â It looks so decadent. Â
Where did you get those beautiful goldÂ
and brown cupcake cases. I love them!!
Is there a way to make this recipe to be stable at room temperature? I am taking them to an event and cannot refrigerate them for a few hours, I would hate for them to melt.
Hi Taylor, These would be fine without refrigerating for a few hours.
I made these for a co-worker’s birthday last week and they were a smash hit. Followed the recipe exactly and doubled it to make enough for the department and they came out heavenly. I even got a marriage proposal from them! This is the best chocolate cupcake recipe I’ve ever made!
I have been planning to bake these for my birthday (Sat) since I saw this way back in Feb! LOL I had a question… I was reading up on Dutch cocoa, and I read that it doesn’t work well with baking soda (cake didn’t rise and had a soapy taste, so they said)… wanted to make sure before I baked them and they didn’t turn out too well!
They were a hit :) I just used whatever Cocoa, btw… I was asked where I got them :) I will say this: I had WAY too much of the nougat filling leftover, even though I doubled the recipe. So next time I make them, I’ll double the recipe for everything but the nougat (I’ll keep it the same)… if I doubled the amount I put in each cupcake, there’d be no cupcake left! I used my Pampered Chef Small Scoop and I thought it was the perfect amount inside :)
Could I make these in a mini cupcake pan?
Hi Sharla, Yes, just be sure to reduce the baking time!
I made these cupcakes twice. The first time, I followed the recipe exactly, but found that there was too much ganache left over. That’s a personal preference though, so I just made less the second time. They were made for a party and everyone absolutely LOVED them. More than one person asked what my cake store was called… The cupcakes are amazing. If you have the time, I’d totally recommend making them! Thanks for this recipe :)
Can i double this recipe to make 24 or should I make the recipe 2 times?
Hi Michelle, You can double it!
Few questions:
1. Why use bread flour? Can I substitute?
2. Can I use the cupcake recipe and convert into a small cake?
Thanks,
Jane
Hi Jane, Bread flour keeps the cupcakes moist and sturdy enough for a filling (not to crumbly). I have not personally tried to convert this cupcake recipe to a cake, but others have with success.
Do you have any tips on making this ahead of time? I have to bring a treat for the office on a Tuesday. If I leave the iced cupcakes in the fridge on Sunday night and then put the ganache on top on Monday night, will they be okay?
Hi Sara, Yes, that timeline would totally work!
I’m gearing up to make your snicker’s cake, but I just had a look at this cupcake recipe and I noticed the cake ingredients are a bit different from the larger cake version. Just curious about why the differences and wondering whether I should use this cupcake recipe, say 1 1/2 times the recipe, to make the cake instead of the original version?
Hi Alison, I’ve tried converting that cake recipe to cupcakes and have not had success scaling it – they always sink in the middle. So that is my go-to chocolate cake recipe, and this is my go-to chocolate cupcake recipe :)
Made these yesterday for today. I doubled the recipe. There are a few steps so I was glad to have the day to take my time & get them done right. The cake flour made them so light & fluffy. I was worried how they would be in the fridge overnight but they are decadent and delicious. Makes me feel sad for those with a peanut allergy. I’m made your salted caramel recipe many times and the recipe never fails. TO.DIE.FOR. :)
Just made these today. Yes they are very good! But oh… the work involved! And lots of dishes to do… sure hope my hubby appreciates it! I enjoyed the challenge though.
Bear with me as I have never made filled cupcakes before so this is probably a crazy, stupid question. When I remove the center out of the cupcake to fill with nougat do I replace the cake or part of it or does that just become an instant snack? Thanks!
YES – instant snack! We were not having our cupcakes until the next day so we tossed them on top of ice cream…plus we had the salted caramel sauce to add. YUMMO!
Hi Marla, Yes, snack, snack, snack! :)
Great! Makes me even more excited to make these!
Omg this looks and sounds DIVINE!! Snickers were my go-to at the snack bar when I was in high school! Love them to pieces! And I love cupcakes, so this is like a match made in heaven! I just made matcha cupcakes a couple days ago, but I may have to get my cupcake pan out again haha
I recently made your Snickers Cake and immediately thought of converting the recipe into cupcake form. You just beat me to it! Great minds think alike. I’m sure these taste just as good as the cake version.
My husband’s birthday will be Tomorrow. I immediately whipped up a batch for him It is deliciously chocolatey.Great recipe.It baked with a nice dome shape.
I actually love to make cupcakes with lots of steps, I find it relaxing fulfilling! These look perfect!
Magnificent! We’re adding these to our to-bake list right away! Thank you!
Oh my word look at the inside of that cupcake! To die for!
My family would go crazy for these! I’m loving the layers of flavor!
Ohhhh these look DIVINE!!!!
These cupcakes look insanely good, Michelle! So many fab flavors and textures.
These look like they stepped out of a gourmet bakery! I am in serious thought about finding an occasion/reason to bake a batch in order to justify making such decadence :)
WOW!!! They look soooo good!
This is truly genius!! My heavens I’m drooling just looking at the photos. Truly magnificent cupcakes that even a non-cupcake lover would devour quickly with no crumbs in sight. Have a wonderful day!! I wish I had one of those cupcakes to enjoy.
These cupcakes are a total WINNER! Your presentation is on POINT!