Brownie Cupcakes Recipe

Super fudgy Brownie Cupcakes with crinkly and chewy tops. Frosted with creamy, silky dark chocolate buttercream. Very easy to make.

The step-by-step recipe including ingredients list and instructions is provided in the recipe card at the bottom of the post. A recipe video (additional content) is provided but does not provide any additional information to the written recipe.

We all love brownies, right? I see that my Homemade Brownies, Peanut Butter Brownies, and also the Brownie Cookies are always among the top posts. 

Now imagine super fudgy brownies in the shape of cupcakes with crinkly and chewy tops and frosted with ultra-creamy and silky dark chocolate buttercream. If this isn’t mindblowing, I don’t know what it is.

Please find the full recipe below. Just for visualization, I provided some photos of the brownie cupcakes throughout the baking process.

This is how the brownie batter looks like:

Fill up the cupcake liners until they are almost full like in the picture below: 

Here you see the baked and unfrosted brownie cupcakes:

Here you see the consistency of the buttercream:

Frequently asked questions and answers

Brownie Cupcakes with butter or oil?

There are different theories about the better moisturizer in brownies. Is it butter or oil? Both butter and oil brownies have their raving fans.

In general, oil leads to fudgier and denser texture in baking goods compared to butter. On the other hand, butter adds a deep, buttery taste to baking goods.

Most of my brownie recipes contain butter instead of oil or a combination of both with having a higher ratio of butter than oil. Trust me you don’t miss anything from quitting or reducing on oil. The texture of my brownie recipes is super, super, super fudgy! Due to a lot of recipe testing, I perfected my brownie recipes over years.

So we don’t have any disadvantages of adding butter but have the big advantage of the great taste. Butter gives the brownies a deeper and richer flavor and complements the chocolate just perfectly.

I know I talk the whole time about brownies instead of Brownie Cupcakes. But guess what? These ARE brownies. Just baked in cupcake liners.

Brownie Cupcakes with cocoa or chocolate?

Well, that’s the next million-dollar question, isn’t it? You will find recipes with melted dark chocolate, with cocoa, or a combination of both.

It depends on how you want your brownies to be. Cakey, chewy, or fudgy? Of course, not just the chocolate is responsible for these textures, but it is one part of the whole game.

Adding cocoa powder is in most cases my personal favorite. It provides the brownies with a rich and deep chocolate flavor. Adding melted chocolate instead of cocoa would require adding a lot of melted chocolate to reach the same intense chocolate flavor.

When choosing cocoa instead of chocolate you need to add more butter. So brownie recipes with melted chocolate usually contain less butter than brownies made with cocoa.

Tips for success

The key to super fudgy Brownie Cupcakes is to follow the instructions step by step. There are a few golden rules to follow.

First and foremost, if you overmix or overbake them, they will turn out cakey instead of fudgy.

Although a fudgy texture is the best, in my opinion, I wouldn’t completely freak out when I miss the timer and overbake them slightly. The taste is the same, right? So you would have super delicious but cakey instead of fudgy Brownie Cupcakes. …There is then an excuse to bake them immediately again, right?

Read here about my 11 crucial tips to get super fudgy brownies.

Now, let’s chat about the buttercream. Oh, my word. So delicious! It has a great chocolate taste and is so silky and creamy that it’s almost unbelievable.

The chocolate buttercream is very easy to make. It contains just 4 ingredients. Butter, powdered sugar, melted dark chocolate, and cocoa.

To get super creamy and fluffy chocolate buttercream, let the butter come to room temperature. Then mix it until it is super creamy. Then add powdered sugar. Mix again until it’s creamy. Beat in chocolate and cocoa and mix until the buttercream is super fluffy.

You can pipe or spread the frosting on top of your cupcakes. It’s up to you.

If you make this Brownie Cupcakes recipe, leave a comment, rate it and tag a photo #alsothecrumbsplease on Instagram! Would love to see your snap!

You may also like Super Fudgy Chocolate Brownie Cookies Recipe, Homemade Brownie Recipe From Scratch, White Chocolate Cupcakes with White Chocolate Frosting, The Best S’mores Cupcakes Recipe, or click here to see all recipes.

4.84 from 6 votes

Print

Brownie Cupcakes Recipe

Prep Time

25 mins

Cook Time

25 mins

Total Time

50 mins

 

Super fudgy Brownie Cupcakes with crinkly and chewy tops. Frosted with creamy, silky dark chocolate buttercream. Very easy to make.

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: brownie cupcakes recipe

Servings: 13 - 14 cupcakes

Calories: 625 kcal

Author: Sabine Venier

Ingredients

brownie cupcakes

• 1 cup butter, melted and cooled (226g)
• 2 cups granulated white sugar (400g)
• 4 large eggs
• 2 vanilla beans* (or 2 tsp pure vanilla extract)
• 1 cup dutch-processed cocoa powder (84g)
• 1 cup all-purpose flour (120g)
• 1 tsp salt

dark chocolate buttercream frosting

• 1 cup butter, softened (226g)
• 2 cups powdered sugar (240g)
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate, melted and cooled (6oz / 175g)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F / 175°C. Line two 12 cup muffin pans with 13-14 cupcake liners. Set aside.

2. Brownie Cupcakes: In a large mixing bowl stir together butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla* just until combined. Don't use a hand or stand mixer otherwise you have too much air pockets in the batter, and this makes the brownie cupcakes cakey instead of fudgy. Stir by hand with a whisk. Sift in flour, cocoa, and salt and stir just until combined. Spoon batter with an ice cream scoop into the liners and fill almost full. I got 13 cupcakes.

3. Bake for 22-26 minutes until the top of the brownies look crinkled and a toothpick centered in the middle comes out mostly clean. Don't overbake the brownie cupcakes or they are getting cakey. I baked mine for exactly 25 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes. Then carefully remove from pan and transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely before frosting. 

4. Dark Chocolate Frosting: Beat butter on medium-high speed until soft and creamy, about 3-4 minutes. Sift in powdered sugar and beat on medium-low speed until fully combined and smooth. Add chocolate and mix on medium speed until combined and creamy. Frost cupcakes and store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. 

Recipe Video

Notes

*First, cut off the straight end of the vanilla bean. Then place the tip of your sharp knife below the curled end and cut the vanilla bean through the middle of the bean lengthwise. Although you don't need to cut it all the way through, it's ok when you do so. Then open the vanilla bean and scrape out the flavorful seeds with the back of your knife. Just use the seeds.

Nutrition Facts

Brownie Cupcakes Recipe

Amount Per Serving

Calories 625

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.