Black Forest Cupcakes
Your search for the best Black Forest Cupcakes is over! This recipe bakes up rich, chocolaty cupcakes filled with homemade cherry syrup and finished with a simple whipped cream frosting.
Most people know Black Forest cake is based on a German dessert. But did you know it’s against the law in Germany to bake the cake without a particular brand of cherry brandy and still call it Black Forest?
Against. The. Freaking. Law.
It’s a good thing a law like that isn’t on the books in the US because I’d be in handcuffs right now. Not that it’s my fault the local liquor store doesn’t carry Kirschwasser. (Although it might be my fault that I couldn’t ask the clerk if it was in stock without sounding like I was sneezing.)
Nonetheless, one does not need an impossible-to-pronounce brandy to achieve cupcake perfection. This from-scratch recipe has it all: a decadent dark chocolate cake, black cherry syrup, fresh whipped cream frosting and dark chocolate shavings.
In fact, it’s so delicious that I whittled the recipe down to a dozen cupcakes. Trust me on this, if you made a double batch you’d eat them all in one sitting and then you’d end up in the ER and I can’t have that on my conscious today.
So, to reiterate, tip number one is don’t eat twenty four cupcakes at once. Now that we’ve established that let’s go over a few others…
Ingredient Tips and Tricks
Using 100% Dutch process cocoa is a must. Many grocery stores doesn’t carry it so you may have to stock up online.
Cocoa clumps are not cool so be sure to sift your cocoa powder before mixing with the melted butter.
Make sure your sour cream, buttermilk and eggs are at room temperature before you begin.
Don’t buy bleached flour. Bleach is for dingy laundry not for food ingredients. Unbleached, all-purpose flour is the only way to go for this recipe.
You deserve better than canned cherries. Use fresh Bing cherries for this recipe, you’ll thank me for it.
The cherries for the syrup should be washed, stemmed, pitted and cut into quarters., Cherry pitters make fast work of the de-pitting process. If you don’t have a cherry pitter, cherries can be pitted by hand.
To pit cherries by hand, cut a circle around the outside with a sharp knife, pull the two halves apart and use a finger to scoop out the pits. Be forewarned that your hands, and pretty much everything else in a three foot splatter zone around you, can and will be stained with cherry juice. It’s probably not the best day to wear white.
Freezing fresh cherries gives you the opportunity to bake Black Forest Cupcakes all year long. Just stock up on cherries while they are in season and super cheap. Then pit, stem and half cherries before placing on a cookie sheet in a single layer to freeze. Once cherries are frozen, transfer them to an airtight container store up to 6 months.
Process Tips and Tricks
These cupcakes look their best when showcased in black cupcake liners. Most craft stores and party supply stores carry black liners for $2.00 per package.
There’s nothing like fresh whipped cream, so skip the canned stuff and make my two ingredient version. It’s so simple: just heavy whipping cream and powdered sugar to help stabilize it.
If you’re like me and suck at icing cupcakes, this is the perfect recipe. Chocolate shavings and a giant cherry are the perfect camouflage for frosting mishaps.
Storage Tips for Black Forest Cupcakes
Cupcakes can be made a day in advance then filled and frosted the second day. Simply store cooled cupcakes on a plate covered in plastic wrap at room temperature.
Store frosted cupcakes in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. I like mine ice cold, but you can let them sit out for 20 minutes if you prefer them at room temperature.
If you make these Black Forest Cupcakes, please leave a recipe rating and comment at the bottom of this blog post. Don’t forget to tag @whiskingwolf on social media so I can drool over your pics on Instagram.
Finally, if you love desserts with fresh fruit, check out my recipe for No Bake Strawberry Swirl Cheesecake with Pretzel Crust. Crunch and creamy, salty and sweet, this luscious no-bake cheesecake is made without an oven.
Black Forest Cupcakes
Ingredients
Cake ingredients
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour unbleached
- 1/2 cup 100% Dutch process cocoa powder
- 1 tsp baking powder fresh
- 1/2 tsp baking soda fresh
- 3/4 tsp sea salt fine
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter melted
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1/2 cup full fat sour cream room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla pure
- 1/2 cup buttermilk room temperature
Cherry syrup
- 1/2 cup cherries washed, pitted, and quartered
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup water
Whipped cream
- 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
Garnish
- 12 Bing cherries
- dark chocolate shavings
Instructions
Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a cupcake pan with paper liners and set aside.
- Sift flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a large bowl. Whisk to combine. Set aside.
- Using an electric mixer cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
- Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition until incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula as needed.
- Mix in sour cream and vanilla until blended.
- Reduce mixer speed to low and add half of dry ingredients, mixing only until just incorporated.
- Add buttermilk and mix until blended.
- Add remaining dry ingredients mixing until just incorporated. Be careful to avoid overmixing.
- Divide batter evenly among 12 cupcake liners. Bake for 10 minutes then rotate pan in oven and bake for an additional 7 to 10 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Be careful to avoid overbaking.
- Place cupcake pan on a wire rack until cooled completely then fill cupcakes with cherry syrup.
Cherry Syrup
- Add the cherries, cornstarch, sugar and water to a medium saucepan.
- Heat over medium heat, stirring until syrup thickens.
- Remove pan from the heat and cool while cupcakes bake.
- After cupcakes have cooled completely, use a metal icing tip to remove a hole in the center of each cupcake top. Fill with each with a tablespoon of cherry filling then pipe with whipped cream.
Whipped Cream
- Combine heavy cream and powdered sugar in a mixing bowl and whip with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form.
- Pipe whipped cream onto cupcakes. Garnish with cherries and chocolate shavings.
- Serve immediately or cover loosely and refrigerate up to 2 days.