Small Batch Eggless Chocolate Cupcakes

These small batch eggless chocolate cupcakes have a deep cocoa flavor and a soft, moist crumb. The easy batch of six is made with simple ingredients like sour cream, butter, and oil that replace the need for eggs. Ready in about 30 minutes, the cupcakes bake up light and fluffy and hold up beautifully under frosting. Just the right amount for smaller celebrations, birthdays, or weekend chocolate cravings.

How These Eggless Cupcakes Came Together

I set out to make these chocolate cupcakes for a simple reason: I wanted a chocolate cupcake, but I’d run out of eggs. Now, I could have gone to the store, but after the success of my small chocolate wacky cake (also made without eggs), the persistent baker in me was now on a mission.

Sure, I could have just adapted the cake into cupcakes, but that’s not how I wanted to test these. I wanted to use everyday cake ingredients to make a cupcake without a single egg and no fussy egg replacers.

It took more than five dozen test batches. No joke. With each batch, the flavor was there; it was the texture that fought me. They sank, spilled over, fell apart … you name a cake-texture nightmare, and I baked it at least once.

The fix was balancing what an egg actually does. Oil, sour cream, and butter stand in for the fat and richness, and a mix of milk and hot coffee dials in the ratio of liquid to dry — plus coffee helps punctuate the cocoa flavor.

Then I reached for my favorite mixing method, reverse creaming. You’ll see me use this in my small batch vanilla cupcakes. It keeps the gluten in check and gives these cupcakes their pillowy, soft interior.

The result of my many tests is a reliable recipe. It’s the same eggless cupcake in my black forest cupcakes — so when you want to put in the extra effort on a fun topping or filling, the cupcake itself is already handled.

How To Make Chocolate Cupcakes Without Eggs

Start by adding all of the dry ingredients to a mixing bowl, including the sugar. And if your cocoa is a little lumpy (mine always is), sift it into the bowl for even distribution. A note on the cocoa: I developed this recipe specifically for Dutch process cocoa, for its deeper, less acidic flavor.

Then add the butter cubes to the dry ingredients. This is the reverse creaming method, and it’s what gives these cupcakes their soft, velvety crumb. It’s a little different from my classic small batch chocolate cupcakes, which use an oil-only batter, but it’s just as easy.

Mix the butter into the dry ingredients for a couple of minutes until you have something that resembles moist sand.

In a liquid measuring cup, whisk together the milk, sour cream, oil, and vanilla. And have your hot coffee ready to go. If you’re not a fan of (or don’t have) coffee, hot water will work. The coffee simply deepens the chocolate flavor without making the cupcakes taste like coffee.

Drizzle half of the wet ingredients, along with the coffee, into the dry ingredients. Mix well until the batter starts to look velvety and smooth. Add the remaining liquid and continue mixing for about another minute. The batter will be on the thicker side and look pretty glossy at this point.

Equally portion the batter into cupcake liners and bake. And one of my favorite “baking done” tips: with chocolate cupcakes (or cake), you’ll actually start to smell the aroma of chocolate when the cupcakes are ready.

Give the cupcakes ample time to cool down before frosting. My topping of choice is the light marshmallow whipped cream. But really, since the cupcakes are chocolate, they can be paired with just about any flavor.

How These Cupcakes Bake Up

• Don’t overbake chasing a dry toothpick. A few moist crumbs on the toothpick test are exactly right, and let the smell and the springy top be your additional signals.
• These won’t dome dramatically. We lose a little of that rise when we don’t have eggs. Which is totally fine, and the flatter top is often preferred for decorating.
• They are pretty delicate when they’re warm. Because the crumb is so tender, let them cool completely before peeling off the liners.

Small Batch Eggless Chocolate Cupcakes

5 from 1 review

A small batch of six soft chocolate cupcakes with deep cocoa flavor, made entirely without eggs and ready in 30 minutes. A combination of sour cream, butter, and oil replaces the need for eggs and gives the cupcakes their pillowy texture and moist bite.

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by Erin Cernich

Yield6 Cupcakes

Prep10 minutes minutes

Cook18 minutes minutes

Total Time28 minutes minutes

Equipment

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  Muffin/Cupcake Pan
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  Stand Mixer
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  3-Quart Mixing Bowl
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  Hand Mixer (optional)

Ingredients

• ▢ ⅔ cup (83.33 g) all-purpose flour
• ▢ ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
• ▢ 3 tablespoons (15 g) unsweetened cocoa powder, Dutch process
• ▢ ¾ teaspoon baking powder
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon salt
• ▢ 2 tablespoons (28 g) unsalted butter, room temperature and cut into cubes
• ▢ ¼ cup (59.15 ml) milk, room temperature (whole or 2%)
• ▢ 2 tablespoons (29.57 ml) canola oil (or any neutral oil )
• ▢ 1 tablespoon full fat sour cream, room temperature
• ▢ 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ▢ 3 tablespoons (44.36 ml) medium brew coffee, very hot (or hot water)

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Instructions

 

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  Preheat the oven to 350F degrees and adjust the oven rack to the middle position. Line a muffin pan with 6 cupcake liners.
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  In the mixing bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt. If the cocoa powder is lumpy, sift it through a fine mesh strainer set over the bowl. Give the dry ingredients a quick mix to combine.
  2/3 cup all-purpose flour, 1/2 cup granulated sugar, 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder, Dutch process, 3/4 teaspoon baking powder, 1/4 teaspoon salt
See the Notes below to use a stand mixer or hand mixer.
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  Add the butter cubes to the dry ingredients. Mix on medium speed until the butter is broken up and the mix resembles moist, coarse sand. About 1 to 2 minutes. This reverse-creaming method yields light and fluffy cupcakes.
  2 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature and cut into cubes
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  In a liquid measuring cup, measure the milk, then add the oil, sour cream, and vanilla. Mix to combine.
  1/4 cup milk, room temperature, 2 tablespoons canola oil, 1 tablespoon full fat sour cream, room temperature, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ▢
  Turn the mixer on low speed. Slowly drizzle half of the wet ingredients, along with the hot coffee, into the dry. Turn the mixer to medium speed and mix for about 60 seconds, until the mix is velvety smooth. Drizzle in the remaining wet ingredients and keep mixing for one more minute. The batter will be smooth and almost glossy.
  3 tablespoons medium brew coffee, very hot
The mixing steps and time are important to yield plush and soft cupcakes. Otherwise, they may come out more spongy.
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  Pour equal amounts of batter into the prepared cupcake liners. Use a small cookie scoop to help with portioning and to minimize mess. Bake for 16 to 18 minutes, or until they are springy to the touch and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
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  Cool the cupcakes in the pan set on a wire cooling rack for 5 minutes. Then transfer the cupcakes to the wire rack to cool completely before frosting. My favorite for these cupcakes is the marshmallow whipped cream frosting.

Notes

• Serving Size – This is a small batch recipe that can easily be doubled.
• Stand Mixer vs Hand Mixer – To use your tilt-head stand mixer with standard attachments, I link to the smaller mixing bowl I use in the equipment section. Otherwise, a hand mixer and medium mixing bowl will work fine.
• Cocoa Powder – I prefer Dutch process cocoa because it is less acidic and has a stronger flavor.  
• Coffee vs Hot Water – Coffee intensifies the cocoa flavor without making the cupcakes taste like coffee. If you don’t like or have coffee, hot water can also be used. 
• Storage – Unfrosted cupcakes can be stored covered at room temperature for 3 to 5 days. To freeze: wrap individually in plastic wrap, place in a freezer bag, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator, then bring to room temp to frost and serve.

Nutrition Estimates

Calories: 218kcal | Carbohydrates: 31g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 12mg | Sodium: 140mg | Potassium: 166mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 17g | Vitamin A: 146IU | Vitamin C: 0.02mg | Calcium: 46mg | Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is calculated by a third-party and should only be considered an estimate and not a guarantee.