Make Ahead

Nutella Cupcakes

January 27, 2010
4
3 Ratings
Photo by James Ransom
  • Prep time 45 minutes
  • Cook time 25 minutes
  • Serves 12
Author Notes

The cakes are moist and somewhat dense, almost chewy, and come out of the oven with perfectly flat tops, which beg for a slick of ganache and end up having that gorgeous, streamlined European bake shop vibe. Also, the ganache in this recipe is my go-to ganache--it firms up nicely with a slight chew and a satiny sheen. Full story of this recipe available on my blog at pieceofcakeblog.blogspot.com ! —Shauna Sever

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • For the cupcakes
  • 1/2 cup self-rising flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 8 ounces Nutella
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 tablespoons milk
  • For the ganache
  • 3 ounces high-quality bittersweet chocolate chips
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 2 teaspoons light corn syrup
  • 1/8 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup chopped toasted hazelnuts, for garnish
Directions
  1. For the cupcakes
  2. Preheat the oven to 325° F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners.
  3. Whisk together the flour and salt and set aside.
  4. With an electric mixer in a medium bowl, beat the butter until creamy. Add the vanilla and almond extracts and beat until well-blended. Add the sugar and beat until fluffy and pale in color. Beat in the Nutella until well-incorporated, stopping to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl while beating. Add the eggs and beat until smooth. On low speed, beat in half the flour mixture just until it beings to disappear into the batter. Beat in the milk. Fold in the remainder of the flour mixture by hand until the batter is smooth.
  5. Pour the batter into the muffin cups, filling them no more than 1/2 full. Bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out with moist crumbs—if in doubt, pull them from the oven a bit early—do not over bake. Cool completely in the pan on a wire rack.
  1. For the ganache
  2. Place the chocolate chips, butter and corn syrup in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on high for 30 second intervals, stopping to stir after each interval, until the mixture is shiny and smooth. Stir in the vanilla.
  3. When the cupcakes are completely cool, using a spoon, top each one with about two teaspoons of the ganache, and with the back of the spoon coax it as close to the edges as possible without letting it drip down the sides (or go on and let it drip...drippy chocolate is rarely a bad thing). Sprinkle on a bit of the chopped hazelnuts. Let the ganache set before storing in an airtight container at room temperature overnight—these cupcakes truly taste better the next day. But if you want to defy me and serve the cupcakes immediately, refrigerate them for about five minutes and the ganache will quickly set.
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Shauna Sever is the author of Real Sweet, Pure Vanilla, and Marshmallow Madness!, and is the voice behind the popular blog Piece of Cake. As a baking expert and television host, she has appeared on Food Network, NPR, CHOW, eHowFood, and more. Her work has been published in O, The Oprah Magazine; USA Weekend; Woman's World; Fine Cooking; Parade; the Huffington Post; and many others. She lives with her husband and their two children in Oak Park, Illinois.

31 Reviews

Veronica October 21, 2015
Judging by how far they fell I'm going to say it's by weight. :P
 
Veronica October 21, 2015
Is the 8 oz of nutella by weight or by volume? I've seen it asked a couple of times but haven't seen an answer!

Thanks! These look amazing...making tonight.
 
amazinc September 14, 2014
Someone else asked it this recipe could make a 9-inch cake and I also want to know that. I like the way the recipe sounds, but need a full sized cake instead
of cupcakes. Help!!!!!
Marianne Anderson
 
Ilana H. August 19, 2014
Ack! Quick question... as I need to make these soon!! the 8oz of nutella, is that by weight or by volume???
 
Julie M. March 28, 2014
Love Nutella, but will not use it because it contains palm oil. Is there anything else that can be used?
 
chris August 15, 2015
This homemade nutella recipe is pretty good, if you're okay with coconut sugar not being sustainable: http://www.naturalsweetrecipes.com/healthy-nutella/
 
Paulaob February 16, 2014
My cupcakes sunk in the middle! What did I do wrong?
 
Rachel March 19, 2016
Mine fell in the middle too! Would love to hear what the reason might be...mine are like craters I can't even ice them.
 
Kathy H. February 9, 2014
As decadent as these seem how long would miniature cupcakes bake and still remain moist?
 
Lisa M. February 9, 2014
These look great! Allergy question -- can you use a flax or chia egg (or some other) instead? Thanks.
 
Debra B. February 9, 2014
please find a substitute for nutella. palm oil is an evil to be reckoned with. there are plenty of choco-hazelnut options out there without that as an ingredient. look at it this way- you're improving the health of your family, a tropical forest and orangutans. please just do it.
 
Miles February 9, 2014
Just found this recipe and your comment made me curious. It seems as far Nutella is trying to be a good corp. citizen and is addressing the problems? This is the link from the Nutella site to its supplier of palm oil.
http://www.ferrerousa.com/news-palm-oil/
 
mabeskoh August 8, 2012
Sorry for the silly question but is one cup equivalent to 250ml or 300ml?
 
AntoniaJames August 8, 2012
Not a silly question at all . . . . a cup = 237ml. Have fun! ;o)
 
JulieBakes January 22, 2012
I've made these cupcakes several times and they're always a hit! I use hazelnut extract instead of the almond extract to keep the flavor more hazelnut-y.
 
Dougsalt January 17, 2012
Turned a great cupcake into unbelievable by also injecting Nutella into core of cupcake upon removing from oven. Got milk?
 
pqmommy October 22, 2011
Oh. My. Goodness. These are divine! I was a little worried that the amount of butter was wrong but it's right. More than right. My kids are gonna make a lot of friends with these. Thanks!
 
Kiki T. September 7, 2011
Heavenly! Best cupcakes I've ever baked. Thanks for sharing your recipe.
 
BloomingtonBaker July 26, 2011
My partner loves Nutella. So I surprised him with these last Valentine's Day. (I added a photo of my results above.) They were a hit!
 
spaetzlegirl May 1, 2011
excellent recipe! rich, chocolatey flavor, and a surprisingly moist (almost fudgy) texture. i couldn't convince people that i hadn't bought them from some fancy bakery. the ganache is indeed a keeper - can't get over that fabulous satiny gloss...
 
ZiggyPiecrust February 19, 2011
These were amazing. Made double batch and took most of them into the office as a Valentine's Day treat. The toasted hazelnuts on top are a must. Thought the nutella would come through more - the almond flavor does, which is never a bad thing.
 
colormesunshine August 17, 2010
hi..can i make this as a regular size cake? say in a 9in pan. how long will i have to bake it for?
 
jms63 June 7, 2010
Silly question - is 8 oz. of Nutella the same as adding 1 cup of Nutella?
 
KPotvin May 29, 2010
These are amazing! Thanks for posting the correction on the vanilla - I jumped on the computer mid-baking to see if there was one...and there it was. A huge hit with the family.