These Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes feature a raspberry-filled center and a light, fluffy raspberry-vanilla cream frosting. Delicious and quick — ready to serve in under 35 minutes.
If you’re hunting for other cupcake ideas, try my Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cupcakes or Golden Oreo Cupcakes for equally irresistible results.
These Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes combine rich, moist chocolate cake with a bright, tart raspberry filling. The contrast of deep chocolate and vibrant berry is impressive and easy to achieve at home.
The Raspberry Vanilla Crème Frosting is airy, lightly sweet, and tastes like a raspberry cream candy—creamy, fragrant, and perfect for piping onto each cupcake.
5 Reasons I Love This Recipe
- Flexible filling: Use homemade raspberry filling or a store-bought seedless preserve to save time.
- Fast and bakery-worthy: You can make these from start to finish in about 35 minutes while still getting bakery-quality flavor and texture.
- Makes a crowd-pleaser: This recipe yields around two dozen cupcakes—great for sharing or enjoying over several days.
- Make ahead: Bake and core the cupcakes in advance, then fill and frost just before serving.
- Doctored cake mix: The chocolate cupcakes begin with a boxed mix but are enhanced with pudding and other ingredients for a reliably moist, tender result.
Ingredient Notes
The cupcake base starts with a dark chocolate fudge cake mix that’s doctored with instant chocolate pudding mix, eggs, sour cream (or Greek yogurt), vegetable oil, whole milk, vanilla extract, salt, and mini chocolate chips for extra chocolate pockets.
Once baked and cooled, the center of each cupcake is removed with a cupcake corer (or a small paring knife and spoon) and filled with raspberry filling or seedless preserves.
The frosting is a stabilized whipped cream made with freeze-dried raspberries blended to a powder, heavy cream, powdered sugar, and instant vanilla pudding mix. Because it’s a whipped-cream base, the frosting should be refrigerated and is best enjoyed within 24 hours.
How To Make Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 350°F and line a cupcake pan with liners.
- Beat together all cupcake ingredients until combined.
- Fill liners about 3/4 full (roughly a scant 1/4 cup batter) and bake 18–22 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Transfer cupcakes to a wire rack and let cool to room temperature.
- Core the center of each cupcake and fill with raspberry filling or preserves.
- Pulse freeze-dried raspberries in a food processor until they form a fine powder and set aside.
- Whip heavy cream, powdered sugar, and instant vanilla pudding mix until soft peaks form, then beat in the raspberry powder until stiff peaks form.
- Pipe or spread the frosting onto the filled cupcakes and serve immediately for the best texture.
Frequently Asked Questions
How to store
Store cupcakes in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Because the frosting is whipped cream–based, enjoy within 24 hours for the best texture.
What can I substitute for sour cream?
Greek yogurt works well as a one-to-one substitute and keeps the cupcakes tender and moist.
What kind of pudding should I use?
Use instant (dry) pudding mix. Cook-and-serve pudding will not work in the cake or frosting.
Do I prepare the pudding before adding it?
No—add the dry instant pudding powder directly to the batter or frosting ingredients as instructed.
What if I don’t have a cupcake corer?
Use a small paring knife to cut a cone-shaped section from the top center of the cupcake, then gently scoop out the crumb with a small spoon.
These Raspberry Chocolate Cupcakes are a delicious combination of rich chocolate and bright berry flavor. They’re excellent for parties, gifts, or satisfying a sweet craving. If you enjoy the chocolate-and-fruit pairing, try other variations like chocolate-orange or white chocolate-raspberry cupcakes for more inspiration.
Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes
Ingredients
Cake
- 1 box dark chocolate fudge cake mix
- 1 (3.4 oz) box instant chocolate pudding mix (dry)
- 4 large eggs
- 1 cup sour cream (or Greek yogurt)
- 3/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup mini chocolate chips
Filling
- 12 ounces raspberry filling or seedless raspberry preserves
Frosting
- 1 oz freeze-dried raspberries (pulverized)
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1/3 cup instant vanilla pudding mix (dry)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F and line a cupcake pan with liners.
- Combine all cupcake ingredients and beat until combined.
- Fill liners 3/4 full and bake 18–22 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Cool cupcakes on a wire rack to room temperature.
- Core cupcakes and fill with raspberry filling.
- Pulse freeze-dried raspberries to a fine powder and set aside.
- Whip heavy cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla pudding mix until soft peaks form, then beat in raspberry powder until stiff peaks form.
- Pipe frosting onto filled cupcakes and serve immediately for best texture.
Notes
- The filling can be homemade or store-bought.
- Because the frosting is whipped cream–based, refrigerate and enjoy within 24 hours.
- Cupcakes can be prepared ahead and frosted right before serving.
- Use instant (dry) pudding mix only; do not use prepared cook-and-serve pudding.
Nutrition
Carbohydrates: 26 g |
Protein: 3 g |
Fat: 22 g |
Saturated Fat: 13 g |
Sodium: 212 mg |
Sugar: 18 g