Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting
Every party and celebration needs a dessert, and cupcakes are a delicious, hand-held option that everyone loves. Our recipe uses buttermilk and a combination of butter and oil to create a light, ultra-tender cupcake. We top it with the best homemade buttercream frosting made with our favorite Once Again Creamy Peanut Butter and garnish with sprinkles to fit the vibe.
Servings
12
Prep Time
25 minutes
Cook Time
20 minutes
Author:
Katie Kay
Here’s Why Love Them (and Tips)
Peanut butter makes the best frosting. To achieve big peanut butter flavor, we use equal parts peanut butter and dairy butter in our frosting. For best results, make sure both are room temperature–this makes beating to a fluffy texture easy.
Top how you like. We use sprinkles to top our cupcakes, but there are so many other fun ways to garnish them. Use chopped peanuts, for example, or shaved chocolate pieces or chocolate chips. Or consider using a small peanut butter cookie or cookie half for more peanut flavor!
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons (1/4 cup) unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 teaspoon espresso powder
- 1 cup (120g) all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon (7g) cornstarch
- 1/3 cup (28g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1/4 cup buttermilk, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
-
1/2 cup Once Again Creamy Peanut Butter, room temperature
- 2 cups (226) confectioners sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 to 2 tablespoons milk (as needed for consistency)
For the Cupcakes
For the Frosting
Directions
To make the cupcakes
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and fill the cups of a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners.
To a small saucepan add the butter, oil, water and espresso powder. Set over low heat and cook until butter is melted. Set aside to cool slightly.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt and sugar. Add warmed butter mixture and whisk until smooth. Add the egg and beat until combined, then add the buttermilk and vanilla extract. Divide batter evenly among lined muffin cups and bake until tops are firm and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean, about 20 to 25 minutes.
Let cupcakes cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
To make the frosting
- In a large bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer), beat the butter and peanut butter together on low speed until combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, turn the speed up to high and beat until smooth, creamy, and well combined.
Add the powdered sugar in 1/4 cup increments, blending on low speed until incorporated, scraping down sides occasionally as needed.
Add the vanilla extract and 1 tablespoon of milk. Increase the mixer speed to high and beat for about 1 minute until the frosting becomes light and fluffy. If the frosting is too thick to easily spread, mix in the remaining tablespoon of milk.
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