Chocolate Peppermint Cupcakes Recipe

When the holiday season rolls around, it's fair to say all eyes are on peppermint. Certainly, classic candy canes started that tradition, but it has only continued to expand. Everything from peppermint bark and peppermint mochas are on the menu for winter, showcasing that chocolate and mint truly are the perfect pairing.

Want another great chocolate and mint pairing? Add another sweet treat to the holiday baking list with these festive peppermint cupcakes. With moist chocolate cupcakes serving as the base, they're beautifully dressed up with fluffy peppermint frosting. The contrast in deep cocoa flavor paired with refreshing peppermint is simply divine, and these little treats are just begging to dress up any holiday table.

Even better? You can make these holiday delights from scratch with simple-to-find ingredients from any store. And to top it all off, you'll only need to set aside 30 minutes of your time to pull off making them.

To get started making these festive holiday treats, you'll first want to grab all of your ingredients. For this chocolate peppermint cupcakes recipe, you'll need white sugar, brown sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt, one egg, oil, milk, and a splash of hot water. Those ingredients will be used to put together the chocolate cupcake batter. To prepare the peppermint frosting, you'll need to round up unsalted softened butter, powdered sugar, and pure peppermint extract. 

With your ingredients prepped and ready to go, it's time to embrace this tasty baking project. Start by preheating your oven to 350 F. This will give it plenty of time to come up to the proper temperature while you mix the chocolate cupcake batter.

Grab a large mixing bowl, and add all of the dry ingredients to start making the batter. Add the white sugar, brown sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, and mix to combine. Be sure the mixture is free of any large clumps before moving on to the next step.

To finish off the batter for the chocolate cupcakes, you'll add the wet ingredients in next. Start by adding in the egg and mix. Next up, add in the oil, mix, and then add in ½ cup of milk. Mix your batter until just combined, and then stir in the hot water. This will thin out the batter, but that's the goal, as it helps make the chocolate cupcakes super moist!

With the chocolate cupcake batter ready, prepare a cupcake pan with paper liners to prevent the cupcakes from sticking. If you don't have paper liners, spray the pan with cooking spray. Divide the chocolate cupcake batter amongst the 12 cupcake wells, filling each halfway full.

Then, place the pan in the oven, and bake the cupcakes for 18 minutes until the tops are fully set. Once the cupcakes are done, remove them from the oven, and set them aside to fully cool before frosting.

While the cupcakes are cooling, prepare your fluffy peppermint frosting to go on top. To make the frosting, start by adding a stick of softened butter into a mixing bowl. Whip the butter until fluffy, and then mix in 2 cups of powdered sugar. Mix in the 2 tablespoons of milk, and continue to gradually add the powdered sugar in, mixing while you go. Mix until the mixture thickens and the frosting comes together, and then mix in the peppermint extract. Turn the speed up on the mixer to whip the frosting until fluffy.

Once the cupcakes are cooled, top them with the peppermint frosting. Get creative and use a piping bag to pipe the frosting, if desired. And to make a red swirl effect, use a brush to add a bit of red food coloring to your piping bag. Otherwise, opt for white frosting. Once frosted, garnish the cupcakes with crushed peppermint candy canes to dress them up.