Chocolate Cream Cheese Cupcakes

by Julia · Published August 20, 2013 · Updated January 4, 2015

Chocolate Cupcake, Cream Cheese filling with Cream Cheese frosting

Chocolate Cupcake, Chocolate Cream Cheese filling with Chocolate Cream Cheese frosting

Today just seemed like a chocolate cupcake day. I truly do love baking these little bits of goodness. And, they are incredibly easy to pull together.

Choosing the filling and frosting was a bit problematic today since I had so many choices. My life partner made a request for crab apple filling (we found some crab apple jam at a nearby market this summer – score!). I cored and filled five cupcakes with this amazing yumminess. Side note: I was looking for fresh cherries this morning for a cherry chocolate combination – no such luck.

A friend suggested cream cheese filling. Oh yes. That’s the ticket. I’ve planned a chocolate and cream cheese cake for next week, but it sounded perfect for today’s cupcakes. Bonus: I had an unopened container of chocolate cream cheese as well.

I cored and filled one dozen cupcakes with a cream cheese and vanilla buttercream filling. So decadent. I practiced this smooth swirl using my Wilton 1A piping tip. I love the little tip at the top of each swirl – somehow I managed to make the icing consistency just right. Anyway, chocolate and cream cheese go together.

Another dozen cupcakes were cored and filled with a chocolate cream cheese filling and frosted with a chocolate cream cheese buttercream frosting. I tasted a bit of the icing … it was as good as it sounded. Yikes!

Putting the cupcakes back on a tray headed for the cake refrigerator.

Baking these cupcakes was just right. I do love messing around with buttercream and switching up the flavor profile. Also, it’s fun to decorate little cakes.

Side note: Photographing food, especially cupcakes and cake, must be a specialty! I need a food stylist and some photography lessons and probably something else I don’t know about. I took a sries of pictures moving this silk rose around. To me, they all look a bit….not right? I’m not using them on the blog, but included them here to share my food stylists shortcomings.