Classic and tasty, these homemade Easy Chocolate Cupcakes use simple ingredients to create light and fluffy cupcakes with a silky chocolate buttercream frosting!
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line a 12 well cupcake pan with cupcakes liners.
Sift the cocoa powder into a large mixing bowl.
Pour in the boiling water, mix until dissolved.
Add all remaining cupcake ingredients and mix with an electric mixer until combined.
Evenly distribute the mixture between all the cupcake liners and bake for 18-22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean.
Leave the cupcakes in the pan for about 10 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
To make the frosting, add the butter to a large mixing bowl. Mix with an electric mixer until smooth and creamy.
Gradually sift in the powdered sugar and cocoa powder a little at a time, mixing after each addition.
When the mixture starts to become a little too thick to mix, add the milk a splash at a time until the desired consistency is reached. The frosting should hold its shape but still be spreadable/pipeable. Mix for a final 2-3 minutes to get the frosting super smooth.
Spoon, spread or pipe swirls of the chocolate frosting on top of each cupcake. I used a Wilton 1M piping nozzle.
Add some chocolate sprinkles on top for decoration (optional).
Notes
These can be frozen, see my tips above.
You can use other frostings if you are not a fan of chocolate.
Add mix-ins to your cupcakes, see some suggestions above.