These Dark Chocolate Mini Cupcakes are frosted with a rich salted caramel frosting for an indulgent, bite-sized treat. This recipe takes less than an hour to make and makes plenty to share. Perfect for parties! Recipe includes a how-to video!
Chocolatey, Bite-Sized Bliss
It’s not often that I share a mini dessert (you know I like my sweets as big as they can be), but these mini cupcakes are the exception. With their fluffy, moist, and rich dark chocolate bases and their equally indulgent caramel frosting, a bite is really all you need. Sure, maybe I still eat three (or five) in one sitting, but that’s neither here nor there! 🤪
These cupcakes truly melt in your mouth and are my favorite match for my caramel frosting–though of course you could use a different type (like peanut butter frosting!). Since the frosting is so sweet and rich, it really goes well with the subtly bitter dark chocolate in the cake. Add a bit of sea salt on top (don’t forget it!) and you have an incredible flavor pairing!
Why you’ll love this recipe:
- Takes less than 40 minutes to make.
- Makes a lot of cupcakes–great for parties!
- The cupcake batter can easily be made by hand (no mixer!).
- Pairs beautifully with my pipeable (!!) caramel frosting.
What You Need
You can make these adorable mini cupcakes with just a few ingredients:
- Dark cocoa powder. You could substitute Dutch process cocoa powder, but the cupcakes won’t be true “dark” chocolate or as dark in color. They’ll still taste amazing, though!
- Corn starch. I love using cornstarch to make my cakes and cupcakes tender, but still sturdy enough to withstand a heavy application of frosting.
- Egg + Egg yolk. The extra yolk adds tenderness as well so these cupcakes truly melt in your mouth.
- Hot coffee. Hot coffee is a key ingredient in many of my chocolate cake recipes. It won’t make your cupcakes taste like coffee, but it will bring out the chocolate flavor. If you don’t have coffee, hot water will work too–just make sure whatever you use is hot!
SAM’S TIP: This recipe makes a lot of mini cupcakes (over 70!), but since they’re so small and poppable everyone is going to want at least one. You could try halving the recipe, but it could get tricky with some of the measurements.
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Mini Cupcakes
- Combine the dry ingredients and sugar in a large bowl.
- Stir in the oil, eggs, and vanilla.
- Gradually add the milk, then carefully stir in the coffee.
- Divide the batter into a lined muffin tin and bake for 14-15 minutes.
- Let the cupcakes cool in their pan for 15 minutes before moving to a cooling rack.
- Frost with caramel frosting and top with sea salt.
SAM’S TIP: Your batter will be pretty dry and crumbly before adding your liquids, and after adding all the liquids, it will be very thin. Both are normal!
Frequently Asked Questions
You use my recipe for dark chocolate cupcakes, but I will warn you, the combination of the fudgy cupcake and salted caramel frosting really is rich! A bite size is really the my favorite way to go.
Even though they’re mini, you’ll still want to fill your liners ⅔ full. This should be about a tablespoon (or maybe a little more) for mini cupcakes. I like to use my 1.5 tablespoon cookie scoop (not filled all the way, of course) for easy portioning and filling.
I’m fine leaving them out for about 2 days at room temperature (in an airtight container), but beyond that I’d refrigerate.
Don’t forget that sea salt topping!
Enjoy!
Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
Dark Chocolate Mini Cupcakes with Salted Caramel Frosting
Ingredients
- 1 ⅔ cups (333 g) granulated sugar
- 1 ½ cups (188 g) all-purpose flour
- ⅔ cup (65 g) dark cocoa powder
- 1 Tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ cup (118 ml) avocado, canola or vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 large egg + 1 egg yolk
- ⅔ cup (157 ml) whole milk
- 1 cup (236 ml) hot coffee (see note)
- 1 batch caramel frosting
- Flaky sea salt for sprinkling
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
- Note: If you are making the accompanying caramel frosting that I’ve linked to in the “Ingredients” section, I recommend making the caramel before beginning the cupcakes to give it ample time to cool.
- Preheat oven to 350F (175C) and line a 24-count mini muffin tin with paper liners. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together sugar, flour, cocoa powder, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.1 ⅔ cups (333 g) granulated sugar, 1 ½ cups (188 g) all-purpose flour, ⅔ cup (65 g) dark cocoa powder, 1 Tablespoon cornstarch, 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder, 1 ¼ teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon salt
- Add canola oil, egg, egg yolk, and vanilla extract and stir until well-combined.½ cup (118 ml) avocado, canola or vegetable oil, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1 large egg + 1 egg yolk
- Stir in milk until thoroughly-combined, then stir in hot coffee. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl and then stir again to ensure you have a uniform, well-combined batter.⅔ cup (157 ml) whole milk, 1 cup (236 ml) hot coffee
- Divide better into mini muffin tin, filling liners ½-⅔ of the way full.
- Bake on 350F (175C) for 14-15 minutes or cupcake tops spring back lightly when touched and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.
- Allow to cool for 15 minutes then carefully remove to a cooling rack (I gently pry them up with a butter knife) to cool completely before covering with caramel frosting.
- Decorate with caramel frosting then sprinkle with flaky sea salt. I used the Wilton 2D tip for icing the cupcakes in the photos.1 batch caramel frosting, Flaky sea salt
Notes
Muffin tin
This recipe makes 72+ mini cupcakes. If you only have one mini muffin tin, you can leave the batter on the counter while the first batch bakes, then upon removing from the oven allow the cupcakes to cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes before carefully removing them to a cooling rack to cool completely. Let the tin cool completely (this should happen pretty quickly once the tin is empty) before refilling with liners and batter.Hot Coffee
Coffee contributes a bolder, darker, chocolatier taste to the cupcakes, but you may substitute hot water instead. The important thing is that the liquid you use is very hot so that the cocoa powder can “bloom”, giving you a rich dark chocolate taste.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Julie @ Julie's Eats & Treats
I would love to pop a few of these in my mouth! They look terrific!
Sam
I wish I could’ve stopped at just a few… definite cupcake overdose. Thanks Julie!
Allie | Baking a Moment
These are just the prettiest ever and I love how much care went into your recipe. I have no doubt they are absolutely phenomenal!
Sam
Thanks so much Allie! 🙂
Lily Lau
Who would say no to cupcakes? They look so delicious, Sam 🙂
Sam
Thanks Lily! 🙂
Heather
I’m glad I’m not the only one who prefers the boxed cake mix texture! My boyfriend actually made me a lemon cake from a boxed mix for my birthday this year and it was amazing.
Annie @ The Garlic Diaries
I am drooling over here! These look SO amazing. I love the combination dark chocolate and salted caramel…yuuuummmmmmmmm!!!
Sam
Thank you Annie!
Jocelyn (Grandbaby cakes)
Chocolate and caramel are the best combo ever! This looks sensational!
Sam
Thanks Jocelyn!!
Medha @ Whisk & Shout
This frosting looks awesome and I love the dedication behind this recipe 🙂
Sam
Thank you Medha! 🙂
Beeta @ Mon Petit Four
These are gorgeous, Sam! I absolutely love dark chocolate, and pairing it with the salted caramel is a divine combination! Your creations always look well thought out, so I’m not surprised you put your heart and soul into it. And don’t worry, for the longest time my mom would beg for a boxed yellow cake, and I didn’t blame her because I kind of agreed that there was nothing close to it. Then I found a recipe through, I think, Bakerella?..for like the perfect yellow cake. I’ll share the link below in case you’re still looking for a good copycat recipe of the standard boxed yellow cake…I know it took me forever to find a good one! Gorgeous job, Sam! 🙂
http://monpetitfour.com/yellow-cake/
Sam
Thank you Beeta! I know, I can’t believe I spent so many years insisting on box cake… crazy! Thanks so much for sharing the link, I’ll definitely be trying it out! 🙂
Kelly - Life Made Sweeter
These cupcakes are gorgeous, Sam! Love the flavors and how much care you put into developing these! The salted caramel frosting sounds absolutely amazing!
Sam
Thank you Kelly! It really is so good!
Shelby @ Go Eat and Repeat
I love all of the care you put into constructing your recipes! It definitely shows =)
Sam
Thanks so much Shelby!
Jess @ whatjessicabakednext
These cupcakes are so cute! Love the chocolate and salted caramel – so good! Lovely recipe, Sam! 😀
Sam
Thanks Jess! 🙂
Ana | Espresso My Kitchen
Sam!
These look great! I”m a fan of cupcakes and Ghirardelli 72% dark chocolate and that frosting looks and sounds delish! I need to practice on my frosting technique…maybe I need to buy some tips for frosting, because I don’t have any…. Great post!
Sam
Thank you Ana! Definitely buy the tips, they make all the difference!
Gayle @ Pumpkin 'N Spice
These cupcakes are gorgeous, Sam! I love the salted caramel frosting on top. Looks like they came from a bakery! Sounds so delish!
Sam
Thanks Gayle! Hope you’re having a great weekend!
Heather - Butter & Burlap
Sam – great job! You can definitely tell how much time and effort you put into this recipe, and for good reason! They look delicious! I love doing the research as well to find what works best for me and what I’m trying to achieve. You’ve done a great job here! Can’t wait to try them!!
Sam
Thanks so much Heather! The research is a lot of work, but it always pays off.
Chelsea @chelseasmessyapron
These cupcakes look and sound amazing!! Great flavor combo 🙂
Sam
Thank you Chelsea! It’s one of my favorite flavor combinations 🙂