Easy Caramel Cupcakes with Caramel Filling
These Caramel Cupcakes are the perfect cupcake for caramel lovers! This easy recipe makes 16 homemade cupcakes from scratch filled with sweet and silky caramel sauce and finished with fluffy caramel buttercream frosting and a delicious caramel drizzle!
Attention caramel lovers, this recipe packs THREE layers of caramel into one perfect cupcake, so it’s in your best interest to make these caramel cupcakes ASAP!
As a pastry school graduate, I love to play around with recipes and see what I can transform them into. This cupcake recipe started off as my classic vanilla cupcake recipe but was tweaked a bit to add more of a caramel flavor.
Brown sugar is used in this specific recipe to add a deeper flavor that just adds to the delicious caramel additions this cupcake features.
I also use Kraft Caramel Bits in this recipe to easily make the caramel filling. You can totally make your own if you want to- try my bourbon caramel sauce recipe and leave out the bourbon, but this is a super easy (and delicious) shortcut!
But wait, there’s more! Classic vanilla frosting is blended with caramel sauce, making the FLUFFIEST caramel buttercream to pipe on top. You could also top these with my brown butter frosting for a more nutty caramel flavor.
The final touch is an optional but recommended decorative caramel drizzle! You can either make your own easy caramel glaze or melt down caramel bits.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED
You need mostly regular baking pantry ingredients here. The only thing I am going to call out are these caramel bits.
To make your caramel sauce, you’ll need caramel bits and a splash of water or cream. I recommend these caramel bits as they melt nicely, but you can also use caramel squares and melt them over low heat with a splash of water, stirring until smooth. Store-bought caramel sauce is also an option.
Recipe step by step
Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and kosher salt in a medium-sized bowl until combined and set aside.
Divide the batter into the muffin cups, then bake until the cupcakes are fully set. Let them cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer them to a wire cooling rack to finish cooling.
Fill the caramel cupcakes
Please be careful when melting the caramel as it looks very fun to touch and play with but it is VERY HOT. Use 2 small spoons to scoop the caramel and then scrape it into the cupcake hole.
Make the caramel buttercream frosting recipe and then pipe over the cupcakes using a piping bag and star tip. Then, feel free to decoratively drizzle caramel sauce over the frosted cupcakes, and enjoy!
CUpcake troubleshooting tips
- Measure the dry ingredients precisely. If you don’t have a scale, spoon (NEVER scoop) the flour from the container into your measuring cup and level it off. You’ll have too much if you scoop the flour directly from the container with the measuring cup.
- Cold ingredients won’t incorporate evenly, resulting in dense cupcakes, so don’t forget to take the extra step and bring them to room temperature before getting started.
- Do not over mix! Overmixed cupcake batter can result in tough, chewy cupcakes.
- Fill the cupcake liners no more than 2/3rds full, or they will spill over the top. A 3-tablespoon cookie scoop is a perfect portion.
- The cupcakes are done when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out mostly clean with a few moist crumbs.
- You don’t want the residual heat to over bake the cupcakes, so only allow them to cool in the pan for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, move the cupcakes to a wire rack to finish cooling.
- If the cupcakes are too tender to cut into, you can place them in the fridge for a half hour, so they firm up enough to cut out a hole for the caramel filling easily.
Easy Caramel Cupcakes with Caramel Filling
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cups all purpose flour, 207g
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- ½ cup butter, unsalted at room temperature, 113g
- ½ cup granulated sugar, 100g
- ½ cup brown sugar, 110g
- 1 egg, large
- 2 egg whites, yolks discarded
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup buttermilk
- 6 oz caramel bits, bits not squares
- 1- 1 1/2 Tbsp water, or cream
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F and line a muffin tin with cupcake liners. This recipe makes 16 cupcakes so you can line two muffin tins or bake and repeat.
- In a medium size bowl combine the 1 ¾ cup flour, 1 tsp baking powder, ½ tsp baking soda, and ½ tsp kosher salt. Whisk until combined.
- In the bowl of a hand mixer or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment cream the ½ cup butter with the ½ cup granulated sugar and the ½ cup brown sugar until creamy, about 2 minutes.
- Scrape down the bowl and add the egg, 2 egg whites and 2 tsp vanilla extract. Mix for 1 minute on medium speed.
- Add in 1/3rd of the dry ingredients, then half of the buttermilk and alternate, starting and ending with the dry ingredients. Mix only until combined. Do not over mix.
- Using a 3 tbsp cookie scoop, scoop the batter into the muffin liners ¾ of the way full. Bake for 18-19 minutes or until the cake is set.
- Cool the cupcakes and make the caramel filling.
- In a microwavable safe bowl combine the 6 oz caramel bits with the 1 tbsp water or cream and mix lightly. Microwave for 2 minutes and stir until completely melted. Cool for 5-10 minutes.
- With a cupcake corer or a small paring knife cut a small hole in the middle of the cupcakes and keep the tops. Pour in 1 tsp of caramel inside and cover with the cut cupcake piece. Careful! The caramel may still be hot so you might need to use two spoons! If the caramel starts to harden or is too hot you can add 1 tsp more cream or water and stir to loosen and cool.
- Make the caramel buttercream – You will need more caramel so either melt more bits or buy a caramel sauce and use it for the buttercream. Frost the cupcakes and drizzle with and easy caramel glaze if you want!
