Cinnamon Chocolate Cupcakes with Nutella Frosting
Tuesday, 20 March 2012
Happy first day of spring! We’ve had a pretty mild winter here in northern California, but I’m still ready for full-on spring: sunshine, blooming flowers, skirts and flip-flops. When I saw these cupcake liners at Michael’s in January, I couldn’t resist buying a box. They’re too cute with little ruffles, tiny polka dots and pastel colors…I knew they’d be perfect for a spring cupcake.
When I was brainstorming spring cupcakes, I got this idea in my head that I wanted to make bunny shaped cupcakes – but not just the cute white bunnies that keep cropping up on Pinterest. You see, I have a brown lop-eared rabbit and I wanted to make cupcakes that looked like her:
Her name is Cinnamon (she was the color of my favorite spice when we first adopted her) so I made some cinnamon chocolate cupcakes and topped them with my most popular frosting, Nutella buttercream. But when I tried to make the cupcakes look like my bunny, things went downhill fast. I put ear-shaped sugar cookies on top of the frosting, but they didn’t lay right and just looked weird.
She sets the bar pretty high for cuteness, so weird looking cupcakes really wouldn’t do her justice. For instance, here is Cinnamon adorably and delicately washing her face:
As it turns out, the cupcakes looked a whole lot prettier with nicely piped frosting and a few sugar pearls sprinkled on top. At least the flavor still honors her, and the cupcakes tasted amazing! The warm cinnamon flavor went perfectly with the rich chocolate in the cake, and you can’t beat Nutella frosting. Really, if you like the flavor of cinnamon at all, I wholeheartedly recommend these cupcakes. Russ tasted one without knowing the flavor. His reaction? “Woah! These are really good.”
Although my dreams of a bunny cupcake to represent my lop-ear were dashed, I’m so glad that I tried this cinnamon chocolate flavor combination. And, of course, I don’t give up that easily – I already have ideas for bunny cake pops and bunny marshmallows dancing in my head…
I couldn’t resist sharing one more cute photo of Cinnamon – here she is channeling her inner (and sleepy) Cadbury bunny:
She’s too cute for her own good. How about you – do you have any pets? Have you ever baked anything that looks like them (or baked for them, like dog treats)?
Recipe:
Chocolate Cinnamon Cupcakes
Yields: 18-19 cupcakes
Adapted from Epicurious.com
1 1/3 cups flour
3/4 cups unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tablespoon ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 3/4 cups sugar
1/2 + 1/8 cups freshly brewed coffee, cooled to room temperature
1/2 + 1/8 cups buttermilk
1/4 + 1/8 cup vegetable oil
1 large eggs
1 large egg yolks
1/2 tablespoon vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 325°F. Line a muffin tin with paper liners.
In a large bowl, combine all ingredients from flour through baking soda.
In a separate large bowl, beat eggs and sugar until thoroughly combined. Add coffee, buttermilk, oil and vanilla, and beat until blended. Turn mixer speed to low and slowly pour in dry ingredients. Mix until just combined.
Pour batter into prepared pan until each cup is 3/4 full. Bake 20 minutes, until the center springs back a bit when lightly touched. Remove from oven and cool on a rack.
Nutella Buttercream
You may need to double this if you like a lot of frosting on your cupcakes.
- 1/2 C butter, room temperature
- 1 C Nutella
- 1 C powdered sugar, sifted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1-2 T milk
Beat butter until smooth. Add Nutella and beat together until thoroughly combined. Slowly add powdered sugar, mixing until combined. Add vanilla and 1 tablespoon of milk. Add additional milk or powdered sugar as needed to reach desired consistency. Pipe or spread onto completely cooled cupcakes.
No. 1 — March 20th, 2012 at 12:48 pm
Your cupcakes look SO great, Stephanie… and cinnamon is adorable!
Becca from It’s Yummilicious recently posted ONE DAY GIVEAWAY!!
No. 2 — March 20th, 2012 at 1:37 pm
Your bunny is absolutely precious! Too cute for words =)
And these cupcakes look amazing!
Peggy recently posted Country Ham & Manchego-Stuffed Chicken Breasts
No. 3 — March 20th, 2012 at 1:54 pm
So adorable!! Both the cupcakes and the bunny! These cupcakes look so great, how can you go wrong with nutella buttercream?!
Mary Ellen @ Pâte à Chew recently posted Meyer Lemon Cornmeal Cake
No. 4 — March 20th, 2012 at 2:08 pm
@Becca – thank you! I can’t recommend these cupcakes enough, they’re definitely in my top 3 of all time!
No. 5 — March 20th, 2012 at 2:09 pm
@Peggy – thanks! She’s pretty spoiled and gets away with a lot. It pays to be so cute
No. 6 — March 20th, 2012 at 2:10 pm
@Mary Ellen – thank you! I agree – nothing beats Nutella buttercream!
No. 7 — March 20th, 2012 at 2:18 pm
[...] for the ultimate chocolate cupcake recipe to replace this one. I made the Nutella buttercream with cinnamon chocolate cupcakes and it was SO [...]
No. 8 — March 20th, 2012 at 2:20 pm
Oh my gosh!! I want a buny now! And a huge plate of cupcakes!!
Steph@stephsbitebybite recently posted Trail Mix Scones
No. 9 — March 20th, 2012 at 2:25 pm
@Steph – Bunnies aren’t for everyone but they can make great pets: adorable, quiet and lower-maintenance than a dog or cat. Cupcakes are definitely for everyone! A huge plate sounds pretty good to me too. These were gobbled up in a few days.
No. 10 — March 20th, 2012 at 3:35 pm
The cupcakes sound delicious and your Cinnamon is adorable. I have a pup and I’m about to bake her some homemade treats for her upcoming birthday. Ironically, her best doggie pal used to be a little redheaded toy poodle named Cinnamon
Anita at Hungry Couple recently posted Healthy Asparagus Spiral Puffs
No. 11 — March 20th, 2012 at 3:46 pm
@Anita – thanks! That’s so funny about your pup’s pal. Cinnamon is a great name for a redheaded poodle. I love that you’re baking homemade treats for your pup’s birthday. I’m sure she will love them!
No. 12 — March 20th, 2012 at 5:45 pm
Cinnamon + Chocolate + Nutella?! Oh, wow, I’m definitely pinning this to try later!
TastefullyJulie recently posted Roasted Vegetable Salad and a Liebster Award!
No. 13 — March 20th, 2012 at 6:12 pm
There is so much cuteness going on in this post I can hardly stand it!! First the bunny – ohmygoodness!! And these cupcakes lines & the frosting & the cute little bead topping! LOVE the extreme cuteness of this post – and the cupcakes sound delicious!
Lacy @ NYCityEats recently posted Homemade Jalapeno-Bacon Tortilla Chips & Zesty Guacamole
No. 14 — March 21st, 2012 at 3:11 am
Both are great- Cinnamon and Cinnamon Cupcakes
Medeja recently posted Kokosiniai Keksiukai su Romu/ Coconut Rum Cupcakes
No. 15 — March 21st, 2012 at 4:25 am
Your bunny is too cute and I love the name cinnamon! I always love the combination of chocolate and cinnamon. Just really deepens the flavor. Great recipe!
Annie Oakley’s Kitchen recently posted Key Lime Pie
No. 16 — March 21st, 2012 at 10:35 am
Wow – these look amazing! I love spiced chocolate, but then to add nutella? Utter genius
And that’s the cutest bunny I’ve seen in a while
Kiri W. recently posted Vietnamese Sweet Soup/Pudding – Che
No. 17 — March 25th, 2012 at 10:19 am
[...] my bunny cupcake disaster, I still wanted to make something bunny shaped. When I saw this mold, I thought of a bunch of [...]
No. 18 — March 25th, 2012 at 1:52 pm
Cinnamon is absolutely adorable. The picture of her washing her face just killed me!
As for the cupcakes, they are still stunning without the bunny ears. And that nutella buttercream sounds heavenly. I’ll have to try it soon!
Chung-Ah | Damn Delicious recently posted Orange Cheese Danish
No. 19 — March 26th, 2012 at 8:30 am
[...] my post last week, you’ll know that that idea was a flop (I did end up with some delicious cinnamon chocolate cupcakes with Nutella frosting though). I was still set on doing something bunny related, but my bunny shaped cake pops were also [...]
No. 20 — March 27th, 2012 at 1:37 pm
[...] and recipe available at 52 Kitchen Adventures Posted by The Cupcake Connoisseur in All Chocolate Cupcakes and tagged with chocolate, [...]
No. 21 — March 27th, 2012 at 9:07 pm
They look absolutely delicious! I would love to try some.
No. 22 — March 29th, 2012 at 9:47 am
The bunny is adorable, and the cupcakes sound fantastic. Except the coffee. What should I use in place of the coffee?
No. 23 — March 29th, 2012 at 10:12 am
@Erica- you could use water in place of coffee, but the coffee deepens the chocolate flavor so it wouldn’t be quite as good. The cupcake doesn’t end up tasting like coffee at all if you’re concerned about that.
No. 24 — March 31st, 2012 at 3:44 pm
Would these freeze well? (DOes one freeze with or without the icing?)
Thanks!
No. 25 — March 31st, 2012 at 9:53 pm
@Tammy – yes, you can freeze cupcakes, but do it without the icing. I’ve frozen in plastic bags and tupperware successfully. Uncover before defrosting to avoid a gummy top.
No. 26 — April 5th, 2012 at 7:17 am
[...] figure out what happened here. About two weeks ago, I posted cinnamon chocolate cupcakes with Nutella frosting. I share them on Facebook, where Melissa from Best Friends for Frosting declared me the [...]
No. 27 — April 24th, 2012 at 10:21 am
I love your blog and I love cinnamon!She`s so cute!I once had a rabbit, who looked exactly the same like cinnamon.:) Love this recipe!
No. 28 — May 8th, 2012 at 6:14 am
Stephanie,
These look fabulous, and I’m in love with Cinnamon. That picture of her with her paws on her nose is darling- you should enter a contest. I made a spiced chocolate madeleine with espresso dipping cream recently. Similar flavor profile– you might enjoy it.
http://em-i-lis.com/wordpress/recipes-new-format/desserts/spiced-chocolate-madeleines-with-espresso-cream-sauce/
Great meeting you at EWR.
Emily
No. 29 — May 28th, 2012 at 2:07 pm
[...] my mouth instantly starts watering. Stephanie at 52 Kitchen Adventures has created these delicious Cinnamon Chocolate Cupcakes with Nutella Buttercream. Stephanie advises, “If you like the flavor of cinnamon at all, I wholeheartedly recommend [...]
No. 30 — June 11th, 2012 at 12:43 pm
Hi Stephanie,
I just wanted to thank you for posting this amazing recipe. I’ve made it twice for my family and got nothing but compliments. It’s recipes like these that inspire me to keep on baking
No. 31 — September 5th, 2012 at 7:33 am
Hello Stephanie! You have here a really nice cupcake.
The bunny is very cute!
Your idea to make a cupcake to look like your bunny Cinnamon is really creative
Thank you!
Sylvia
Silvia recently posted The Impressive Features of Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1
No. 32 — September 6th, 2012 at 11:34 am
@Silvia – thanks! She’s pretty adorable
No. 33 — September 12th, 2012 at 6:31 am
[...] the suggested 18-22 minutes. I had to compromise with the frosting because we had none, so I found this recipe for Nutella Frosting. I am happy to report back that it sufficed and was a [...]
No. 34 — September 23rd, 2012 at 8:36 pm
[...] used this recipe from 52 Kitchen Adventures to create a rich Nutella buttercream frosting for some decadent cupcakes I created for a Baby [...]
No. 35 — October 14th, 2012 at 8:45 am
It was obvious from the beginning that the Nutella Frosting would be amazing, but this recipe also gave me the best chocolate cake I’ve ever made! I’ll certainly be making both parts of this recipe again, either together or separately. Thanks!!