I received this no-fail chocolate cupcake recipe from a friend many many years ago. After I had ooed and awed about the delicious perfect cupcake and asked what her secret was- she directly copied it word for word from her recipe card. The recipe card makes me smile. It's titled No Fail Cupcakes and it's wording is just as my grandma would have worded. Semi-specific yet straight forward.
These really are the easiest to make and hardest to mess up. You most likely have all of the ingredients in your cupboards and can pull them out and make these no-fail cupcakes for any occasion, even on a rainy day, just for fun.
How to make homemade no-fail chocolate cupcakes
This is all you need! Just a few key ingredients. Whip them up in a bowl. The batter is so rich and delicious looking its hard not to lick the spoon.
Two things I love about this recipe:
- It makes 12 gorgeous full cupcakes. Box cake mixes make soooo many cupcakes, I rarely need 24-48 cupcakes. I love that this recipes make just a dozen. Its perfect. It's also simple enough that doubling is quite easy too.
2. It's not super crumbly like cake mix cupcakes tend to be either. They are moist, firm and the best you'll ever make...and half of it wont be on the floor in a million crumbs.
The Frosting
I ALWAYS top my cakes and cupcakes with this delicious buttercream frosting. I feel it has the perfect balance of all the flavors- its not too buttery, overly sweet and just the right texture. You can read the post + frosting tips and the recipe here.
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Homemade, no-fail, Chocolate Cupcakes
Ingredients
- 1 egg
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- ½ cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon baking bsoda
- ½ cup hot water
- ½ cup cocoa powder
- 1 ½ cup flour
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients together until smooth and incorporated.
- Bake at 350°F (180°C) for 20 minutes
Notes
Nutrition
Marianne Ferris says
I’ve used this recipe for several years now. It’s simply the best. I use this for layer cakes too. They turn out perfectly and don’t dome in the layer form so no leveling needed. I had a minute of cringe because I like butter in cakes for the richness, but the sour cream adds that. I occasionally use hot coffee instead of water which gives the cake a little more depth but it’s good either way. The cake is moist and doesn’t crumble. Easy and delicious.
Valleycat1 says
Just what I need today! This would be the perfect recipe for my grandmother’s infamous standard cooking instruction: Stir it ‘til it looks right.”
Jamie says
I converted the recipe to gluten free using Cup4Cup flour. It was so delicious and incredibly simple. Even all of the gluten eaters in the family loved it. Never going back to a boxed mix.
Lauren jones says
These are perfect! Good flavor and not crumbly yet still super moist! Thank you!
sam says
definitly no-fail. making these instead of boxed cake mixed for sure.