Chocolate Orange Cupcakes with Orange Cream Cheese Frosting

Don’t you love these moody chocolate cupcakes? Today just happens to be National Chocolate Cake day, so we thought it was only fitting to share these cupcakes! Can you tell that we’ve been baking a lot of cake lately? It’s due to our next big project, which we will be excited to share with you later this year! I promise, there will be other recipes besides cake coming soon.

These chocolate orange cupcakes taste just like the chocolate orange candy that you can purchase, the kind where you break the orange apart into slices. Yum! The cupcake is flavored with black coffee and fresh orange juice, creating an acidic reaction that results in a beautifully spongey cake. With the addition of an orange flavored cream cheese frosting, it feels like an artisanal bakery cupcake!

I have really been loving stepping up our dessert decorating game. I have been so inspired by childhood nostalgia and cute, bakery style desserts. After so many years of feeling like I had to prove myself as a cook, I now feel like I can just let go and have fun! These turned out so pretty, and they taste incredible, too. I know that you will love!

the history of chocolate cake:

Did you know that chocolate cake has only been around for about 150 years? Cocoa powder was not commercially available until the 1860s. There was a recipe floating around earlier for chocolate cake, though this used melted chocolate. I absolutely love making a chocolate with melted chocolate! It’s a completely different flavor than cocoa powder, though it also alters the texture.

As today is National Chocolate Cake Day, I felt it was only fitting to learn a little bit about where chocolate cake comes from! I was, however, more interested in the story of the chocolate orange. This delicious candy began in the late 1700s as a candy shop that sold candied lemon and orange peels. In 1823, Joseph Terry created the Terry’s Chocolate Apple. The chocolate orange did not appear until 1923, and it was an incredible hit that changed the history of the Terry’s company.

These cupcakes are perfectly soft and spongy, chocolatey, with the perfect hint of orange. I love them! I could eat the entire tray, though I will definitely be sending these to work with my husband to share with his coworkers!

I hope that you enjoy this recipe!

xoxo Kayla

Chocolate Orange Cupcakes with Orange Cream Cheese Frosting

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Yield: 18

Author: Kayla Lobermeier

Prep time: 1 HourCook time: 22 MinTotal time: 1 H & 22 M

Ingredients

Chocolate Orange Cupcakes

• 2 1/2 cups cake flour, sifted
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 large eggs
• 1/4 cup hot strong coffee
• 1 tbsp fresh orange juice
• 2 tsp fine orange zest

Orange Cream Cheese Frosting

• 1/2 cup salted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup cream cheese, softened
• 4 cups powdered sugar, sifted
• 3 tbsp heavy cream or milk
• 1 tsp orange extract
• 1 tbsp fresh orange juice
• 2 tsp fine orange zest, plus more for decorating
• orange food coloring (optional)
• orange slices, for decorating
• melted chocolate, for decorating

Instructions

To prepare the cupcakes

1. Preheat the oven to 425° F. Line a standard muffin tin with cupcake liners. Spray the liners with cooking spray for easy peel off.
2. In a medium bowl, sift together the cake flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, salt, and baking soda. Set this aside.
3. In a separate large bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, oil, eggs, and vanilla. Fold in the dry ingredients followed by the coffee, orange juice, and orange zest. Mix until the dry ingredients are no longer visible; do not over mix!
4. Divide the cupcake batter evenly in the muffin tin, filling 3/4 of the way full. There will be enough batter for about 18 cupcakes.
5. Bake the cupcakes at 425° F for 10 minutes. Lower the oven temperature to 350° F and bake for another 10-12 minutes or until the a toothpick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Repeat this baking process with any remaining batter. If the remaining batter does not fill up the entire cupcake tin, fill the empty cupcake cavities with water. This will help the cupcakes to bake evenly and have a nice dome!
6. Let the cupcakes cool in the muffin tin for about 5 minutes before moving to a wire cooling rack. Let the cupcakes cool to room temperature before frosting.

To prepare the frosting

1. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and cream cheese.
2. Slowly begin to incorporate the powdered sugar alternately with the cream, orange extract, and orange juice until a desired consistency is reached. We like a crusting buttercream, personally! Stir in the orange zest.
3. Transfer the frosting to a piping bag fitted with a large open star attachment. Pipe the frosting onto the tops of the cupcakes. Decorate them with orange slices dipped in melted chocolate and extra orange zest. We drizzle melted chocolate over the tops as well!

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