Dark Chocolate Mini Cupcakes with Salted Caramel Frosting
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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 2/3 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
Equipment
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
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
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this? Leave a comment below!
I made these cupcakes and fell in love with them–even with no icing! I sprinkled a little confectioners’ sugar on top. They are delicious and moist and tender–very dark chocolatey, which I love.
Now I need to find out how to keep them that way–and make regular-sized cupcakes. Suggestions on baking, etc?
Hi Carol! I’m glad you enjoyed them! While I haven’t baked them as regular sized cupcakes I think they would take somewhere around 17 minutes. 🙂
About how much icing does this recipe make? I would like to use it to frost an 8” layer cake. Thanks!
Hi, Katie! This recipe makes about 12-15 regular size cupcakes and enough icing for those, so you should be safe to use it to frost an 8″ cake. I hope that you enjoy the salted caramel frosting! 🙂
Your frosting is gorgeous! You say it’s easy to do, but don’t mention how you did it…what tip type did you use? I’d love to try to recreate this look, but have no idea where to even start. 🙂
Thank you, Laura! I used a large Wilton tip, I believe it was the 2D.
Does the cupcake liner come off the mini’s easily?? I tried a different cake recipe and couldn’t get the liner off without taking most of the cupcakes.
Hello, Jasmine! I personally have never had a problem with the liners sticking to the cupcakes. There are some tricks out there to help prevent this. Some people spray non-stick cooking spray lighting into the liners before baking. I have also have heard of people sliding a cookie sheet filled with water under the bottom rack during the baking process. The moisture in the oven prevents the muffin from sticking to the paper liners. I hope these tips are helpful and you enjoy the dark chocolate mini cupcakes. 🙂
What can I use instead of sweet butter?
Hi Ana, it’s just regular salted butter. If you look closely it’s usually labeled as “sweet cream” butter, but I have removed that indicator to be less confusing, sorry about that!
I’m an excellent cook, but baking has never been my thing. For me, the results were always iffy. First time ever that the ingredients and their proportions, the stated serving size and the oven temperature were just right. Made 48 absolutely perfect mini-cupcakes. Delicious and not too sweet! Brought them to a 4th of July beach party and they were all gobbled up. Definitely a keeper.
I am so thrilled to hear this! Thank you for letting me know how they turned out for you, Colleen!! 🙂
how many normal size cupcakes would this make and frost? thank you.
Hi Rebecca! About 12-15 cupcakes. Enjoy!
Hi Sam I’m 12 and a huge baker in my town and almost won kids championship on food network I was wondering why you use canola oil rather than vegetable oil ?
Hi Annika! That’s awesome! Any neutral oil will work here. I usually have canola oil on hand, but vegetable oil works just fine as well. 🙂
How long will these cupcakes remain fresh? I would like to bake two days prior to serving (frosting the next day) but only if they will still be fresh. Otherwise, I’ll freeze them unfrosted. Thanks!
Hi Linda! They will last about 3-4 days in an air tight container at room temperature. 🙂
I made this recipe for my friend’s 30th birthday party. They were a huge hit! I like making caramel and to turn it into a frosting was divine.
I have a request for a chocolate cake now and this was the first recipe that came to mind. Will this bake fine into a 9” round cake pan? How long should I bake it for? Thank you for this amazing recipe!
Hi, Cat! I actually have a chocolate cake that is very moist and flavorful. 🙂
Hi Sam. Do I freeze the cupcakes with or without the frosting. Will freezing have a negative impact on the taste? I am making them for an upcoming Holiday party. They sound scrumptious !
Hi, Tracey! I would recommend freezing them without the frosting if possible. It shouldn’t affect the flavor at all. 🙂
OMG!
I just made these and they came out perfect! I followed the recipe exactly and the sponge is moist and not overly sweet. The icing came together beautifully. Now I just have to keep my family from eating them all before dinner! Thank you for this recipe.
I am so glad you enjoyed them, Suzanne! I wish you the best of luck in keeping them from being eaten early! 😂
These are delicious, I followed the recipe exactly. The recipe makes more than 48 mini cupcakes, I had enough batter and frosting left over to make about 60. I’ll be making these again 🙂
I am so glad you enjoyed them, Nancy! 🙂
Hi. Can you make these ahead of time and freeze them?
Yes, that won’t be a problem. Enjoy!
What can I use of I do not have a KitchenAide machine? Thanx
Hi Ana! You can use an electric hand mixer instead. Enjoy!
These were delicious !
I am so glad you enjoyed them, Bev! ☺️
I just made this icing for my daughters birthday! It’s amazing!
I cheated and bought box cake mix, but added instant choc. pudding to the batter for better taste.
yummy!!!
I am so glad you enjoyed it! 😃