These cherry filled chocolate buttermilk cupcakes are so delicious and so easy to put together. They are chocolate cupcakes filled with homemade cherry jam & topped with a smooth cherry buttercream frosting and some more fresh cherries. The frosting is so light and airy in texture. You can customise the jam and frosting for other fruits you desire like strawberry. This recipe makes twelve cupcakes which are so soft, moist and tender. They make the perfect summer dessert for you and your family!
Ingredients you’ll need:
- All-purpose flour: I highly recommend weighing all your ingredients using a kitchen scale for accurate recipe results. If you’re using cups, don’t scoop your cup into the flour. Spoon the flour into your cup and level it off with the back of a knife.
- Cocoa powder: A good quality natural and unsweetened cocoa powder is the best (I use Hersheys and I love it). This can make a huge difference in the taste of chocolate in your baked goods. I highly recommend you use a cocoa powder which is natural and unsweetened.
- Espresso Powder: Such small quantities of espresso powder the cupcakes will not add any coffee flavor to but rather only enhance the flavor of chocolate in them making them even more delicious!
- Leaveners: You will need both baking powder & baking soda to help the cupcakes rise properly.
- Brown Sugar: Brown sugar adds more softness and moisture to your cupcakes along with also helping the cupcakes to hold their shape and structure.
- Eggs: Use large eggs and bring them to room temperature before mixing in. Eggs strengthen the binding of cupcakes and also add moisture. Having your eggs at room temperature makes it easier to incorporate them and allow them to mix thoroughly in your cupcake batter. A good way of doing this is by letting them sit in a bowl filled with room temperature water for around 10 minutes or until they come down to room temperature.
- Oil: You can use either vegetable oil or canola oil. This is one of the secrets resulting in these cupcakes being ultra soft and moist. Oil reduces the gluten formation in your batter, which makes them more moist as compared to using butter as a fat. I do not recommend using olive oil, as it adds a strong flavor of it’s own and changes the taste.
- Yogurt: If your yogurt is watery, take around ⅓ cup or 80g of it and let it rest over a sieve for 15 minutes before using. This will help remove the excess water. Alternatively, you can use greek yogurt or sour cream. However, in my opinion yogurt gives a more moist and natural flavour!
- Vanilla: You must use a high quality pure vanilla extract in your recipes. This helps to add a rich flavor to your baked goods. Pure vanilla extracts are typically dark brown in color. This enhances the flavor of all ingredients and you should never leave this out.
- Buttermilk: Buttermilk is more acidic and has a higher fat content than whole milk too. Both of these things help it cut through the sweetness of the cupcakes, giving them a better flavor overall. It also helps to add moisture to your bakes.
- Cherries: You will need fresh & ripe cherries to make homemade jam.
- Lemon juice: I recommend using fresh homemade lemon juice instead of store bought for a better flavour.
- Unsalted Butter: It is very important to have your butter at room temperature. You can ensure this by lightly pressing your finger on the block of butter. It should slightly leave an imprint. I also prefer to use unsalted butter because salted butters have varying amounts of salt content in them and it is always a good idea to add it on your own and avoid your bakes from being too salty.
- Powdered Sugar: This will help add sweetness and thicken to your buttercream. Don’t use granulated sugar as it will not dissolve in your buttercream as well as powdered or confectioners’ sugar will.
- Fresh Cream: A few spoons of fresh cream will help your frosting achieve the desired consistency & also make it more smooth & shiny.
FAQ
These cupcakes are more moist than normal cupcakes. The reason for that is that these cupcakes use vegetable or canola oil instead of butter as a fat content. Oil reduces the gluten formation in the cupcakes which results in these ultra moist and soft cupcakes. I have also added brown sugar & buttermilk to these cupcakes which adds to moisture and results in very soft cupcakes. You must store these cupcakes in an airtight container to avoid them from drying out.
The obvious way to pit cherries is using a cherry pitter. It’s great if you own one. However, if you are like me & you don’t own one, don’t worry I’ve got you! All you need is a piping tip. Any tip will do! Start by removing the stem from the cherry. Place your cherry directly on top of the narrow end of your piping tip. You want the end of the cherry where the stem was to be in contact with your piping tip. Hold both of them firmly & push the piping tip ahead until the seed comes out from the rear end of the cherry. It’s very simple! Repeat with the other cherries.
To bake a flat & moist cupcake successfully make sure you are using room temperature ingredients. Cold ingredients will cause your cupcakes to sink. Check if your oven is heating up to the required temperature accurately. I recommend investing in an oven thermometer to be sure as every oven is different. Make sure you only fill your liners upto half full else your cupcakes will overflow. Don’t open the oven door too many times. Keep checking for doneness only after 19 minutes, as you don’t want to over-bake them.
Other Summer Recipes you’ll love:
Some other tips to make this recipe:
- Make sure you are only using vegetable or canola oil. Do not use olive oil as it adds a strong flavor of it’s own which does not go very well with these chocolate cupcakes.
- If you’re in a pinch and don’t have buttermilk in hand, I have a DIY substitute for you. Add 1 teaspoon of lemon juice in half cup. You can double or half this as required. Fill that cup with whole milk to the top. Mix and let it sit for 5 minutes. That’s it, your buttermilk is ready. Your muffins may not turn out marvellous, but they will still be delicious!
- I highly recommend investing in an oven thermometer and a kitchen scale. Baking at accurate temperatures and weighing your ingredients correctly ensure that you can replicate the recipes perfectly and enjoy the best flavors.
Happy Baking!
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Cherry Filled Chocolate Buttermilk Cupcakes
- Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Yield: 12–14 cupcakes 1x
Description
These cherry filled chocolate buttermilk cupcakes are so delicious and so easy to put together. They are chocolate cupcakes filled with homemade cherry jam & topped with a smooth cherry buttercream frosting and some more fresh cherries. The frosting is so light and airy in texture.
Ingredients
Chocolate Cupcakes
- ¾ cup (94g) all-purpose flour
- ½ cup (50g) cocoa powder
- ¾ teaspoon espresso powder
- ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup (50g) granulated sugar
- ¾ cup (150g) light or dark brown sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- ⅓ cup (80ml) vegetable or canola oil
- ¼ cup (60g) plain yogurt
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- ¼ cup (60ml) buttermilk
Cherry Jam
- ¾ cup (180g) fresh cherries, plus more for topping
- 1¼ cup (125g) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
Cherry Buttercream
- ½ cup (113g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
- 2–3 tablespoons cherry jam
- 2 tablespoons fresh cream
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
Chocolate Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Meanwhile, grease and line a 12-cup muffin pan with cupcake liners. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, add the brown sugar and granulated sugar. Using a hand mixer or a stand mixer, beat on medium speed, about 2 minutes. Add in the egg, one at a time and beat until fully incorporated. Lastly, add in the oil & vanilla extract. Beat again until combined. The mixture will now be light and fluffy.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, espresso powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt until thoroughly combined.
- Add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients about 4-5 tablespoons at a time and beat on low speed until combined. Repeat until all dry ingredients are added. The batter will be slightly thick. Now, pour the buttermilk into the batter. Beat on low speed until fully incorporated.
- Pour or spoon the batter into the liners. Fill each liner ½ full to avoid it from spilling over the sides or sinking. Bake cupcakes for 19-22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Don’t over-bake, which will dry out the cupcakes. Begin checking for doneness at 19 minutes. For around 36 mini cupcakes, bake for about 11-13 minutes at the same oven temperature.
- Transfer the muffin pan to a wire rack immediately when done. Allow the cupcakes to cool completely before frosting.
Cherry Jam
- While the cupcakes are baking, pit your cherries using a cherry pitter. If you don’t have one, then read a hack in the FAQ section.
- Add pitted cherries, sugar & lemon juice to a heavy bottomed saucepan on medium heat. Stir using a spatula until all the sugar has completely dissolved.
- The cherries will eventually become soft. Use your spatula to break them into small pieces.
- Allow the mixture to come to a boil & let it boil for around 10 minutes.
- Remove from heat and allow to cool a bit.
- Transfer to a mason jar & store cherry jam at room temperature for 3 months.
Cherry Buttercream
- In a large bowl, add the softened butter & powdered sugar. Using a hand mixer, or a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream together the butter & sugar until light & airy.
- Add in the fresh cream & vanilla. Beat again until combined.
- Lastly add in 2 tablespoons of cherry jam and mix. Add more until the desired colour is achieved.
- Transfer the buttercream to a piping bag fitted with tip of your choice. I used a Wilton 1M for the swirl pattern shown here.
Assembly
- Using a spoon, take out a small piece of the cooled cupcakes from their center. Fill it with ½ – 1 teaspoon cherry jam.
- Cover the jam back with the cupcake piece. Frost the cupcakes with cherry buttercream as desired.
- Lastly top them with a fresh cherry and enjoy!
- Store cherry cupcakes in the refrigerator in an airtight container for upto 5 days!
Notes
- Make sure you are only using vegetable or canola oil. Do not use olive oil as it adds a strong flavor of it’s own which does not go very well with these chocolate cupcakes.
- If you’re in a pinch and don’t have buttermilk in hand, I have a DIY substitute for you. Add 1 teaspoon of lemon juice in half cup. You can double or half this as required. Fill that cup with whole milk to the top. Mix and let it sit for 5 minutes. That’s it, your buttermilk is ready. Your muffins may not turn out marvellous, but they will still be delicious!
- I highly recommend investing in an oven thermometer and a kitchen scale. Baking at accurate temperatures and weighing your ingredients correctly ensure that you can replicate the recipes perfectly and enjoy the best flavors.
- Prep Time: 50 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Cupcakes, Summer Recipes
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: cherry cupcakes, homemade cherry jam, cherry jam filled chocolate cupcakes, cherry buttercream
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