Small Batch Chocolate Cupcakes
Looking for the perfect solution to your chocolate cravings without committing to a whole batch of cupcakes? Look no further- This recipe is a delightful treat for chocolate lovers – Small Batch Chocolate Cupcakes! This easy recipe yields moist and decadent chocolate cupcakes with a rich chocolate flavor and yields a small batch of only two cupcakes.
How to make Chocolate Cupcakes for Two:
Dry Ingredients:
- All-purpose flour
- Sugar
- Unsweetened cocoa powder (use natural cocoa powder for a milder flavor or Dutch process for a deeper chocolate taste)
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Chocolate Chips
Wet Ingredients:
- Hot water
- Vegetable oil (any neutral oil will be fine)
- Vanilla extract
For frosting recipe:
- Unsalted butter, room temperature
- Dark cocoa powder
- Powdered sugar
Instructions:
- Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C) and line a muffin tin with cupcake liners.
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients – flour, sugar, cocoa powder, and baking soda.
- To the same bowl add the wet ingredients – water, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract. Stir until smooth and then add the chocolate chips
- Be careful not to over-mix to maintain the moistness of the cupcakes.
- Divide the cupcake batter evenly among two cupcake liners, filling each about two-thirds full.
- Bake for 15-18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with moist crumbs.
- Allow the cupcakes to cool in the muffin tin for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
For the Chocolate Frosting:
In another small bowl, use a mixer to cream the butter and powdered sugar. Add the dark cocoa powder and a few drops of vanilla extract or milk if needed.
Assembly:
- Once the cupcakes are completely cooled, frost them with a thick layer of chocolate buttercream using an offset spatula or piping bag.
- Top each cupcake with chocolate sprinkles or melted chocolate for an extra indulgent touch.
Enjoy the best part – indulging in these moist and chocolatey Small Batch Chocolate Cupcakes! Perfect for satisfying your chocolate fix without overwhelming your small household. Save this easy recipe for Valentine’s Day, birthdays, or simply for today’s sweet cravings. Happy baking!
Last year I shared Red Velvet Cupcakes for Two, and my Chocolate Chip Cookies for Two are a huge favorite both with me and you guys. Sometimes you just need a little something you know?
Small Batch Chocolate Cupcakes
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons dark cocoa powder
- 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
- pinch of salt
- 2 tablespoon water
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1/8 teaspoon of vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon chocolate chips (optional)
For frosting:
- 2 tablespoons of unsalted butter, very soft
- 1 tablespoon of dark cocoa powder
- 4-5 tablespoons of powdered sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. In a small bowl whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda and salt.
- Make a small well in the middle of the bowl and add the water, oil and vanilla. Whisk together until smooth.
- Evenly distribute the batter between two liners and sprinkle with chocolate chips if using. Bake for about 18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into a cupcake comes out clean.
For the Frosting:
- In another small bowl, use a spatula to spread the butter around making sure it's super soft and pliable.
- Add the cocoa powder and stir into the soft butter.
- Using the spatula, a spoon or small whisk, add the powdered sugar one tablespoon at a time until the frosting is creamy and thick.
- Frost cooled cupcakes as desired.
Notes
Recipe adapted from: Bret Bara
Thank you for cupcakes for two! It’s only me and my husband (and our doggie, but not cupcakes for her!) and I never make cupcakes…’cause then I eat all of them. I am super excited about these and the chocolate level looks out of control.
Just how I like it!
You KNOW how much I love all of your ‘for two’ recipes! :)
I love that this recipe is perfect for a couple! I also love that it can be easily dairy free and already is egg free. Thank you for sharing!
Is it okay to use another kind of cocoa powder?
I used regular cocoa powder and they were delicious. It was so nice to each have a cupcake and have none left over. It was also perfect because I could bake it in my toaster oven.
I made this recipe for my dd who has a peanut allergy to take to a friend’s birthday party…she loved it! Is it okay to omit the cocoa so as to make vanilla cupcakes? Thank you!
if you were to omit the cocoa, maybe add just a teensy bit of vanilla extract to give them flavour. maybe a tad more flour to make up for the lost fry ingredient and so so for the icing, but a little more sugar.
dry not fry! typo.
ooooooooh!!! I LOVE how rich and chocolatey these look-perfect!! Plus there’s only 2 so I wouldn’t be tempted to eat too much ;P
haha, I don’t know what it is either, but I love small batch anything! And these are no exception :)
I just sent the recipe link to my brother since if you change the butter in the frosting to one of the “alternative” margarines, the recipe is vegan!
These would be perfect for Valentine’s Day…and since my husband is out of town for it I could eat both of them! ;)
I love your small batch desserts! And I especially love these because they are EXTRA chocolatey. You speak to my soul Audra!
So excited to have recipes like this. I too will eat all of the cupcakes if there are any just hanging around :-(. Congrats on your baby and please keep the blog posts coming. I love this site!
OMG I just died a little and sent this to everyone I know. UH-MAZING. I can’t wait to make these!
YUM!
PS – love your selfie w baby bump, then holding Hugo! Too cute! xo
I was complaining to my friends earlier about how badly I was craving a dark, fudgy chocolate cake and this post is making me want it even more!! These look so amazing – pinned.
These are beautiful!!
I just made a brownie for two and my husband loved it, so I will be looking forward to trying this. Hope you are enjoying your time with your new baby and getting some sleep as well!
These are almost vegan so I think I will make a little change to the frosting and make them tonight! Also, congratulations on your new baby boy, he’s beautiful :)
I need about zero convincing to make these. Would it be bad if I ate them both?
I could hug you right now! Just enough cake for my cup of tea and my lunchbox, or to quickly whip up for the unexpected drop-in guest! Bravo – take a bow!!! :-)
How delicious! These cupcakes really look great!
I definitely love small batch desserts. Especially now that I don’t have as many people to pawn off an entire batch onto. Great recipe for two at Valentine’s day!
Love these! Baking for two is tough but such a great idea.
Ahhhh these look amazing! That first photo is so seductive!
What a great idea! You don’t always need or want over a dozen cupcakes!
Love this! I adore baking, but having 24 cupcakes hanging around is just way too tempting for this health-conscious lady. Two I can definitely deal with, and my husband will be happy. :) Plus, they’re so cute!
Hey Audra, just wanted to let you know that someone took your post and photo and put it on this website:
http://reciiipes.blogspot.com/2014/02/fudgy-dark-chocolate-cupcakes-for-two.html
and this facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/1bestrecipe/photos/a.599636533408794.1073741828.599631696742611/664724580233322/?type=1&theater
Not sure if you care about that stuff, but I think it’s annoying when people steal content so I thought you should know.
Thank you so much for letting me know!!
Hi Audra,
I made this recipe for my dd who has a peanut allergy to take to a friend’s birthday party…she loved it! Is it okay to omit the cocoa so as to make vanilla cupcakes? Thank you!
Hey Rani- I’m not sure if they would work without the cocoa as it affects the overall acidic balance of the cupcakes. I will try to develop vanilla cupcakes for two though!!
Thank you so much for the reply! Can’t wait to see what you come up with!
These look super chocolaty. Love that it is only for two. I am constantly craving chocolate cake but making a whole cake for two people is a bit crazy.
OMG, these fudgy chocolate cupcakes are the bomb… i only had white chocolate chips so i used them and they were the perfect! My husband was like… ahhh, next time can you please make more.. :) with that said.. although i love the idea of 2… which is actually perfect, but what would the full recipe look like…? i guess could do some math, but if you had it recipe handy, I’d love to have it!!
Thank you!
Nicole :)
These are AMAZING! I’m totally making another batch again tonight.
Kind of a silly question but you never know with baking… Is this recipe ok to double? There are 4 people in my family and I want to make just enough for tonight.
Yes- you can double it no problem!
Just wanted to say that I finally made these cupcakes, and they were awesome!
I’m not gonna lie, though – I made them solely for myself. I did eat them over the course of two days. That’s acceptable, right? :D
Of course! :)
Hi! This looks so good, can I use regular cocoa powder, instead of dark? would it still be fudge and turn out good? i don’t really like a bitter taste, would the dark make it too bitter? thanks!
I really recommend using the dark cocoa powder- not bitter at all!
nice
Hi Audra! I made these for a birthday and the three of us loved them (I doubled the recipe). Do you know where I could find a similar frosting recipe but for 12 or 24 cupcakes instead? It was SO good and would love to use it in the future for larger batches.
Hi Sara! Sorry for the late reply. To make this frosting in a large batch I would do this: 1 stick of butter, 1/2 cup of cocoa powder, and 2-3 cups of powdered sugar. Add a little bit of milk if needed to smooth things out. This should do for 12 cupcakes and double it for 24! :)
I love that these are vegan as well- and accidentally so! I really enjoyed making these, super quick and delicious.
Oh. My. Fruitloops. This was just the thing I needed to kill my midnight sweet tooth tonight! I poured all the batter into a ramekin and it wound up being a small cake for one though, oops. :) It was as promised, chocolate overkill in a wonderful way!
Hi Audra!
I Just made these to test for a banquet I am hosting at my church. I need a recipe for 24 though….possible? These are fabulous and simple and leave me not desiring a thing lol. Thanks for sharing!
Misty
Hi. Is dark cocoa same as dutch processed cocoa powder?
I never comment on recipe posts, but I have to say THANK YOU for sharing this! My husband loves little treats I make for us when he gets home from work late and we can eat sweets in peace without babies asking for some. ;) This was the perfect vegan treat for tonight. Just added in a dollop of peanut butter in the middle, and made a coconut peanut butter frosting. Divine.
I’m so glad you liked them :)
These were great! Wonderful texture which can be problematic for cupcakes. I admit that I ate them both. I would recommend the effort to whip up a little treat! Thanks for the recipe.
Luv this recipe. Deliciously moist & chocolaty. Perfect for when need my Chocolate fix
I have made these three times this week! That says it all. So easy, quick, and most of all, delicious! Last time I made them, I doubled the recipe and made a small batch of brownies. Sooo tasty. Thanks for the recipe.
These are the best! I make them with the exact recipe, I double the recipe, and I leave the icing off sometimes. I make these gluten free for my son. He loves them. Wonderful without icing also. Love, love, love these.