How to Make Luxurious Chocolate Cupcakes That Rival Magnolia Bakery's
Morgan Hunt GlazeSometimes, especially when I’ve had a bad day, I stop at an outpost of New York's famous Magnolia Bakery for a chocolate cupcake on the way home. The cake is tender, moist, and packed full of bittersweet cocoa flavor, and finished with a swirl of chocolate buttercream and a handful of sprinkles. It’s a fun, delicious confection that never fails to lift my spirits. Though cupcakes get a lot of hate—Slate once called the dessert “a blight upon our land” and Vice went so far as to say there’s something “fundamentally wrong” about the confection—I still have a soft spot for the petite dessert. I’m convinced that anyone with a negative opinion about cupcakes simply hasn’t had a good one. The very best cupcakes are moist and flavorful, with just the right amount of silky smooth frosting to accompany each bite. The best way to guarantee you’re eating a great cupcake? Making your own. (Yes, that even goes for those of us who pass by a Magnolia on the way home from work.) Morgan Hunt GlazeLuckily for us, our Birmingham-based test kitchen colleague Anna Theoktisto has a stellar recipe for classic chocolate cupcakes that are tender, deeply flavorful, and have a pleasing, subtle tang from sour cream. It’s an exceedingly simple recipe that requires no mixer and it takes just 15 minutes to prep the batter before baking, making this a minimal-effort dessert that’s perfect for both weeknights and special occasions. Here’s how to make them.4 Tips for Making the Best Chocolate CupcakesUse a combination of bittersweet chocolate and cocoa powder for double the chocolate flavor. Though you could swap in milk chocolate for a sweeter cupcake, we recommend using chopped bittersweet or dark chocolate, which typically ranges from 64 to 72% cacao. For a more complex tasting cake, we incorporate Dutch-processed cocoa powder into the batter, which brings a mellow, earthy chocolate flavor.Melt the chocolate with hot water. Melting chocolate with hot water may feel counterintuitive, since water can cause the chocolate to seize. But, as I noted in my chocolate mousse recipe, adding just enough liquid can help coat the cocoa particles and keep them fluid. So go ahead: Pour half a cup of hot water over your chocolate. Folding melted chocolate (instead of unmelted chunks or chips) into the batter also ensures the chocolate will be evenly distributed throughout the batter, resulting in a deeply chocolatey cake.Serious Eats / Morgan Hunt GlazeReach for sour cream for the moist, delicious cupcakes. Fat inhibits gluten development by coating the gluten proteins glutenin and gliadin; because sour cream is rich in both fat and moisture, incorporating it into the batter results in cake that’s tender and moist, with a subtle tartness that complements the chocolate’s fruity notes.Decorate with a piping tip for the prettiest cupcakes. For a celebration-worthy dessert, fit a piping bag with a fun tip, then pipe squiggles, stars, or an elegant rosette with your frosting of choice. If you don’t have a piping bag on hand, not to worry—you can simply top the cupcakes with icing using an offset spatula. We've included links to our chocolate and vanilla buttercream frosting recipes below, which both go wonderfully with these cupcakes, but feel free to use your favorite homemade or store-bought frosting.Morgan Hunt GlazeAdjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 350°F (175ºC). Place paper baking cups in two 12-cup muffin pans. Fit a piping bag with desired piping tip for frosting the cupcakes; set aside.Morgan Hunt GlazeIn a medium bowl, cover bittersweet chocolate with hot water; let sit 2 minutes. Whisk until chocolate is melted, about 1 minute. Whisk in eggs, oil, sour cream, and vanilla until smooth.Morgan Hunt GlazeIn a large bowl, whisk flour, sugar, cocoa powder, salt, baking soda, and baking powder to combine. Add chocolate mixture and whisk until just smooth and no lumps remain. Divide batter equally between baking cups, filling each about 2/3 of the way.Morgan Hunt GlazeBake until a wooden toothpick or cake tester inserted into center of cupcakes comes out clean and cupcakes spring back lightly when touched, about 18 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then remove cupcakes from pan and allow them to cool completely, about 20 minutes.Morgan Hunt GlazeUsing a flexible spatula, scrape buttercream into prepared piping bag. Pipe buttercream on top of each cupcake until completely covered. (Alternatively, use an offset spatula to spread buttercream on top of each cupcake until completely covered.) Repeat with remaining cupcakes.Morgan Hunt GlazeSpecial EquipmentBaking cups, two 12-cup muffin pans, piping bag and piping tip or offset spatula, stand mixer, flexible spatula, wooden toothpick or cake tester, wire rackMake-Ahead and StorageUnfrosted cupcakes can be tightly wrapped in plastic wrap and frozen for up to 3 months. When ready to frost, thaw overnight at room temperature.Frosted cupcakes can be kept at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
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