Food & Cooking Recipes Dessert & Treats Recipes Cupcake Recipes Easy One-Bowl Chocolate Cupcakes 4.0 (402) You won't believe how quickly this recipe comes together. Prep Time: 15 mins Cook Time: 20 mins Total Time: 40 mins Servings: 36 Yield: 3 dozen cupcakes Jump to recipe Our easy chocolate cupcake recipe requires just one bowl and results in moist, tender cupcakes that are full of chocolate flavor. Making them couldn’t be simpler: You’ll only need a few basic pantry and fridge ingredients—and you can leave your electric mixer in the drawer as the batter can be stirred together by hand. It will take about 30 minutes to whip them up and bake them (though you’ll want to allow a little time to let them cool completely if you’re planning on frosting them). This is a great recipe to make with little ones or just to have on hand for when you need a chocolate fix. Credit: Jacob Fox 3 Tips for Making Easy Chocolate Cupcakes Use room temperature ingredients: When making this recipe, it's key to use room temperature buttermilk and eggs. When these ingredients are at room temperature, they will emulsify better with the other ingredients. Pull them both out of the fridge about 30 minutes before you're ready to start mixing to give them a chance to warm up slightly. Spoon—don't scoop—the flour: To ensure you're adding the correct amount of flour into your mixing bowl, we always recommend spooning it into a measuring cup rather than scooping the cup directly into the flour container. Scooping can cause flour to pack too tightly, which can throw off the amount that ends up in the recipe. Pour or portion batter: Don't be alarmed if your batter looks quite thin—it's supposed to look loose and runny (closer to pancake batter than muffin batter). When you need to add it to the muffin pans, we suggest either using a large cookie scoop—which will ensure each cupcake is the exact same size—or pouring the batter from a liquid measuring cup. How to Make—and Pipe—Two-Toned Frosting Try this easy trick when you frost your cupcakes, it creates a two-toned design that will look like it came straight from a professional bakery. Make frosting: You'll need 5 to 6 cups of frosting for piping onto these cupcakes, so choose a recipe that makes a large enough amount, like our Swiss meringue buttercream. Divide in half: Next, divide the frosting in half and add a few drops of food coloring to each to make two different colors. (If you'd rather make two different flavors instead, you can opt to make a half recipe of two frostings like chocolate and vanilla buttercreams.) Fill pastry bag: Place a tip in the bottom of your pastry bag, then twist the bag just above the top of the tip and use your finger to press the plastic into the tip slightly. (This will help keep the frosting from coming out as you fill the bag.) Fold down the top of the bag and add one type of frosting, keeping it confined to one side. (Watch our video for a demonstration of this.) Next, add the second frosting to the empty side of the bag. Pipe frosting: Unfold top of bag and gently squeeze frosting downwards. Then, untwist bag above pastry tip and pipe the frosting onto cupcakes. Homemade buttermilk: If you don't have buttermilk, you can easily make your own using milk and an acid like vinegar or lemon juice. Stir together 1 1/2 cups of milk and 1 1/2 tablespoons (or 4 1/2 teaspoons) of lemon juice or white vinegar, then let mixture sit until milk is slightly curdled, about 5 minutes, before using. Directions Credit: Jacob Fox Preheat oven and line muffin cups; mix dry ingredients: Preheat oven to 350°F. Line standard muffin cups with paper liner. In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Credit: Jacob Fox Add buttermilk, water, and oil; then add eggs and vanilla: Add buttermilk, water, and vegetable oil; whisk to combine. Add eggs and vanilla extract and whisk until smooth. Credit: Jacob Fox Transfer batter to prepared muffin cups and bake: Divide batter among muffin cups (filling each about 2/3 full) and bake until a toothpick inserted in center of cupcake comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, 20 to 25 minutes. Credit: Jacob Fox Using a ladle, liquid measuring cup, or large cookie scoop will make dividing the batter to the muffin cups easy and mess-free. Cool and frost: Let cool in pans on wire racks, 5 minutes, then transfer cupcakes to racks and let cool completely. Frost as desired. Credit: Jacob Fox How to Store Our Easy Chocolate Cupcakes Unfrosted cupcakes can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. (If storing frosted cupcakes instead, refer to the frosting recipe for ideal storage conditions.) Other Decorating Ideas We love topping these cupcakes with a two-toned frosting, but there are so other many ways to dress up your cupcakes with minimal effort. Skip the bag: Instead of piping on your frosting, grab a small offset spatula (or a butter knife) and spread frosting onto tops of cupcakes instead. Go big on sprinkles: Frost cupcakes, then dip each into a bowl of sprinkles. You can also dip just the rim of each cupcake in sprinkles for a unique look. Experiment with piping tips: Instead of a standard round tip, try a petal, leaf, or star tip to create more texture. If you'd like to switch between different tips while frosting your cupcakes, we recommend using a coupler, which will make the task extra easy (find them at craft stores and online). Add some flair: For a fresh look and some fun texture, add a sprinkle of mini chocolate chips, crushed candy, edible flowers, crushed freeze-dried fruit, or even edible glitter after frosting. 5 More Cupcake Recipes to Try Martha's Strawberry Cupcakes Boston Cream Pie Cupcakes Passion Fruit-Filled Cupcakes Milk-Chocolate Pudding Cupcakes Red Velvet Cupcakes Updated by Esther Reynolds Esther Reynolds Esther Reynolds is an experienced recipe developer, recipe tester, food editor, and writer with over a decade of experience in the food and media industries.