Inspired by the Starbucks Double Chocolate Chip Frappuccino, these intensely chocolaty cupcakes have a hint of coffee, plenty of chocolate pieces, and a light, whipped frosting on top.
I spent far too long trying to decide how to spell Frappuccino and finally gave in to Google. Spelling aside, I don’t drink much coffee, but every so often I crave that unmistakable, chocolate-forward Starbucks Double Chocolate Chip Frappuccino—the rich chocolate balanced by a faint espresso note, finished with chocolate-drizzled whipped cream. It reminds me of childhood cold chocolate milk, and I wanted to capture that flavor in cupcake form.
Rather than recreate the drink, I adapted my favorite one-bowl chocolate cupcake recipe to echo the frappuccino experience. The cupcakes are studded with very finely chopped dark chocolate so each bite has flecks of melty chocolate. A couple of tablespoons of instant coffee dissolved in hot water deepen the chocolate and add a subtle espresso note without making the cupcakes taste strongly of coffee. The result is a moist, intensely flavored cupcake that remains light and tender.
The frosting is what made these cupcakes stand out. It’s a stabilized mock-whipped cream made by combining whipped heavy cream with a cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla mixture. The cream cheese keeps the frosting from being overly sweet and adds structure so the frosting holds up for a couple of days. It’s light, airy, and pipeable—perfect for piping a cloud of whipped frosting and finishing with a chocolate drizzle and extra chopped chocolate.
Although Starbucks calls their drink “double chocolate chip,” the chocolate bits are much smaller than standard chips. For that reason, finely chop dark chocolate into very small pieces—smaller than mini chips—so the pieces stay dispersed through the batter and produce little pockets of melty chocolate in every bite.
Copycat Starbucks Double Chocolate Chip Frappuccino Cupcakes
Cupcakes inspired by Starbucks’ double chocolate chip frappuccinos.
Cook: 20 mins |
Total: 1 hr 5 mins |
Servings: 24 cupcakes
Ingredients
Cupcakes
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup natural unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 2/3 cup canola oil (or vegetable oil)
- 1 cup milk
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten (preferably room temperature)
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup very hot water
- 2 Tbsp instant coffee, dissolved in the hot water
- 6 oz premium dark chocolate, chopped into very small pieces
Frosting
- 8 oz cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar, divided
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 cups heavy cream
- Chocolate syrup, for drizzling
- Optional: 2 oz finely chopped dark chocolate or mini chocolate chips for garnish
Instructions
Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 350°F and line a muffin tin with cupcake liners (or lightly grease and flour).
- In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Stir in the canola oil and milk until combined.
- Add the eggs one at a time, stirring after each addition.
- Stir in the vanilla extract.
- Carefully stir the instant coffee into the very hot water. Add this coffee-water mixture to the batter and stir until evenly combined. The batter will be thin; stir until smooth.
- Fold in the finely chopped dark chocolate pieces.
- Fill muffin cavities just over two-thirds full. Occasionally scrape the bowl to redistribute any chocolate that settles.
- Bake at 350°F for 18–22 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.
- Allow cupcakes to cool completely before frosting.
Frosting
- Beat together the softened cream cheese, 1 cup powdered sugar, and vanilla extract until smooth. Set aside.
- In a clean, dry bowl, combine the heavy cream and the remaining 1/2 cup powdered sugar. Using a whisk attachment, beat on high speed until stiff peaks form. Be careful not to overbeat.
- Fold the cream cheese mixture into the whipped cream with the mixer on low speed until well combined and light.
- Pipe the frosting generously onto cooled cupcakes. Drizzle with chocolate syrup and garnish with chopped chocolate or mini chips if desired.
- Serve and enjoy.
Notes
* Chop the dark chocolate into very small pieces—smaller than mini chips—so the pieces remain dispersed through the cupcake. If the pieces are too large they may sink to the bottom.
**This recipe yields just over 24 cupcakes. Any extra batter can be baked as mini cupcakes after the pans cool.
Nutrition
Serving: 1 cupcake | Calories: 281 kcal | Carbohydrates: 34 g | Protein: 3 g | Fat: 15 g | Saturated Fat: 9 g | Cholesterol: 66 mg | Sodium: 228 mg | Potassium: 111 mg | Fiber: 1 g | Sugar: 25 g
Nutrition information is an approximation.
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