Small Batch Ghost Cupcakes with Marshmallow Buttercream
These small batch ghost cupcakes are a must-make for a special Halloween treat! And they're super easy to decorate. They have rich black velvet cupcakes, toffee-like butterscotch sauce, and fluffy marshmallow buttercream. The perfect festive flavor combo!
Equipment
- Hand mixer or stand mixer
- Mixing bowls
- Paper cupcake liners
- Piping bag with large round tip
- Kitchen tweezers optional
Ingredients
Black Velvet Cupcakes
- 60 grams all-purpose flour (½ cup)
- 20 grams black cocoa powder (¼ cup)
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ⅛ teaspoon Kosher salt I use Diamond
- ½ teaspoon instant espresso powder optional
- 60 milliliters neutral oil I use avocado oil (¼ cup)
- 50 grams granulated sugar (¼ cup)
- 50 grams dark brown sugar (¼ cup, packed)
- 1 large egg room temperature
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 60 milliliters whole milk (¼ cup)
- 30 milliliters boiling water (2 Tablespoons)
Marshmallow Buttercream
- 115 grams unsalted butter softened (½ cup)
- 100 grams marshmallow fluff (3.5 ounces)
- 120 grams sifted powdered sugar (1 cup)
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 ½ teaspoons whole milk or heavy cream
- Pinch of Kosher salt
Assemble & Decorate
- 140 milliliters butterscotch sauce (3 Tablespoons)
- Black pearl sprinkles or mini chocolate chips, for decoration
Instructions
Black Velvet Cupcakes
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Line a cupcake pan with 6 paper liners. Then, add the flour, black cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and espresso powder (if using) to a small mixing bowl. Whisk and set aside.
- Combine the neutral oil, granulated sugar, brown sugar, egg, vanilla extract, and whole milk in a medium mixing bowl. Whisk until smooth, 1-2 minutes.
- Then, sift the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Whisk until the batter is about 80% mixed. Next, add the boiling water to the batter. Mix just until the batter is combined and there are no more streaks of flour or cocoa powder.
- Using a cupcake scoop, divide the batter between the 6 liners. They will be about ¾ full. Bake the cupcakes for 17-20 minutes, until an inserted toothpick has a few moist crumbs.
- Let the cupcakes cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Then, transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Marshmallow Buttercream
- Add the unsalted butter and marshmallow fluff to a medium mixing bowl. Using a hand mixer or stand mixer with a whip attachment, beat the butter and marshmallow fluff until the mixture is smooth.
- Add the sifted powdered sugar and beat until everything is well combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Then mix in the vanilla extract, whole milk, and salt. The buttercream will be thick.
- Turn the mixer to medium-high and beat the buttercream for another 2-3 minutes, until the frosting is very fluffy. If the buttercream is too thick, add another 1-2 teaspoons of whole milk as needed.
Assemble & Decorate
- Once the cupcakes are cooled, use a paring knife to cut a cone in the center of each cupcake, but don't cut all the way to the bottom. Then, slice off the tips so you have 6 round, flat pieces of cake for the tops. Eat the scraps!
- Then, fill the cupcakes with 1-1 ½ teaspoons of the butterscotch sauce, leaving a little room at the top. Place the leftover cake rounds on top of the butterscotch. Do your best to make it level with the rest of the cupcake.
- Next, fit a piping bag with a large round tip and transfer the marshmallow buttercream to the piping bag. Pipe a big circle of frosting on top of one cupcake. Repeat the process two more times, pulling up at the end to create a pointed ghost shape. Repeat this process with the remaining cupcakes.
- Using kitchen tweezers or clean fingers, place 3 black pearl sprinkles (or mini chocolate chips) near the top of the frosting to create a ghost face. (See the blog post for a visual.) Enjoy immediately or store in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days. Bring to room temperature for 1 hour before eating.
Notes
It's important to weigh the ingredients with a scale instead of measuring cups. Even just a little extra flour or cocoa powder can make the cupcakes dense and dry. But if you don't have a scale, here's how to measure the flour and cocoa powder. First, fluff it with a whisk. Spoon the fluffed flour or cocoa powder into the measuring spoon and level it off without packing it in.
You can swap the black cocoa powder for Dutch-process if that's all you have on hand. Black cocoa can also be purchased online or in specialty food stores.
The instant espresso powder makes the cupcakes taste more chocolatey, but it's totally optional.
This recipe also works with vanilla buttercream or cream cheese frosting.
For high-altitude baking (~4,500 ft.), reduce the baking powder to ¼ teaspoon and the baking soda to ⅛ teaspoon.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cupcakeCalories: 536kcalCarbohydrates: 68gProtein: 4gFat: 30gSaturated Fat: 14gCholesterol: 74mgSodium: 161mgPotassium: 115mgFiber: 2gSugar: 54g
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!