This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our privacy policy.
[donotprint]
I am not what you would call a hopeless romantic; I don’t swoon over getting flowers or eating dinner by candlelight, although I wouldn’t complain if you threw in some chocolate covered strawberries! However, I am hopelessly devoted to food.
I am always trying to celebrate the holidays by finding new and creative ways to love and cherish the foods that coincide with that time of year. Since February is the month of love and chocolate, I knew I had to come up with a sensual dessert that was both beautiful and incredibly delicious. With a free morning on my hands, I decided to create my idea of the perfect dessert. Chocolate cupcakes with strawberry infused buttercream finishes with a luscious chocolate covered strawberry. Are you drooling yet?
When conceptualizing these cupcakes, I knew that I wanted to highlight chocolate covered strawberries because they are the quintessential Valentine’s Day treat. As I headed into the kitchen to begin baking, I realized I was out of cocoa powder and due to the fact that it was 8am, I was rocking sweats, and had not a stitch of makeup on, I decided to make do with what I had on hand.
After checking out my baking stash, I realized I had all the ingredients to my favorite doctored up cake mix recipe, so I rolled with it! I then whipped together my go to buttercream recipe and infused it with fresh strawberry puree, the results were amazing and tasted like strawberry ice cream!
It gets better… I then topped these already incredible delicious cupcakes with decadent chocolate covered strawberries to add a little creativity and a touch of elegance. If you have no idea what to make your sweetie for Valentine’s Day, I’m thinking these Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cupcakes just may be the winning recipe! Have a delicious Valentine’s Day![/donotprint]
Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cupcakes
Ingredients:
For the Cupcakes
1 (18.25 ounce) package devil’s food cake mix
1 (5.9 ounce) package instant chocolate pudding mix
1 cup sour cream
1 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs, lightly beaten
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup warm water
For the Buttercream Frosting
3 sticks unsalted butter, softened
pinch of fine grain sea salt
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 pounds confectioners’ sugar, sifted
6 ounces strawberries, pureed
4-6 tablespoons heavy cream
Directions:
For the Cupcakes
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line muffin tin with paper liners or spray with non-stick cooking spray.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat together the cake and pudding mixes, sour cream, oil, eggs, vanilla and water. Beat for about two minutes on medium speed until well combined.
3. Using a large cookie scoop, distribute the batter between 24 muffin wells; about 3 tablespoons of batter per well.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 18-22 minutes or until a toothpick entered into the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Allow cupcakes to cool inside muffin tins for about 10 minutes.
5. Remove cupcakes from muffin tins and allow to fully cool on a wire rack. Once cupcakes are cool, prepare your frosting.
For the Buttercream Frosting
1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, cream butter on medium speed until fluffy. Turn your mixer down to low speed and slowly add in the confectioner’s sugar, and continue mixing until well blended.
2. Add salt, vanilla, 3 tablespoons of heavy cream and strawberry puree. Blend on low speed until moistened. Add an additional 1 to 3 tablespoons of heavy cream until you reach the desired consistency. Beat at high speed until frosting is smooth and fluffy
3. Pipe frosting onto cooled cupcakes and finish with a chocolate covered strawberry.
Notes:
- Frosting was piped onto cupcakes using the large round tip from Bake It Pretty.
- Find a simple recipe for chocolate covered strawberries here.
- Cupcakes will store in a sealed container within the refrigerator for two days.
Follow Jamie on Instagram. We love to see what you're baking from MBA! Be sure to tag @jamiemba and use the hashtag #mbarecipes!
Made this buttercream and used the chocolate covered strawberry idea, YUM!! I used my own chocolate cake recipe. My buttercream turned out a bit more pink than in the picture, but that’s ok! I would change the buttercream from 3 sticks of butter to 2 sticks butter and 1/2 stick shortening, it didn’t hold up as well without the shortening. Thanks for the recipe, was a huge hit! :)
Was your icing separating? It seems like that is what mine is doing.
Hi! I was wondering what size tip you used for these (and some of your other) cupcakes? I have a big round tip, but it doesn’t seem to be that big. Thank you.
Thanks so much for stopping by. This is certainly one of the most common questions that appears in my inbox. For frosting most of the cupcakes that appear on My Baking Addiction, I typically use the Giant Round Tip from Bake It Pretty. It provides the nice large swirls that are seen here. I also use the Giant French Tip from Bake It Pretty which creates a more textural. I hope this helps you with your cupcake creations! Have a delicious day!
-Jamie
I made these cupcakes last night and need some help with the forsting. It tastes ok but it started to separate on me. Also, was I really supposed to add 2 pounds of powdered sugar? By the time I added all the sugar the mixer was having a hard time mixing…any advice? I seem to have trouble with frosting and I’m not sure why. This frosting turned out thin and not light and fluffy…
I am making the vanilla & chocolate cupcakes with strawberry buttercream frosting and the icing is not working!
There are several comments about the icing being too thin, runny, separating, or not smooth, but no responses!
I am having the same issue and we followed the recipe exactly, except for doubling it. We measured the butter & sugar by weight.
And insight would be very helpful.
Hi Stephanie,
I answered you by email as well. Doubling the recipe including the strawberry puree could definitely result in runny icing. The problem with a fresh ingredient like strawberries is that I have no control over how juicy they are. The juicier the strawberry, the thinner the puree. You have to judge your icing consistency as you go, and only add as much of something wet like strawberry puree a little at a time. I also wouldn’t double it when doubling the recipe, instead keeping the measurement the same and slowly adding in more if you think you need it.
– Jamie
i made these without covering the strawberries in chocolate but my strawberries kept sliding off and “leaking” on the frosting…
any advice?
Holy moly, these cupcakes look soooo amazing!
These look divine! I just posted a strawberry cupcake recipe today that also begins with a boxed mix as it’s base. I normally do them with strawberry cream cheese icing made with fresh strawberries, but I opted to make a strawberry buttercream this time.
Great spring day post for me today! Strawberry Cupcakes (that are actually PINK) with Strawberry Buttercream.
Of course now I am craving one of yours….LOVE chocolate/strawberry together
These look delicious! Now that Valentine’s is over, I think this is also a great way to give chocolate cake a spring/summer makeover especially if you don’t dip the fresh strawberries (I can’t believe I just wrote that!) :) I have one question though. Besides making more frosting, would I need to change anything in the recipe in order to make this an actual cake?
Made these for my daughters birthday, and they were a huge hit. The frosting was amazing.
I just made these this morning for a good friend’s birthday – they are beautiful!! Still can’t get my buttercream to be quite as smooth looking, but I’m impressed with myself nonetheless :)
I’ve never ventured into doctored up cake mix territory – I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. The texture is so light and moist – I think the flavor lacks just a tiny bit, but topped with such a delicious and pillowy frosting and a chocolate covered strawberry – who will even notice?!
Thanks for another fantastic recipe!