Dark Chocolate Cupcakes with Creamy Peanut Butter Frosting

Taking a walk on the dark side today! Chocolate cupcakes are fabulous and all but what about DARK chocolate cupcakes? Dark chocolate cupcakes garnished with the creamiest, dreamiest peanut butter frosting to ever grace your tastebuds and sprinkled with those magical orange, yellow, and brown gems we call Reese’s Pieces.

An intensely flavored moist dark chocolate cupcake, a silky frosting, and a delightful crunch on top. This, my friends, is how you dessert.

If you have a solid “base recipe”, the options are endless. For example, a perfect vanilla cupcake can quickly transform into a peanut butter & jelly cupcake. Or turn into a pistachio cupcake with strawberry frosting. Or, my favorite, a coconut and caramel filled variation. We all know the saying if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. But, by all means, jazz things up a bit!! And that’s exactly what we’re doing today. I made a batch of my super moist chocolate cupcakes, intensified the chocolate flavor, and topped with something all of us peanut butter aficionados can appreciate. Totally appropriate for your Monday morning, no?

From Chocolate to DARK Chocolate

Instead of using unsweetened natural cocoa powder, I reached for a darker cocoa powder instead. Hershey’s makes a “special dark” cocoa powder that has a deep, dark, and bold chocolate flavor. I love adding a spoonful of it to a blender with 1 frozen banana and a splash of almond milk. Tastes like a Wendy’s frosty, I swear. Have you ever seen Hershey’s special dark on shelves?

Here’s something interesting, though. (Those nerd glasses on?) Hershey’s special dark contains both natural and dutched cocoa powder– it’s a blend of both. As you know, there’s a huge difference between natural cocoa and dutched cocoa. And I never suggest substituting. You can read all that nerdy stuff right over here if you’re interested.

So this makes that cocoa powder a little tricky to use in baking. But but but! I’ve actually had a lot of success swapping it in recipes like cookies and cupcakes. And this cocoa powder tastes phenomenal in today’s cupcakes.

and super dark chocolate cupcakes topped with creamy peanut butter frosting and Reese Dark Chocolate Cupcakes with Creamy Peanut Butter Frosting

Not only are we using a darker, richer cocoa– we’re also adding a smidge of espresso powder (or instant espresso) to the cupcakes as well. Why? To intensify that gorgeous chocolate flavor. If you don’t like coffee, you’re in the clear because these cupcakes do not taste like coffee. You can’t taste the espresso because all it’s doing is bringing the chocolate flavor to the forefront. Trust me on this one! Kevin loathes coffee (he calls it “burnt dirt”) and didn’t detect any coffee flavor.

Bottom line: the espresso powder is optional, but heavily recommended to really get that dark chocolate flavor.

Besides the cocoa powder swap and instant espresso addition, the recipe is identical to my favorite chocolate cupcakes. This means we’re still using buttermilk and oil for a super moist texture. And we’re only filling the cupcake liners halfway full. Why?

It will make or break your recipe!

Halfway full. Not 2/3, not 3/4, not all the way to the top. If you fill the liners too full, the cupcakes will overflow. You’ll be left with crisp mushroom tops and a sunken center. Halfway full! Halfway full! How full? Halfway full! 🙂

Moving onto that peanut butter frosting…

and super dark chocolate cupcakes topped with creamy peanut butter frosting and Reese Dark Chocolate Cupcakes with Creamy Peanut Butter Frosting

This is the best peanut butter frosting I’ve ever had. In fact, I even created a separate post for it in the frosting section.

This peanut butter frosting is the creamiest. It tastes like a spoonful of pure peanut butter with a fluffier, silkier texture. You know how most frostings are overly sweet? Like, they make a candy store seem like a bland salad? That’s not the case here. All you taste is peanut butter. Which makes sense because it’s mostly all peanut butter. Only 1 cup of confectioners’ sugar instead of the usual 5, 6, or 7 cups. It’s peanut-butter-perfect.

My #1 tip for the peanut butter frosting: make sure you use a commercial brand peanut butter, not natural or homemade. There’s a lot of separating and texture issues if you use an oily, natural, or homemade peanut butter. I like Jif or Skippy.

You can also find my peanut butter frosting on these pb&j cupcakes and these snickers cupcakes.

and super dark chocolate cupcakes topped with creamy peanut butter frosting and Reese Dark Chocolate Cupcakes with Creamy Peanut Butter Frosting

Fact: crushing Reese’s Pieces turns them into Reese’s Pieces sprinkles. And I love how festive and Halloweenie they are, too.