I love chocolate…
So naturally, when I started experimenting with baking cupcakes from scratch (several years ago) I began a quest for the perfect chocolate cupcakes. I worked through several dozen recipes and of course, didn’t have too much trouble finding people willing to eat my “experiments.”
I finally found a recipe titled Hershey’s “Perfectly Chocolate” Chocolate Cake, hmm, “…Perfectly Chocolate”, sounds about right to me! The first time I made it, I used Hershey’s unsweeted cocoa (as the recipe calls for). They turned out pretty good. The next time I made them, I used Ghirardelli brand unsweetened cocoa, and… perfect! The Ghirardelli brand gave a much deeper chocolate flavor. So I’d highly recomend using either Ghirardelli brand unsweetened cocoa, or the best quality brand you can find. You can really taste the difference. Since discovering this recipe, I’ve made it dozens and dozens of times. And every time, it’s delicious! The cake has a nice light and fluffy texture and a rich chocolate flavor.
Perfectly Chocolate Cupcakes
(makes 24-27 standard sized cupcakes)
2 cups sugar
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa (best quality available)
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract (best quality available)
1 cup boiling water
Directions-
Line muffin tin with paper liners. Heat oven to 350*F.
In a large mixing bowl, stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla. Beat on medium speed for one minute.
Stir in boiling water (the batter will be thin, don’t worry, this is right).
Fill liners 2/3 full with batter. (I usually put the batter into a large measuring cup with a pour spout, and then pour the batter into the liners.)
Bake cupcakes for aproximately 18-22 minutes.
Cool completely on wire rack before frosting.
Recipe source- Hershey’s
Try the recipe HERE for either vanilla or chocolate (my favorite!) cream cheese frosting.
Perfectly Chocolate Cupcakes Recipe
Perfectly Chocolate Cupcakes
Ingredients
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
- 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa best quality available
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract best quality available
- 1 cup boiling water
Instructions
- Line muffin tin with paper liners. Heat oven to 350*F.
- In a large mixing bowl, stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla. Beat on medium speed for one minute.
- Stir in boiling water (the batter will be thin, don’t worry, this is right).
- Fill liners 2/3 full with batter. (I usually put the batter into a large measuring cup with a pour spout, and then pour the batter into the liners.)
- Bake cupcakes for approximately 18-22 minutes.
- Cool completely on wire rack before frosting.
I made these for a Christmas bake sale. Notice that all the photos have dark cupcake liners. If you use light colored liners, this very liquid-y batter stains the liner dark. I added a second liner after the cupcakes had cooled to cover up the stain. Delicious recipe.
Just made these for my son’s birthday party- I got so many compliments! Hands down the best cupcake recipe I’ve ever used. Thank you!
I loved this recipe! I’ll be reposting this recipe on my blog for others to enjoy (with sources to you and Hershey). I added coffee grinds into the recipe, about 1 tbsp (as mentioned above) and they turned out perfectly! The texture, the flavour– love it. We paired it with cream cheese frosting. Thanks again!
thank you so much for this recipe! it was amazing..it was so soft and chocolatey…and I can’t be more happier to have finally found the best choco cupcake recipe…thanks again! everyone at home loved it 😀
Thank you for sharing this recipe it’s my go to for chocolate cupcakes, moist and delicious. I prefer to use Dutch process cocoa, but am finding the cupcakes sink in the middle. Do you have a conversion on the baking soda and baking powder if using Dutch cocoa? Or would it help to use buttermilk instead of whole milk when using Dutch cocoa? Thank you.
Would you change this recipe for high altitude? 6,000 ft
Hi!! Cool blog!!!. I’d love to try out your recipe but I just need about ten cupcakes. Can I divide all the ingredients by half?
Glory,
I want to make this as a cake recipe. A double layer 9 inch…any ingredient changes..how about Cooking Time? I plan on baking Friday,freezing and frosting Sunday for party.
Hi Shannon,
Yes, you can make this recipe into a double layer 9 inch cake with no ingredient changes. Cooking time will depend on if you bake the cake in two pans or one and the quality (thickness) of your pans. The cakes are done when they appear cooked on top (no visible wet batter) and the tops have a slight dome. Test with a toothpick inserted in the center, which should come out clean (or with a few crumbs, but no wet batter).
HI!!! I tried to make the recipe today but it turned out badly.. the cupcake just didn’t grow and all collapsed in the middle…. Can you help me?? I follow all the instructions just like you said. Also? Can I subsitute the milk with a dairy free ingredient?? Thanks
Hi Lule,
Sorry to hear you didn’t have success with this recipe. It’s very difficult for me to know what went wrong without being with you in the kitchen. The cupcakes should rise nicely. I would suggest making sure your baking powder and baking soda are fresh. I’ve never made the recipe with a dairy free milk substitute, but I think it could work.
Generally if a cake or cupcakes collapse after you’ve removed them from the oven it’s because they were not fully baked. Be sure to test one cupcake (with a toothpick inserted in the center) to make sure there is no wet batter before allowing the cupcakes to cool.
Best of luck!
I just made this for Mother’s Day tomorrow and had a little batter left so I put it in a small, heart pan and had it with some butter on it while it was warm….YUM!!!!! I used 1% milk since that was what I had. I will make these again!
Yay, so glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thanks for your sweet comment!
so amazing! was nervous about the water but turned out beautiful and chocolatey! defienetly making these thousands of times!
Yay, so glad you had the faith to give it a try as listed! They are definitely a favorite in our house!