Hocus Pocus Chocolate Cupcakes take a rich cupcake and top it with frosting “hair” inspired by the Sanderson sisters! So fun and easy!
Why We Love Hocus Pocus Halloween Cupcakes
- It’s a Halloween favorite everyone loves. I’ve watched it every year since it came out. The Sanderson sisters are iconic and anyone can pick out the theme of theme cupcakes just by looking at them.
- These chocolate cupcakes are the bomb! Everything you want them to be and perfectly paired with the creamy buttercream frosting.
- The witch theme of these cupcakes works for birthday parties (hi October friends!) or use the theme to round out your party menu with Witches Brew Halloween Punch, cheese & pretzel witch broom snacks, spellbook brownies, and witch finger breadsticks.
Ingredients You’ll Need to Make Chocolate Cupcakes
DRY INGREDIENTS: Just like any chocolate cupcake recipe we’re using flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and chocolate powder. I’m also including some espresso powder to really bring out that chocolate flavor.
WET INGREDIENTS: Instead of butter we’re using vegetable oil, plus some eggs, milk, and water to dissolve the espresso powder. Nothing fancy. 🙂
FROSTING: This is a basic American buttercream made of butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and a little milk. It’s practically fool-proof and can easily be thickened or thinned out as needed.
How to Make Hocus Pocus Chocolate Cupcakes
Jump to RecipeSTEP 1 Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F and line a muffin tin with cupcake liners. Then mix together the hot water and espresso powder. Set that aside to cool while you grab your other ingredients.
STEP 2 In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the dissolved espresso powder, vegetable oil, eggs, and milk until smooth.
STEP 3 Whisk the dry ingredients together in a medium bowl. Then pour them into the wet ingredients and mix until just combined.
STEP 4 Use a cookie scoop to pour the batter into the cupcake liners until they’re 3/4 full. Then bake for 20-25 until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and cool the cupcakes on a wire rack.
STEP 5 Make the frosting by beating the butter in a large bowl (or use your stand mixer) for 5 minutes until it’s super fluffy. Add in the powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk and mix to combine.
SETP 6 Divide the frosting evenly between 3 bowls and then add food coloring to each bowl. You want 1 bowl of yellow, 1 bowl of orange, and 1 bowl of purple frosting.
STEP 7 Transfer each frosting to its own piping bag with a star tip. Frost the cupcakes to match each Sanderson sister’s hairstyle and then sprinkle on some edible glitter.
Tips & Tricks
- If you don’t have espresso powder on hand, you can use the 1 teaspoon of coffee powder or 1 tablespoon of strong coffee that’s been cooled.
- If your buttercream isn’t holding its shape as well as you would like you can do two things. 1) Pop the frosting into the fridge and let it firm up a bit before piping it onto the cupcakes. 2) Slowly stir in more powdered sugar to thicken the frosting.
- I find that gel food coloring works best to get a nice vibrant color. (Americolor is my favorite brand.) You can use liquid food coloring as, but you’ll need a lot more to get a vivid color.
Chocolate Cupcake FAQ
What’s the point of the espresso powder?
The espresso will help bring out the chocolate flavor without making it taste like a mocha cupcake. If you want to leave out the powder, you can, but I highly recommend it because it just really boost the flavor.
Is edible glitter safe to eat?
Yes, it is. Obviously not by the spoonful or anything like that, but a little sprinkle on your desserts or in drinks is perfectly fine.
You can find edible glitter under many names – disco dust, luster dust, etc. Just make sure the label states that it is “edible” and safe to consume.
Other Halloween Recipes You May Like
- Candy Corn Oreo Truffle Bark
- Black Magic Jello Shots
- Beetlejuice Cocktail
- Sparkling Spiced Pumpkin Punch
More Cupcakes to Devour
- Cookies & Cream Oreo Cupcakes
- Chai Latte Cupcakes
- Triple Chocolate Jack Daniel’s Cupcakes
- Pink Asti Cupcakes
Hocus Pocus Chocolate Cupcakes
Ingredients
Chocolate Cupcakes
- 1 cup water boiling
- ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon espresso powder
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup milk
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- ½ cup vegetable oil
Vanilla Buttercream
- 2 cups unsalted butter at room temperature
- 2 pounds powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- Gel food coloring (yellow, orange, and purple)
- Silver edible glitter
Instructions
Cupcakes
- Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. Line two muffin tin pans with paper cupcake liners.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the water, cocoa powder, and espresso powder, and allow it to sit for 5 minutes.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- Whisk in the milk, eggs, and oil into the cooled cocoa mixture. Stir in the flour mixture just until it starts to become smooth.
- Use a cookie scoop or spoon to pour the batter into the cupcake pan so each cup is about 3/4 full.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes until the tops spring back when pressed down on. Transfer to a cooling rack and allow them to cool completely.
Buttercream
- In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment (or using a hand mixer), beat the butter on medium speed for 5 minutes until the butter has become light and fluffy.
- Turn the speed down to low and slowly add in the powdered sugar and vanilla extract. Add in the milk one tablespoon at a time. Turn the mixer back up to medium speed and mix for an additional 3 minutes.
- Divide the buttercream evenly into three separate bowls. Add enough food coloring to each bowl to get a vibrant color. You should end up with one bowl of orange, one bowl of yellow, and one bowl of purple frosting.
Assembly
- Place each buttercream into a piping bag with a large star piping tip.
- Sarah Sanderson: On 8 of the cupcakes, pipe one big swirl of the yellow buttercream by placing the piping tip in the middle of the cupcake and adding pressure to the bag. Swirl the frosting around the cupcake, slowly making your way to the top.
- Winifred Sanderson: Pipe a large swirl of orange buttercream onto 8 other cupcakes. Then pipe two mini swirls on each side of the big buttercream swirl.
- Mary Sanderson: On the 8 cupcakes, start by piping out a swirl of purple buttercream. Then keep piping at an angle while allowing the buttercream to begin to tip over to one side.
- Sprinkle the cupcakes with edible glitter.
Notes
Nutrition
All nutritional information is based on third party calculations and is only an estimate. Each recipe and nutritional value will vary depending on the brands you use, measuring methods and portion sizes per household.
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