Chocolate fudge cupcakes
Chocolate fudge cupcakes are a deliciously rich and fudgy chocolate cupcake. Topped with chocolate buttercream, they’re the perfect treat for any chocolate lover.
These chocolate fudge cupcakes are an extra special, moist, fudgy chocolate cupcake . They’re rich and decadent and topped with a delicious buttercream icing. Made with real chocolate rather than cocoa powder, they’re a real treat for any chocolate lover in your house.
These are a bit richer and more decadent than our regular chocolate cupcakes. If you want an easy recipe with a light chocolate sponge, you might like our favourite easy chocolate cupcake recipe instead.
How can kids help to make these chocolate fudge cupcakes?
This is a nice easy chocolate cupcake recipe which kids will enjoy making. They can help to measure everything out and mix it all together.
The best thing about these if you’re new to baking is that they don’t really need any specialist equipment. You can mix everything together in a bowl with a spoon so you don’t need to worry if you don’t have a mixer.
Your kids can also help to decorate these cupcakes. Whether they pipe the chocolate buttercream on, add it with a spoon, or simply take charge of adding chocolate sprinkles it’s a fun job my kids always enjoy.
What can I use instead of self raising flour?
If you don’t have any self raising flour (it’s popular here in the UK, but less so in other countries), you can swap it for an equal amount of plain or all-purpose flour and add 1 ½ teaspoons of baking powder and a pinch of salt.
What chocolate should I use?
Make sure you use a plain chocolate for these, not milk chocolate. Use the best one you can get. It’ll make a difference to the end cupcake. You can check the cocoa content of the chocolate – the higher the %, the more bitter and less sweet it will be (which is a good thing in the case of baking these).
How long do the cupcakes keep?
These cupcakes will keep in an airtight container for a few days. You can also freeze them before you add the icing. Simply wrap them well in cling film or glad wrap and pop them in a freezer bag. They’ll keep in the freezer for a few months. Allow them to defrost fully before adding the decoration and serving them.
Other fun cupcakes and chocolate bakes for kids
If you and your kids love making cupcakes or other chocolatey bakes, check out some of our other easy recipes below:
Chocolate chip cupcakes
Nutella cupcakes
Funfetti cupcakes
Vanilla cupcakes
Rainbow cupcakes
Monster cupcakes
Chocolate butterfly cakes
Chocolate caramel cupcakes
Chocolate fudge cake
Chocolate Victoria sponge
Chocolate chip fudge
Chocolate tiffin
Chocolate brownies
Chocolate loaf cake
Useful equipment
You might need the following baking tools/gadgets to make these chocolate cupcakes
Muffin tin
Cupcake cases
Digital scales
Mixing bowl
Measuring cups
Measuring spoons
Spatula
Icecream scoop
Piping bag
Wire rack
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Ingredients
For the chocolate fudge cupcakes
100ml (½ cup) boiling water
150g (2/3 cup) butter
200g (1 cup) plain chocolate
200g (1 cup) soft brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
250g (1 ½ cup) self raising flour*
For the chocolate buttercream
150g (2/3 cup) butter
300g (2 cups) icing sugar
30g (1/3 cup) cocoa powder
3 tablespoons milk
* If you don’t have any self raising flour, swap it for an equal amount of plain or all-purpose flour and add 1 ½ teaspoons of baking powder.
How to make chocolate fudge cupcakes
Preheat your oven to 180C / 170C Fan / 350F and line a muffin tin with paper or silicon cupcake cases.
Melt the butter, chocolate, sugar and water
Get your kids to measure out the butter, plain chocolate and sugar. Cut the butter into a few smaller pieces and break the chocolate up then add them to a small pan, along with the boiling water.
Heat everything together gently until it has all melted. If your kids are old enough to be trusted around a hot cooker, they can help stir this all in until it is nice and smooth. Once it has melted, set it aside to cool.
Whisk the eggs and vanilla
Crack the eggs into a small bowl. If any shell goes in, which it often can if kids are doing it simply fish it with a larger piece of shell. It will stick to that much more easily than it will your finger (and be a lot less messy!).
Add the vanilla extract to the mixing bowl. If you have younger children, you might need to hold the teaspoon while they pour in the vanilla or vice versa.
Get your kids to whisk it together with a fork or small whisk.
Add the whisked egg to your cooled chocolate mixture and stir it in.
Measure the flour
Get your kids to measure the flour out and add it to a larger mixing bowl. Finally, get your kids to pour the melted chocolate mixture into your bowl.
Gently, mix it all together with wooden spoons or a spatula until it has all come together and there are no visible bits of flour showing.
It’s a much runnier cake batter than our normal cupcakes, but don’t worry, they’re supposed to be like that and is what makes the cupcakes so deliciously moist.
Bake the chocolate fudge cupcakes
Get your kids to divide the chocolate cupcake batter among your cupcake cases. Make sure they spread it evenly so each case is about ¾ full. We find using a soup spoon or ice cream scoop makes this job a bit easier and less messy.
Bake the cupcakes in the oven for about 20 minutes. They’re ready when they’ve risen and cocktail stick or skewer inserted into the middle should come out clean.
Remove them from the oven and leave them to cool in the tin for a few minutes before taking each cupcake out and putting them on a wire rack to cool completely.
Make the chocolate buttercream icing
Get your kids to measure out the butter, icing sugar and cocoa. If the butter isn’t soft (we always forget to take it out of the fridge beforehand), cut it into a few pieces then pop it in the microwave for a few seconds. Don’t leave it in long enough to melt it.
Add it all to a large mixing bowl or free-standing mixer.
Using the k-paddle of your mixer or a hand held mixer, start beating it all together slowly. Add the 3 tablespoons of milk.
Once the loose icing sugar and cocoa has started to mix in, you can turn the speed of your mixer up. Mix it for a few minutes until it is nice and light and fluffy. The longer you leave it the nicer it will become.
Decorate the chocolate fudge cupcakes
Add the chocolate buttercream to a piping bag with a large star nozzle fitted. We also like to add a freezer bag clip to the top end to stop it coming out the top when you’re piping.
Get your kids to pipe nice swirls of buttercream onto each cupcake. I tend to give mine a hand by helping to squeeze and hold the piping bag while they guide it round. Start at the outside and slowly pipe round in swirls into the centre.
We also added some little bursts of icing to some cupcakes. My kids found these an easier way to pipe the icing on.
Alternatively, if you don’t have a piping bag, you can spread the icing onto each cupcake with the back of a spoon, a palette knife or just regular butter knife.
Decorate each cupcake with some chocolate sprinkles. If your kids are too young to pipe the icing on, being in charge of sprinkles is a good job for them.
Serve and enjoy.
Chocolate fudge cupcakes
Equipment
- Muffin tin
- Cupcake cases
- Digital scales
- Mixing bowl
- Measuring cups
- measuring spoons
- Spatula
- Icecream scoop
- Piping bag
- Wire rack
Ingredients
- 100 ml (½ cup) boiling water
- 150 g (⅔ cup) butter
- 200 g (1 cup) plain chocolate
- 200 g (1 cup) soft brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 250 g (1 ½ cup) self raising flour*
- For the chocolate buttercream
- 150 g (⅔ cup) butter softened
- 300 g (2 cups) icing sugar
- 30 g (⅓ cup) cocoa powder
- 3 tablespoons milk
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180C / 170C Fan / 350F and line a muffin tin with paper or silicon cupcake cases.
Melt the butter, chocolate, sugar and water
- Measure out the butter, plain chocolate and sugar. Cut the butter into a few smaller pieces and break the chocolate up then add them to a small pan, along with the boiling water.
- Heat everything together gently until it has all melted. Once it has melted, set it aside to cool.
Whisk the eggs and vanilla
- Crack the eggs into a small bowl. Add the vanilla extract to the mixing bowl. Whisk it together with a fork or small whisk.
- Add the whisked egg to your cooled chocolate mixture and stir it in.
Measure the flour
- Measure the flour out and add it to a larger mixing bowl. Pour the melted chocolate mixture into your bowl. Gently, mix it all together with wooden spoons or a spatula until it has all come together and there are no visible bits of flour showing.
Bake the chocolate fudge cupcakes
- Divide the chocolate cupcake batter among your cupcake cases. Make sure you spread it evenly so each case is about ¾ full.
- Bake the cupcakes in the oven for about 20 minutes. They're ready when they've risen and cocktail stick or skewer inserted into the middle should come out clean.Remove them from the oven and leave them to cool in the tin for a few minutes before taking each cupcake out and putting them on a wire rack to cool completely.
Make the chocolate buttercream icing
- Measure out the butter, icing sugar and cocoa.Add it all to a large mixing bowl or free-standing mixer.
- Using the k-paddle of your mixer or a hand held mixer, start beating it all together slowly. Add the milk.
- Once the loose icing sugar and cocoa has started to mix in, you can turn the speed of your mixer up. Mix it for a few minutes until it is nice and light and fluffy. The longer you leave it the nicer it will become.
Decorate the chocolate fudge cupcakes
- Add the chocolate buttercream to a piping bag with a large star nozzle fitted. Add a freezer bag clip to the top end to stop it coming out the top when you're piping.
- Pipe nice swirls of buttercream onto each cupcake.Alternatively, if you don't have a piping bag, you can spread the icing onto each cupcake with the back of a spoon, a palette knife or just regular butter knife.
- Decorate each cupcake with some chocolate sprinkles.Serve and enjoy.
Notes
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Similar recipes
If you liked these chocolate fudge cupcakes, you’ll love our other cupcake recipes, our chocolate recipes as well as our favourite easy bakes for kids.
GLENDA MARGARET POOLE says
Hi
In this recipe chocolate fudge cupcakes. You mention using plain chocolate instead of cocoa but you do not say how much plain chocolate, and it is not listed in the Recipe ingredients??
So how much chocolate you be used for this recipe please?
Glenda
cookingwithmykids says
200g. Thanks for pointing out the ommission. I’ve made it clearer in the recipe now.
Helen