Ingredients
Scale
- CAKE
- Dry
- 1 1/4 c. + 2 tbsp. unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1/2 c. unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. sea salt
- Liquid
- 1 c. half and half
- 1 tbsp. vanilla extract
- Creaming
- 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, room temp
- 1 3/4 c. extra-fine granulated sugar
- 4 large eggs
- GANACHE FILLING
- 3/4 c. 60% bittersweet chocolate pistoles
- 1/2 c. heavy cream
Instructions
- Make cupcakes. Preheat oven to 350º. Set rack in the middle of the oven.
- Set out ingredients and equipment. Sift flour. Measure dry ingredients into separate mixing bowl. Add flour and whisk together. Measure liquid ingredients into a separate bowl and set aside. Place butter and sugar in bowl of standing mixer. Crack eggs into a separate bowl and set aside.
- In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar on the lowest speed for 3-5 minutes. (This will feel odd, but keep it on low.)
- With the mixer still on the lowest speed, add the eggs one at a time, fully incorporating after each addition. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- Add the dry ingredient mixture alternately with the liquid mixture in 3 to 5 additions each, beginning and ending with the dry mixture. Move swiftly through this step to avoid overworking the batter. Don’t wait for the dry or liquid mixtures to be fully incorporated before adding the next. This should take a total of about 60 seconds.
- Stop the mixer and scrape the sides of the bowl all the way down. Don’t miss the clumps of ingredients hiding on the bottom. Mix on medium speed for 15 to 20 seconds to develop the batter’s structure.
- Line cupcake pan with paper liners.Fill cupcake liners with batter using a 2-ounce trigger release ice-cream scoop.
- Bake for 22 minutes. When the skewer shows a touch of crumbs or comes out clean, the cupcakes is done.
- Cool cupcakes for 5 minutes before removing from the pan. Allow to cool completely before assembling.
- Make Ganache. While cupcakes cool, prepare ganche.
- In a 2-quart, heavy-bottomed saucepan, bring the cream to a light simmer over medium heat.
- Meanwhile, measure the chocolate and place it in a heat resistant bowl.
- Once the cream reaches a light simmer, pour it over the chocolate. Wait about 10 seconds for the cream to work its way into all of the crevices of chocolate, then whisk to combine.
- Let the ganche cool for at least 20 minutes before using. It will begin to thicken.
So I posted a comment before this raving about the cupcakes and also mentioning I wasn’t able to access the buttercream recipe (it gave me a 404 error.. maybe has been deleted?) I thought for anyone who comes across and needs a recipe, specifically without eggs for a meringue buttercream, this is the one I found and used and it turned out perfect. https://www.lorannoils.com/buttercream-frosting-using-meringue-powder-r0051
These were the most delicious cupcakes. I wasn’t able to use your buttercream recipe, and I only had enough eggs for the cake so I found a meringue buttercream recipe that used the meringue powder instead and they came out perfect. like a truffle on the inside and so delicious. I also had put a cookie sheet with some water below the cupcakes in the oven to add more moisture and they were super moist without tasting undercooked. I will definitely be making these again. A memorable recipe for sure. Thank you!
I have an oven toaster so can you please give me some baking instructions about this type of oven. And i baked a cake once in this oven it burned from the top, did not rise properly and was not at all fluffy. So can you just give me a hint about the possible mistake i could be making?
Oh, I wish I could be of more help here! I don’t have any experience baking cakes in a toaster oven. I imagine there must be a good resource out there.
May I know what is half and half?
Half and Half is part heavy cream and part milk. You can sub equal parts skim milk and heavy cream. Hope that helps!
I am planning on making these for my friends wedding shower. Her theme is Black and White. I was wondering if you could use a dark chocolate bar in stead of the pistols or the chocolate chips. Maybe a high cocoa chocolate bar by Lindt or something like that???
You can definitely use a dark chocolate bar. Lindt works well, so does Green and Blacks (if you havent tried them yet). Sounds so good! Hope the shower goes well!
I’m a very experienced baker, especially with cupcakes, and warn you to BEWARE this recipe! I made these and they came out TERRIBLE!!! I TRIPLE checked the recipe and these came out gummy and inedible–nowhere near what the picture looks like! Don’t know what happened, but I’m not wasting more ingredients trying the same thing again. Going back to my standby recipe. 🙁
I’m really sorry this recipe didn’t turn out for you! It sounds like there could have been an issue with the leavening.
Just found this via Pinterest. Uhm – they look PHENOMENAL!! I cannot wait to make these! Oh goodness, i’m drooling already. These might have to be made SOON! Haha. Thanks for sharing!!
Do you think it would be OK if I made the cupcakes one day and stored them in the fridge, and then made the buttercream the next day? Thanks for your help.
Hi, I don’t want to buy a stand mixer just for this icing. Can the Italian meringue buttercream work with a handheld mixer? Thanks!
You can do it with a hand held mixture, jut be prepared to mix for a while. It may be tricky as you watch the temperature on the candy mixture and blend at the same time, I’m not that coordinated 🙂
I just made these…they came out perfectly!
Moist tender crumb…I iced them with cream cheese frosting!
So gooood!
Actually they don’t need frosting! They are so good!
Yeah! So glad you liked them! Thanks for letting me know too. This is my one and only chocolate cake recipe. So good.
Oh my goodness! I love these! and they are so pretty! 🙂
Is it possible to substitute the half n half with any thing else? Buttermilk, whole milk, heavy cream..
You can substitute the half and half with 3 parts whole milk and one part heavy cream. This will keep the fat content the same. I think buttermilk will give the cake an altogether different flavor and consistency.
I want to make these for my son’s birthday party this Sunday, they look delicious! (He requested chocolate cupcakes, these certainly fit the bill!) My question is, could I use a piping bag to put the ganache in the middle of the cupcakes, instead of cutting out a chunk, filling the hole, and returning the missing piece? I was just thinking that it might be quicker and simpler to use the piping bag (I’ve used it on other filled cupcakes before). Thanks in advance for your answer, and thanks for the yummy looking recipe!
You may be able to do that although I haven’t tried it. The ganache is on the thick side, so it may be hard to penetrate through the cupcake. It’s worth a try on one. Let me know what you end up doing! Happy birthday to your son!
Ok, it was three questions, but I really really do want answers to all of them 🙂
Two questions – I made these tonight…. #1 Your cupcakes look so dark, like chocolate, and mine don’t – any ideas why? #2 Mine had a nice puff to them why they came out of the oven – again, any ideas? and finally #3 Mine pulled away from the wrappers – one last time – any ideas why??
They still taste great, but just don’t look as pretty for all these reasons 🙁
Hey Melanie! #1—I use a dark unsweetened chocolate. (Hershey’s Special Dark, although I’m on the hunt for a little higher quality at the moment). #2—The cake recipes I use and post here always tend to flatten as they cool, which I like especially when making round cakes. I rarely have to level them. It’s also a nice platform for icing. These may look a little higher since I carved out the middle for filling. #3—In these pictures I used the liners that sit in between the foil liners that they tell you not to use. For this reason—they grab on to the liners. The cake will pull away from other liners. When baking a round cake, it pulls away from the side. I think it has something to do with the high-fat content (which makes them so good!)
Hope this helps! Let me know if I left anything unanswered.
Ah-ha!!! Thank you so much for responding so quickly!!!! I appreciate it very very much! 🙂
Am making these today!….
I made these for a friend’s going away party, amazing! So sweet and delicious! Great directions, very accurate and easy to follow.
i just finished making these! they are amazing especially the frosting i will never make any other kind again!
these cupcakes look perfekt… perfect and really adorable! Thanks for sharing the recipe of this beautiful buttercream!
I was wondering what chocolate pistols are? I can’t seem to find out online, what would be a good substitute if it is something obscure ?
Regular ole semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate chips will work just great! Pistoles are usually larger in size. Sometimes I can find them at Whole Foods.
Wow- I don’t even have a word for how good these look! ganache + cupcakes can never disappoint =D
Going to try this recipe tomorrow…cross your fingers
Wow! These cupcakes look incredible!! And you have a gorgeous blog. I’m glad I stumbled across it.
Ugh! They look too good – that frosting looks like a scoop of ice cream 🙂
WOW, that frosting on top is to die for!!!
My birthday is in 2 days… just sayin. 😉
Are these OK to make the night before? If so, what is the best way to store them overnight?
For sure! I’d store them in an airtight container in the fridge. To be honest, I’ve stored mine uncover in the fridge out of sheer laziness and they still taste good but I wouldn’t recommend it. 🙂
I’ll take a batch please! These look amazing and I love the piled high buttercream on top! Mmmm!
These cupcakes look perfect – I could *really* go for one right now!
Yum! First food photo of the morning and now I will be craving chocolate all day long! These look decadent.
they are so cute and they sound delicious!
I wish I could teleport one to each of you….or you could come to Chicago 😉
mmmmm these look simply perfect! That frosting is oh so pretty and the cross section is just pure temptation! Gorgeous 🙂
These look amazing! I could go for one or two right now:)
Ooh, I want one of those cupcakes right now. Can you teleport one over here?
Let me go ahead and unhinge my jaw so you can proceed to shove them right down my throat.
Please and thank you.
They are beautiful!
Dark, rich and moist! Delicious I say.
WOW. I was waiting for this recipe! Must give this a try soon. I was recently craving chocolate cupcakes and ended up making a chocolate “crazy cake” on Saturday. That fixed my craving… but only temporarily. I really want a ganache filled cupcake, exactly like yours, with a big scoop of fluffy joy on top! Nothing less will do!
You won’t believe this. But up until a few months ago, I didn’t care for chocolate at all. Cookies, cakes, brownies, you name it – I could pass them up at parties, dessert menus, and late night study sessions without a second thought. I must have been a late bloomer because these days the most important item in my whole foods basket is a bar of vegan endangered species chocolate. Oy. These look insanely good. Shaun is deeply deprived in the cupcake department, he’s probably OD’d on carrot scones. I should make these for him as a surprise 😉
Can we be neighbors? I don’t have time to bake cupcakes like this, but I would like to eat them. 🙂