Peanut Butter Lava Fudge Cupcakes
The softest, most tender chocolate cupcake ever, filled to the brim with luscious hot fudge sauce, frosted with whipped, fluffy peanut butter frosting and finished of with French chocolate sprinkles and a chocolate-covered pretzel. This is a chocolate and peanut butter lover dream come true!
Here’s a thought for you to “chew” on:
Are cupcakes still in?
Or did cronuts and macarons steal their thunder?
Debatable? I assume so.
But does it make a difference? Absolutely not because it’s enough that I’m letting fashion stick its nose in my wardrobe, that I strongly refuse to let it decide what I eat. Yeaaah! Because I’m rebel like that! Um-hmm!
Especially when its a cupcake like this one.
Peanut butter. Lava. Fudge! Keep scrolling to see what I mean…
I’m guessing we’re on the same page now…
If you’re like me and believe that peanut butter and chocolate is one of the best food combinations in the history of mankind, you might just shed a tear of joy while biting into this.
But then, the lava center will erupt in your mouth, and you’ll be too much in Pleasantville to cry.
A super soft, ultra moist, melt in your mouth chocolate cupcake, cradles the best hot fudge sauce you’ll ever have. When you bite into it, it oozes. And if that’s not enough, the cupcake is topped with a very peanut buttery frosting that gets whipped the heck out of it, so it’s all airy, fluffy and mousse-y. See all those air bubbles in the frosting? It’s from all the whipping, which mean it’s so light and not dense at all.
The rim of the cupcake is studded with French chocolate sprinkles for a fun textural contrast, another pop of flavor and for pretty looks. It’s like a necklace for the cupcake. And this one surely deserves itself some jewelry. The French chocolate sprinkles are softer than their classic cousins and actually taste like chocolate. I’m in love with them, but I know how hard they are to find. So the regular ones are always welcome to take their place, but also consider chopped peanuts, pretzels, toffee bits…the possibilities are endless.
The cupcake then gets a final adornment of a chocolate-covered pretzel, you know…because pretzels and peanut butter are meant for one another. I made my own chocolate-covered pretzels because I’m food nerd, but in my defense, they only took like 10 minutes to make. Max. Substitute with store-bought ones if you’d rather use your 10 minutes doing something more useful.
Let’s get into the details.
That hot fudge sauce…is simply the best! Uber chocolatey, perfectly sweet, satiny smooth, thick enough to cling on ice cream, yet thin enough for drizzling and oozing purposes. I use it over so many things including cake, ice cream and fingers. You could of course take a shortcut and use your favorite store-bought hot fudge, but please don’t. You’ll thank me later.
I’ve tried so many recipes for hot fudge sauce before, but something would always go wrong. Most of them would have the sugar crystallize over me and cause the whole thing to seize…aarrrrghhhh! But then those that turned out smooth, tasted too sweet. So when I found this recipe, I made a few tweaks to adjust it to our taste and then never looked back.
I mean look at that…do I even need to convince you with a sight like this?
Moving on to the peanut butter frosting.
Don’t be fooled by it’s light color thinking it lacks in peanut butter flavor, because it’s anything but. With 1 1/3 cups of peanut butter going into it, this frosting screams peanut butter. But unlike peanut butter frostings that taste so heavy, that a nap is required after its consumptions, this one is so light (in texture, not in calories) and ethereal. It gets whipped like there’s no tomorrow, which causes the color to lighten, and incorporates air bubbles into it, so it feels fluffy on the tongue.
It’s also just sweet enough with salty notes coming from the peanut butter and the touch of added salt. I could just eat it with the spoon (sigh!)
Now on to the chocolate cupcakes, which happen to be my favorite ever and a real treasure!
They’ve made a show on the blog with these Nutella Lava Cupcakes and in so much more in my home baking. I’ve been using this recipe for years, modifying it along the way, until it has reached my definition of perfection. The crumb is unreal! So light, fluffy and tender and of course moist, because I hate dry cakes. I’ve never had anyone try it without complimenting how soft they are. If you love the texture of cake mix, then this is the recipe you’ll want in your life, because they are as close to their texture as there ever will be. The flavor, however, is light years better because they actually taste like chocolate.
*I overfilled the cupcake pan just a bit because I wanted the cupcake to have a muffin-top-like cap. This produced a cupcake with a rim, which gave room for the sprinkles to stick on. If you’re not planning on sticking sprinkles, then fill the pan with less batter. More details on that, down in the NOTES section of the recipe. To fill the cupcake with the hot fudge sauce, we need to make a hole in center; a place where the sauce could sit in. Using a paring knife, and being careful not to pierce the bottom, you’ll make a circular cut about halfway through , then pop it out. Hey check out exactly how I do this step on instagram! I posted a video!
Take the cake “plug” out and cut its end and shove it in your mouth. You’ll get a preview of the taste before everyone else:)) Save the top part to cover the hole later.
Then using a spoon or a piping bag, fill the now empty hole with that luscious hot fudge sauce. You might need to warm up the sauce just a little for easy filling. Remember the top part of the cake “plug” I asked you to save? I hope you didn’t eat it up because now is the time to plug it back in.
Now let’s paint some cupcakes!
To stick the sprinkles around the rim of the cupcake, you’ll need something for it to adhere on. I chose melted chocolate, because once dried, it pretty stable. However, leftover hot fudge sauce will do the trick, although might cause the sprinkles to move around a bit.
So easy, just use a paint brush (I have a few saved for food use only) dip it in melted chocolate and paint with it all around the rim. Or just dip the rim in a bowl of melted chocolate. Then roll around the cupcake’s rim in a plate full of sprinkles. Or peanuts. Or crushed pretzels!
There…now your cupcakes are wearing a halo of chocolate sprinkles. My kind of halo!
Pipe on this yummy yummy frosting, using a tip of your choice. But if you want see how I frosted those, check out that video on instagram.
A chocolate-covered pretzel tops it off and voila!
You got yourself a treat made in peanut butter and chocolate heaven.
Now who cares if cupcakes are out of style?
Eat your heart out food fashion police!
Peanut Butter Lava Fudge Cupcakes

The softest, most tender chocolate cupcake ever, filled to the brim with luscious hot fudge sauce, frosted with whipped, fluffy peanut butter frosting and finished of with French chocolate sprinkles and a chocolate-covered pretzel. This is a chocolate and peanut butter lover dream come true!
Ingredients
For the Hot Fudge Sauce:
- 5 oz (140g) finely chopped semisweet chocolate or chocolate chips
- 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons (1/2oz/ 15g) cocoa powder (I used Hershey's)
- 6 tablespoons light corn syrup
- 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons (1 1/8oz/ 32g) sugar
- 3 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
- 3 tablespoons milk (use water instead for a darker chocolate taste)
- Pinch of salt
- 1 1/2 tablespoons (3/4oz/ 21g) unsalted butter
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)
For the Cupcakes: (you can substitute your favorite cake mix for a shortcut)
- 1/2 cup (4oz/ 114g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups (10 1/2oz/ 298g) light brown sugar, packed
- 2 egg, at room temperature
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup (1 1/2oz/ 42g) unsweetened cocoa powder, preferably Dutch-process*
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups (6.4oz/ 180g) cake flour* (see note for substitution)
- 2/3 cups (5 1/3oz/ 150g) sour cream, at room temperature
- 3/4 cups (177ml) hot water (or coffee)*
Peanut Butter Frosting:
- 1 1/4 cups (10oz/ 283g) unsalted butter, softened but still slightly cool
- 1 1/3 cups (12 3/4oz/ 360g) creamy peanut butter*
- 3 tablespoons heavy cream
- 2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
- 2 1/4 cups (9oz/ 255g) confectioners sugar (sift if lumpy)
For Garnish: (optional)
- 16 to 17 storebought or homemade chocolate-covered pretzels*
- Chocolate sprinkles, chopped peanuts or crushed pretzel, for garnish
- 1/2oz (15g) melted chocolate, for sticking garnish to the cupcake rim
Instructions
To make the Hot Fudge Sauce: (could be made up to 2 weeks in advance & refrigerated)
- In a microwave-safe bowl, heat the chocolate in the microwave, stirring every 20 seconds, until melted and !smooth, 1 to 3 minutes. Whisk in the cocoa until dissolved. Set aside.
- Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, combine together the corn syrup, sugar, cream, milk, and salt. Place over medium heat and bring to a simmer, stirring frequently, until thickened, about 3 minutes.
- Remove from heat, whisk in the butter and vanilla. Cool the mixture slightly, about 2 minutes. Then whisk in the melted chocolate mixture until smooth. Set aside to cool slightly before using.
For the cupcakes:
- Adjust oven rack to middle position. Preheat oven to 350F/180F. Line 2 cupcake pans with 16 cupcake liners.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment (or in a large bowl, if using a handheld mixer), whisk the butter on high speed until smooth.
- Add the brown sugar and mix together until slightly lightened in color, about 3 minutes.
- Scrape down the bowl, then add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
- Add in the vanilla and continue mixing until lightened more in color and texture and looks fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes. Scrape down the bowl.
- Add the cocoa powder, baking soda, salt and mix until well blended. Scrape down the bowl.
- With the mixer on lowest speed, add one-third of the flour, followed by half of the sour cream, then mix to blend. Then add the second third of the flour, followed by the rest of the sour cream, mix again. End with the remaining flour and mix just until combined. Scrape the bowl as needed.
- With the mixer running on medium low speed, drizzle in the hot water (or coffee) and mix until very smooth, about 1 minute. Batter will be very thin and soupy.
- Portion the batter evenly among the cupcake liners (I like to use a 3 tablespoon measure ice cream scoop) until 2/3 full.
- Bake until the tops spring back to the touch and a toothpick inserted into the center of the cupcake comes clean or with a few cooked crumbs attached, 16 to 17 minutes. Start checking after 15 minutes. The cupcakes might deflate slightly after they come out of the oven, but should NOT look sunken. If the do sink, that means they were underbaked. They should have slightly domed tops.
- Let cool in the pan for about 5 minutes or until cool enough to handle, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before filling and frosting.
- While the cupcakes are baking and cooling, make the frosting (instructions below)
To make the Peanut Butter Frosting: (could be made up to 3 days ahead)*
- Beat the butter, peanut butter, cream, vanilla, and salt together in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until smooth, 1 to 2 minutes.
- Reduce the mixer speed to medium-low, slowly add the confectioners' sugar, and neat until the frosting is light and fluffy, 5 to 10 minutes.
To Assemble:
- To make a hole in the cupcake, use a pairing knife to make a deep circular (1-inch in diameter) cut in the center of the cupcake. Make sure you only cut about halfway through the cupcake, and don't go all the way through the bottom. An apple corer would also work perfectly here. Using the tip of the knife, lift the cut piece of cake from deep inside and remove it completely. Let's call this the 'plug.' Cut the bottom half of the 'plug' and snack on it or do whatever you want with it. Set aside the top half of the plug, which will be used to cover the cupcake after filling them.
- Using a small spoon or a piping bag or a zipper lock bag with the corner snipped off, pour in the Hot Fudge Sauce into each cupcake. Be generous:) Fill almost to the top. You might need to rewarm the sauce just slightly for easy filling.
- Use the cake 'plug' to cover the tops of the cupcakes, where they have been filled.
- To decorate the cupcake rim with sprinkles, use a clean paint brush to paint around the rim with melted chocolate, alternatively dipping the cupcakes in a small bowl of melted chocolate will also do the trick. Dip the now-wet rim of the cupcake into a small bowl full of sprinkles, rolling it around to adhere to the entire circumference.
- Using your favorite piping tip (I used a large round tip Ateco 808) or an offset spatula to frost the cupcakes with the Peanut Butter Frosting. The way it's done here, is by starting to pipe in the center, going aroung once, the ending in the center with a burst of pressure.
- If desired, top with chocolate-covered pretzel. Serve cupcakes right away or store in an airtight container.
Recipe Notes
- The cupcake batter will make anywhere between 16 and 17 cupcakes. Making 16 will result in a larger cupcake with a muffin-top-like cap (just like the ones pictures above), enabling enough room to decorate the rim with sprinkles. Making 17 on the other hand, will produce cupcakes that rise just right above the cupcake liner, without any muffin-top-caps. If you're not planning on sticking sprinkles around the rim, I'd recommend making 17.
- Dutch processed cocoa powder gives a deeper, more chocolatey flavor to these cupcakes. However, if you can't find it, no worries, natural unsweetened cocoa works really well too, without affecting the outcome. If using natural cocoa, use the darkest, best quality cocoa you can find. I use Hintz unsweetened cocoa and love it!
- Cake flour gives these cupcakes a soft and tender crumb, but it could be hard to find, at least where I live. I substitute this by placing 3 tablespoons of cornstarch or cornflour in my measuring cup, then add the all-purpose flour on top of that and continue measuring like I normally would. So I end up using 1 1/2 cups minus 3 tablespoons of all-purpose flour plus 3 tablespoons cornstarch. If you have cake flour, just use that.
- Using coffee in chocolate baked goods intensifies the chocolate flavor without making it taste like coffee. I just stir in 1 1/2 teaspoons of instant coffee (Nescafe) into my 3/4 cup of hot water. If you're not okay with using coffee then just use hot water instead.
- Do not use crunchy, natural style or homemade peanut butter in this frosting. Only thick commercial peanut butter will work here.
- The frosting can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Let the frosting stand at room temperature until softened, then whip with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth, 2 to 5 minutes.
- To make homemade chocolate-covered pretzels, simply dip each pretzel, one by one, using a toothpick into melted chocolate (I used milk chocolate). Arrange on a parchment lined plate and freeze a few minutes until chocolate is set. Using a different color/type of melted chocolate (I used dark chocolate), drizzle lines on top of the pretzels in a zigzag pattern. Return to the freezer to set. Peel pretzels from the parchment paper and use as cupcake toppers.
Chocolate Cupcakes recipe adapted from Food Network
Hot Fudge Sauce slightly adapted from America's Test Kitchen Family Baking Book.
Peanut Butter Frosting adapted from America's Test Kitchen Family Baking Book.
Measurements Note: All recipes of this site have been developed using weight measurements. Although US volume measurements have been included for your convenience, it is highly encouraged that you weigh your ingredients using a kitchen scale to get the best possible results. Due to the sensitive nature of baking, kitchen scales are proven to yield more accurate and consistent results than measuring cups. Enjoy!

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I love your writing style and your beautiful desserts!
Sandra you’re so nice! Thank you:)
Cupcakes will always be “in” in my mind. These look absolutely fabulous–loving that gooey filling 🙂
Heck yeah! Long live cupcakes! The gooey filling is my favorite part too! Thanks June for your sweet comment:)
hahaha Tasbih i just love u!! Walahy u left a void in my life when u stopped blogging for a month, i so look forward to reading ur posts because it makes me feel like i am with u in the kitchen! We NEEEEEED to cook together someday somehow…it really sucks that we discovered each other after i moved all the way across the globe lol! Now a technical question, do u think this cupcake recipe would work as a full size cake? Have u tried wala should i just play it safe and make cupcakes? The crumb looks rudiculous and reminds me of the chocolate cake my mom used to make us as kids…i miss it & mom is hopeless at giving exact recipes lol! I love plain chocolate cake if it is fluffy and smooth and moist and this one looks perfect! Ok ill stop now, gosh im such a blabbermouth hahaha xx
Noha I’m sure you know that the feeling is mutual. I never miss a blog post of yours. I read every single word and that alone makes me feel like your best friend. And hey! Australia is on my bucket list so I’m hopeful, and if you’re ever in town, we have to get together and cook up a storm together. About the cupcake recipe, yes! it converts really well into cake. I’ve made it so many times into a layer cake and a bundt too. It will make a 2 layer 8 or 9inch cake or 1 bundt pan. If you want just 1 layer you could bake it in a 9X13inch pan or even halve the recipe to make single layer 8 or 9 inch cake. Please let me know how it turns out. As much as I love indulgent desserts, I too love me some plain cake that I could enjoy with a cup of tea with milk or coffee, so I get ya.
They’re beautiful! When I first saw the picture on foodgawker, for a second I thought of you, you have such a beautiful style. May I ask what camera and lens are you using?
Oh Oana what a compliment..thank you! I use a Canon 5D mark iii & use the 100mm macro lens for most of the food photography especially closeups; it’s amazing with capturing details. I also use the 24-70mm lens for more distant photos & bird’s eye view shots & everyday photography.
I simply cannot stand how perfect everything looks. I WANT THOSE SPRINKLES SO BAD! I have a serious sprinkles problem that I should probably deal with. But I won’t. I want to eat all of these…NO JOKE. Peanut butter is like a food group for me 😀
Hahahaaaa I love sprinkles too; they’re just happy! I’m with you on these sprinkles! They are amaaaaazing! It’s my first time to use them & I don’t think I’ll be able to go back to the regular chocolate ones that taste like sugar & break your teeth. These ones are soft & melt in the mouth & taste little a chocolate bar. They worth hunting for.
This looks amazing Tasbih! I’m coveting those French chocolate sprinkles. The closest I can get to good chocolate sprinkles here is Guittard, but I want those little square ones now! (Pout) It’s funny, I’m an avid baker, but I really just want you to make your stuff FOR me! LOL! Unfortunately, blogging has stolen away precious time to make all the things I fall in love with on other’s blogs. So, that being said, I’ll take one sample of each recipe please 🙂
These sprinkles are really a revelation Ramona! I was able to score some on a recent trip to San Francisco, where I went to Kara’s Cupcakes bakery. When I saw that they sell these sprinkles at the bakery, I just couldn’t resist buying some. I now guard what’s left of it like a hawk…lol! They’re soft, melt in the mouth & taste like a chocolate bar! Yum!
I know what you mean with having no time to bake other bloggers’ stuff. I’m in this phase right now. If I’m not baking & shooting for the blog, then I’m testing recipes. You know, if we were neighbors, I’d gladly be your taste tester. I looooove everything you do too. It’s like you get me:)
These are just… UNDESCRIBEABLE! I made these and yummm…. i died on the spot. I want to make this for a friend but she has something against peanut butter. Do you have any suggestions on what kind of frosting I can use instead?
Wooohoooo!! That’s great news!!!
These cupcakes are my go-to chocolate cupcake. I used them for the Nutella Lava Cupcakes, so they’d work really well with Nutella frosting. Also a vanilla bean frosting would be amazing here, add sprinkles & a cherry on the top for an ice cream sundae mood. Cream cheese is always welcome & I have a great recipe for it on the blog. Also chocolate frosting would be great for a triple chocolate cupcake. Or a toasted marshmallow frosting like the one I used for the tres leches cake; that would turn it into a s’mores cupcake. I sometimes like to keep the cupcakes bare without any frosting, then heat it a few seconds in the microwave & I swear it tastes exactly like Chilis molten cake only a 100X better.
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In the ingredient list for the hot fudge you wrote “3 tablespoons teaspoons milk .” Can you clarify if it is tablespoons or teaspoons or some of each, please? Thank you. I’m anxious to try this!
Oh no! That was a typo! Thank you so much for pointing it out. I just fixed it. It’s ‘tablespoons.’ Have fun making the cupcakes 🙂
Making them now! Thanks.
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These look great! Would it be possible to use something else in place of the corn syrup? Thank you!
Hi Christina! I’m so happy you like it!
It’s best to stick to the recipe as is, because corn syrup helps prevent crystallization from forming, which fudge sauce often falls victim to. If you absolutely must, then honey will be the best substitute for the job. Happy baking:)
I made the cake according to the recipe. Unfortunately, they did not turn out. I may use a proven cake recipe with the fudge recipe and pb frosting. I was disappointed. The cakes ended up looking like volcanos with a big hole in the middle and some overflowing up over the sides. Totally not useable.
Oh no Dawn! I’m terribly sorry to hear that. I wonder what could’ve went wrong? I’ve been using this recipe for years and never had any issues with it. It’s also the base for the Nutella Lava Cupcakes, which has been receiving great reviews. https://cleobuttera.com/cupcakes/nutella-lava-cupcakes/
Could it be that your baking powder is double acting, hence the volcanic eruption? In any case, I’ll be posting a new chocolate cupcake base recipe today that it’s actually easier and I think better than this one. It’s my new favorite. You may want to consider using it the next time. I also promise you to retest this recipe again very soon to see if any changes are needed or maybe even replace the recipe with the new one. It saddens me to see one of dear readers dissatisfied with a recipe, so I’m going to do my best to ensure its success. Thank you so much for pointing out the issue, so I could look further into it.
Wishing you much better luck next time 🙂
Made this…the cupcakes and the frosting turned out very well…delicious. The “lava” , however, turned into a solid ball…what did I do wrong?
So happy you liked the cake & frosting part ?? As for the lava, any chance you refrigerated the hot fudge sauce? If so, then just make sure to heat it just enough to get it back to room temperature before using.
If not, then could it be that you overcooked the sugar/corn syrup mixture? As this will cause some of the liquid to evaporate and reduce the sauce to an undesired thickened consistency.
What would your ideas be about making a regular cake, say perhaps a 9×13, and filling it with this delicious fudge? I made these cupcakes and they were SOOOOO good!! But being cupcakes, they did take a while…..and because they were so good, they went very quickly!!! I surmise one large cake would be much quicker. I don’t really want a free-standing cake, as in a 9in round. I’d like to keep it in a pan. Thank you so much for this deliciousness!!!
Hey Bobbi! I’m really happy the cupcakes were a hit! Nothing says that something is well received more than seeing it disappear before your eyes. Feels so good, doesn’t it ?
I actually just made this recipe in layer cake form a few days ago for my daughter’s birthday. It’s tasted like a giant peanut butter cup.
I love the direction you’re going and the simplicity of it. I imagine a poke cake style would be amazing here. So you could bake the cake as you’ve mentioned in a 9X13 pan, allow it to cool until slightly warm, then poke holes all over the cake using the thick end of a chopstick or the back of a wooden spoon. You’d then pour the fudge sauce all over the cake, making sure it falls in the holes. Once the cake has completely cooled down, you can frost it and garnish it with whatever your heart desires. Pretzels, chopped up peanut butter cups, peanuts, chocolate curls are only a few suggestions.
Here’s a link to a pumpkin poke cake that I made last fall. It could help with visualizing the idea.
https://cleobuttera.com/cakes/pumpkin-caramel-poke-cake/
These cupcakes are amazingly good! Encompassing all of my favorites: chocolate, fudge, and peanut butter! I made a batch and a half which yielded 24 cupcakes. I baked them for about 20 minutes until the toothpick came out relatively clean. The cupcake on its own was super moist and yummy. The addition of the delicious fudge lava and fluffy peanut butter frosting put it over the top! Instead of rimming my cupcakes, I just sprinkled some toffee bits on top of the frosting and included store bought pretzels. EVERYONE loved them! Def a keeper and will make again. Thanks for the recipe!
I tried the cupcakes and had the same result that Dawn had. After cooking for 16 minutes, the cupcakes were still liquid in the middle. So I kept checking them every minute. After 19 minutes baking, they were still liquid in the middle and started bubbling out and spilling over the edges of the pan. I have never had problem with baking powder or soda in other recipes. Very odd. I was really disappointed since the batter tasted amazing.
Thank you K for bringing this to my attention and I’m terribly sorry for this happening. The cupcake recipe is adapted from Food Network and while I’ve always loved it, I felt like it could use a little extra lift & fluffiness, so I added baking powder to it. Originally it doesn’t have any. The results turned just as I had hoped for; taller and fluffier. Apparently though, it seems that not everyone has been having good results with this addition of baking powder. I have no idea why it’s working really well with me (and others) and failing with you, Dawn and probably others too. But I’m guessing it could be that different brands of baking powder have varying strengths. Whatever the reason is, I hate that it’s not working with you guys and I won’t allow it to happen again. After all, this recipe is supposed to be a source of joy and not frustration. For this reason I’ve decided to remove the baking powder from the recipe (just like it was from the Food Network) to guarantee that it works for everyone and avoid any potential problems. I will also retest the recipe again both with and without baking powder to compare results, once I get the chance. Meanwhile, please check out my new favorite chocolate cupcake base recipe. I’ve only gotten positive feedback with this one (so far?) so hopefully you’ll love it too. You could make 1 1/2 batches and use it with this fudge sauce & frosting.
https://cleobuttera.com/cupcakes/chocolate-cloud-cupcakes/
Again please accept my sincerest apologies for any trouble the addition of baking powder might’ve caused and I wish you much better luck next time.
P.S: Please note that once the baking powder has been removed, the yield will decrease from 22 to 16.
Oh one more thing! May I ask what type of cocoa powder you used? Dutch processed or natural? As I always use natural because dutched is not available were I live. Dutch & natural cocoas react differently to leaveners, which could be the reason behind why it’s working for some & not for others. Please let me know, as I’m trying my best to figure this out.
Hi Tasbih! I’ve been following the thread and wanted to leave my input here. I made the cupcakes exactly as called for, with the baking powder, and had huge success. I used Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa. It is a blend of natural and dutched cocoas. I actually use this quite often in place of regular cocoa in baking because it makes the dessert so much better!! I also made this recipe into a cake, and didn’t have as much success, oddly. BUT, I doubled the recipe, which meant I had to beat the batter longer to incorporate my dry ingredients and sour cream. I used a 9x13in pan, and put the rest in a 9x9in pan. I wanted to be sure I had enough batter to nicely fill my 9x13in. My 9x13in fell in the middle, took forever to bake, and I had to trim some hard edges off. My 9×9 baked perfectly, but gave me an odd design in the finished batter. There was a perfect small square right in the middle, with lines going from each corner to each corner of my pan. Think the end of a cube. I believe that was from over-mixing. They both tasted wonderful, alas, and I was able to take cake from my 9x9in to fill in the hole in the 9x13in, and of course a double batch of the icing was delish on this. I just wanted to share what I had so far. By the way, since the recipe worked so well for me with the baking powder, how much did you add? Is the recipe the same as the old one otherwise? Thank you!!!
Hi Bobbi! I can’t thank you enough for your input, as I’m going crazy here trying to figure out why it’s not working for some readers. It seems that it might very well be due to different types of cocoa powder. It’s difficult for me to confirm though because I haven’t been able to find dutched cocoa in Egypt. In any case, I’ll do some more side by side experimenting with & without baking powder to compare the difference. I’ve been making this recipe developed by Gale Gand of Food Network for years & have love it but it was slightly fudgy & I was hoping for it to be more fluffy like a cake mix. Adding baking powder gave it that nice fluffy texture I was going for. I could see though, how Dutch processed cocoa can alter the results.
Anywhooooo, I’m sorry you had to cut & paste your cake. I’ve never made this recipe in a 13X9 inch cake but I have in 8 & 9inch rounds and it turns out really well.
To answer your question, there was 1 1/2tsp baking powder in the recipe. Otherwise everything is still the same.
Thanks again Bobbi for your comment ?
Does anyone know where I can find or order those french chocolate sprinkles? Thank you!
Hi Brenda:) I recently ordered some from Amazon and they’re excellent. Here’s the link:
http://www.amazon.com/Cacao-Barry-Chocolate-Flakes-Paillete/dp/B00C30SOF8/ref=sr_1_1_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1458298813&sr=8-1&keywords=cocoa+barry+fine+chocolate+flakes
Thank you sooooooo much!
these is honestly the best cupcake recipe I have found! the frosting is AMAZING, so light and fluffy with the perfect amount of peanut butter and the cupcakes are so moist! the perfect combination of chocolate and peanut butter, and the hot fudge is the perfect touch of gooey richness 🙂
Wow Lauren I’m so happy you loved them so much! I can’t thank you enough for taking the time to give us your feedback?
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When I made these all my “lava” was absorbed into the cupcake and it just looked like an undercooked center not
flowing and lava-like at all. What did I do wrong?
Thanks,
Sandy
Hi Sandy! Thanks for trying this recipe and for your comment.
Was either your cupcake or your hot fudge sauce warm when you added it? Just please make sure that they have both completely cooled before using them. That way, the sauce shouldn’t be absorbed because it’s quite thick at room temperature.
Hope that helps ?
I made the lava last night. Do I have to heat it up to add it into the cupcakes or leave it refrigerated?
Hi Stephanie. It might be a little to thick to pipe into the cupcakes if it’s cold, so you can heat it slightly just to loosen it up. Just be sure not to get it warm or it could get absorbed by the cupcakes. Room temperature is best!
How thick is thick enough for the corn syrup mixture?
Kind of syrupy.
Hi! Would these be okay to make the day before a party and leave out room temperature overnight, covered of course? Would the fudge inside stay okay ?
Yes! I made these the day before I needed them. I took them to work the next day where they continued to sit in a container on a table all day and they were perfect.
Perfect! Thank you so much, I am excited to try these!!
Hands down the BEST peanut butter frosting on the planet earth. Simply amazing!! I admit I haven’t tried the cupcake yet…I was looking for a good PB frosting and by George I’ve found it!
Hahahaaaaa! That’s awesome! So happy you found your peanut butter frosting bliss?
I wanted to make sure my lava filling stays gooey and pudding like, even after refrigerating. Will it? I just don’t want it to be a lump of chocolate in the middle.
The first time I made these cupcakes I used Soy Milk since that was all I had on hand. The cupcakes took longer to bake and the tops were a bit wet. The second time I used whole milk and man what a difference in rise/texture and was baked in the time indicated in the recipe. Both versions came out delicious. Not too sweet. The sweetness came in with the fudge and salty sweetness of the peanut butter frosting. Everyone loved them. All around winner! Thank you for the recipe!
Yes, the hot fudge keeps its normal consistency in the cupcake. These are delicious. They came out perfect!
Thanks Brenda for your reply. You’re so kind for helping out ?
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I made these for a work celebration and needless to say the response was exactly what bakers relish 🙂
They were asked for again recently with equal reviews! The cake is perfectly moist, the fudge gooey and delicious, and that frosting?? My apartment smelled like peanut butter for 2 days lol but I am not one to complain 🙂 I chose to top mine with chopped Reese’s cups instead out of convenience
These are in my top 5 cupcake recipes of all time!
Caroline your comment has made my day! So happy the cupcakes were a HIT! Thank you so much for taking the time to write your wonderful feedback. And chopped Reese’s cups? Who could say no to that?! Yum!
If I made 24 cupcakes would the hot fudge sauce be enough to fill all of them? Or would I need to 1 1/2 it?
Hi Lexi. I like to go pretty generous with the filling, so I’d probably make 1 1/2X the recipe. But if you don’t fill them all the way to the top, then you can make do with the recipe as is.
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Hi – is there any way to keep the frosting longer than 3 days? I made the cupcakes and they were awesome but I had lots of frosting and some filling left over. I am having people over again in 2 weeks and wanted to make more but I was hoping to use the leftover frosting for it. Does it freeze ok?
Hi Trish! Please accept my apologizes for my late reply as I was so busy with my mom who just had surgery. Thank you so much for your patience.
This frosting freezes well. You’ll just need to rewhip it with the mixer after it’s been thawed and reached room temperature. Please do not attempt to rewhip while it’s still cold, as that could cause it to break or curdle, which is fixable but it’s just easier to avoid.
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Hi ….it’s a lovely recipe, I was thinking of making these yum cupcakes for a party and the question I have here is that I m having a pink themed party can I put a light pink colour in this peanut butter icing ?
Thank you
Hi Mona! SO happy to hear that you like this recipe. Adding pink coloring to the frosting, will probably not give you the color you’re hoping for. Since the frosting has a brownish-yellow tinge to it, it will most likely take on an orange hue if you add pink to it. How about using pink cupcake liners or pink sprinkles instead of dying the frosting?
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Hello! I read through the comments to see if anyone had attempted to use this cake recipe as a layer cake, and saw that YOU had..did you use the same amount of all ingredients and did you bake for the same amount of time as the cupcakes? This is the best chocolate cake mix I’ve ever had!
Hi Molly! Yes I did and it was fantastic ? Keep all ingredient amounts and oven temperature the same, but baking time will definitely be longer depending on the size of the pan used. If using an 8 or 9 inch pan, start checking after 25 minutes. Enjoy ?
Hi! I tried this recipe the other day and it turned out so well!! 🙂
I was wondering, if I want to make a different flavour for the frosting, would it work to simply exclude the peanut butter and instead add flavoured essence (eg a few drops of peppermint essence), or would I need to add something extra as well to maintain the creamy consistency that the peanut butter gives it?
Thank you! 🙂
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