mint chocolate cupcakes
Lucky’s feeling lucky with these cupcakes. And so should you.
Happy Thursday, peeps! You know what that means: a sweet treat for the weekend upcoming. Halleloo! These beauties are your golden ticket to the pot of gold. In fact, they are the pot of gold.
Mint Chocolate Cupcakes. A classic flavor combo, beautified with a touch of green goodness, finished with an Andes candy. They’re pretty, rich, and perfectly easy, and suitable for both St. Patrick’s Day shenanigans and Easter hosting or gifting.
We’re looking at my traditional dark chocolate cupcake swirled with a mint-hued buttercream laced with just a touch of peppermint extract. Seriously, just a touch. Not into snarfing toothpaste for dessert.
I found these delightful to develop, to photograph, and to share with friends, and I sure hope you do, too. Sláinte!
Lotta Chocolate
I don’t think I’ll ever change my chocolate cupcake recipe ever. It’s as perfect as my wee little brain will ever conjure, and has appeared in several recipes for the past two years or so.
First, whip together vegetable oil, brown sugar, and regular sugar. Beat in three eggs, one at a time, then vanilla and plain Greek yogurt. The latter adds a nice amount of moisture to the cake.
Next, mix in flour, cocoa powder, black cocoa powder, baking powder, and baking soda. If you don’t have black cocoa, you can use regular, but don’t expect as deep a hue or as intense a chocolate flavor. They’ll be more milk chocolate adjacent, which is still delicious. With the mixer running on low, stream in the buttermilk until just combined.
Fill two cupcake tins with paper or parchment liners. Scoop the batter into each slot, filling only 2/3 of the way full. This is very important, as you will end up with weird looking muffins if you overfill. Err on the side of too little batter rather than too much. These cupcakes rise wonderfully, and in some climates (like my humid shithole that is Florida), even halfway full will yield a good sized cupcake.
Bake the cupcakes at 350 for 20-25 minutes. Let cool a few minutes in the tins, then move each cupcake to a wire rack to cool completely.
Minted in 1993
That’s my birth year, FYI.
Now, the buttercream. The only deviations from my typical buttercream are peppermint extract and green gel dye. IT IS VERY IMPORTANT THAT YOU DO NOT GET COCKY WITH THE PEPPERMINT EXTRACT AND THINK “GOLLY GEE 1/4 TSP ISN’T ENOUGH I NEED MORE.” NO. YOU DON’T NEED MORE. IF YOU WANT THAT MUCH MINT, GO TO THE FUCKEN DENTIST.
Anywho. In your mixing bowl, combine the butter, vanilla, and peppermint, then measure in powdered sugar, heavy cream, and the dye. Use the lesser amounts in the recipe card to start. Beat on high speed until light and fluffy. I added another 1/2 cup of powdered sugar and used the full 1/3 cup of cream, and about 1/2 tsp gel dye since I wanted a subtler green tint.
Pipe or frost your cupcakes as you please, and finish with a little Andes candy. Admire your hard work, squirrel a couple away for yourself, and set the rest on your festive serving platters and dish these stunners out to your pals!
Leftover cupcakes will be good at room temperature for up to 5 days, the fridge for a week, and the freezer for 3 months. Honestly, I find semi-frozen cupcakes kinda enjoyable, but if you don’t, a countertop thaw for 20-30 minutes will do the trick.
Enjoy, kids!
Tried this recipe out? Leave a rating and comment below with your thoughts, and don’t forget to come say hi on Instagram and show me what you made!
Try the fail-proof chocolate cupcake in these bad boys:
Guinness Chocolate Cupcakes with Bailey’s Buttercream
Salted Caramel Chocolate Cupcakes
mint chocolate cupcakes
Ingredients
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup dark brown sugar
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup plain whole milk Greek yogurt, at room temperature
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup black cocoa powder (or more cocoa powder)
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 1/3 cups buttermilk, at room temperature
- 1 package Andes candies, for garnish
mint buttercream
- 1 stick butter, softened
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp peppermint extract
- 1/2 – 1 tsp green gel dye
- 4 1/2-5 cups powdered sugar
- 1/4-1/3 cup heavy whipping cream
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 12-cup muffin tins with parchment liners.
- In a large bowl, beat the oil, brown sugar, and sugar for 2-3 minutes until combined. Whip in the eggs, one at a time, then the vanilla and yogurt. Add the flour, cocoa powder, black cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. With the mixer running, stream in the buttermilk until the batter is just combined. Do not overmix.
- Fill each cupcake tin 2/3 of the way with batter. Depending on what your heart says 2/3 of the way full is, you will get 22-24 cupcakes. Bake for 25-30 minutes until an inserted toothpick emerges with just a few moist crumbs. Cool 10 minutes in the pans, then transfer the cupcakes to wire racks. Cool completely.
- Make the frosting. Whip the butter, vanilla and peppermint extracts until combined and DO NOT FOR THE LOVE OF FUCK ADD MORE PEPPERMINT THAT SHIT IS STRONG; then add 4 1/2 cups of the powdered sugar, 1/2 tsp dye, and 1/4 cup of cream. Crank the mixer to high, and beat until very light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. You may need an extra tablespoon of two of cream to achieve the desired texture. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula, as needed, to properly incorporate all the ingredients. If you want a deeper green hue, add dye 1 drop at a time.
- Pipe or frost each cupcake with the buttercream. Garnish each cupcake with an Andes candy.
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