Servings: 14

Ingredients

Cupcakes

• 130 g flour 
• ½ cup dutch processed cocoa
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ½ cup unsalted butter, melted
• ½ cup caster (superfine) sugar 
• ½ cup packed dark brown sugar
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• ¾ cup buttermilk

Filling and Frosting

• 250 g cream cheese, softened
• 2 ¼ cup icing (confectioners / powdered) sugar, sifted
• ½ cup thickened (heavy cream
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 85 g unsalted butter, softened (¾ stick)
• ¼ cup cocoa
• ¼ teaspoon salt

Instructions

Cupcake

1. Preheat your oven to 350F and line your muffin tins with cupcake liners.
2. In a bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Mix well to combine.
3. In a separate bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together the melted butter and both sugars until smooth.
4. Add the eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl each time and beating well after each. Add the vanilla and beat to combine.
5. Add ⅓ of the flour mixture to the wet ingredients until just combined.
6. Now add half of the buttermilk, mix gently again. Repeat until all the flour and buttermilk is combined. (Do not over mix to avoid dense cupcakes).
7. Fill cupcake liners about halfway full. Bake in the oven for around 18-20 minutes, turning the pan around in the oven half way through to make sure they bake evenly. When a toothpick inserted comes out clean they are ready.
8. Cool in the tin for 5 minutes before turning out onto a cooling rack. Make sure they are completely cool before frosting.

Filling and Frosting

1. For the cheesecake filling, add the cream cheese, cream, vanilla and half the icing sugar to a bowl and beat using a handheld beater until smooth and creamy.
2. Use a sharp knife or cupcake corer to cut a hole in the top of each cupcake, then fill each with around 1 teaspoon of the cheesecake filling. Set aside the rest.
3. In another bowl, beat the butter and remaining sugar until smooth and creamy. Add the leftover cheesecake filling, cocoa and salt and beat just until smooth.
4. Pipe the frosting on top of your cupcakes.
5. Optional: Top with graham cracker crumbs, cookie crumbs, or chocolate almond raspberry bark.

Thanks to the original recipe found in here.