October 6, 2020 | Last Updated on February 6, 2021 by Patricia Valbrun

These Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cupcakes are the perfect treats for Halloween! It's moist, chocolatey, and the best part? It's so easy to make! So if you're looking for a fun activity to do with your kids this Halloween or any other day, you have to try baking this cupcake!

Who said baking can't be fun? Now that's Halloween's just around the corner it's one reason to create fun and creative cupcakes! And because this recipe is so easy, you can involve and let your kids help with it.

HOW TO MAKE DARK CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER CUPCAKES

Ready? Here's how you can make this spooktacular dark chocolate cupcake with peanut butter for Halloween.

PREPARE - Preheat your oven to 350°F. Meanwhile, butter a 12 cup muffin tin or line it with paper liners, set aside.

MIX DRY INGREDIENTS - In a medium bowl, whisk cake flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt, set aside.

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COMBINE OTHER INGREDIENTS - Combine sugar, eggs, buttermilk, and vanilla extract with a stand mixer with the paddle attachment on medium-high speed. Add the coffee, espresso, flour mix, vegetable oil in the process gradually until well combined.

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BAKE - Once you've your batter well combined, divide it evenly among the prepared muffin cups. Bake for 18-20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cupcakes, comes out clean. Transfer the muffin tin to a wire rack to cool completely before icing.

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CREAM CHEESE PEANUT BUTTER FROSTING

MIX - With a hand mixer or stand mixer, add the softened butter, powdered sugar, heavy cream, cream cheese, and peanut butter gradually. Mix well until combined.

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ADD COLOR - Add a few drops of vanilla extract and the red/yellow food coloring. Fold the food coloring in the mixture. Once combined, you can now transfer the frosting to a piping bag.

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DECORATE - You can now start decorating your cupcakes!

GET CREATIVE

Want to take your cupcakes to the next level? Here are some tips to decorate your ghoulishly delightful cupcakes:

• Try different colors - if you're making this with kids, you can buy different food coloring and let them select what color they want.
• Edible toppers - go all out and have fun getting various edible toppers for your cupcake!
• Got some bad cupcakes? - do you have some cupcakes that broke off or got any excess? Crumble them and sprinkle on top of the frosting and it will add effect to your baked goods.

CAN YOU USE DIFFERENT TYPE OF COCOA POWDER?

For this recipe, I used cocoa powder to give off a dark chocolate velvet or brownie flavor which a lot will probably enjoy since it's not too sweet and yet it's very tasty and chocolatey. However, you can tweak this recipe as you like and use different type of cocoa powder.

MAKE AHEAD INSTRUCTIONS

Planning to make this ahead? You can make the cupcakes a day in advance then store it in a tight lid container at room temperature. As for the frosting, you can just make it the same day.

If you're planning to freeze your cupcakes, you can definitely do so just don't frost it and it should last you for a few months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and make sure to bring it to room temperature before frosting and serving.

You might also like:

Fresh Strawberry Cupcakes With Buttercream

Best Moist White Cake

Easy Red Velvet Cake

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How did you like this recipe? Leave a comment and let me know what you think. Looking for another pasta recipe? Try this Salmon Rasta Pasta recipe next!