Cupcakes are quite possibly the best dessert invention ever. A portable cake that you can eat with your hands? Sign me up. Cupcakes are fabulous just on their own, but they can be made even better with some sick cupcake fillings.
Here are some of the best cupcake infusions that really elevate the OG treat.
1. Melted Chocolate
A chocolate cupcake infused with melted chocolate is basically a portable chocolate molten lava cake, which is goals. You can do this by putting a handful of chocolate chips into the center of each tin full of cupcake batter, then baking the cupcakes as per usual.
Though I would do a double chocolate cupcake, this filling would go well in any cupcake- especially vanilla and strawberry.
2. Caramel
Imagine silky smooth caramel cascading out of your cupcake. Is your mouth watering yet? Pipe some caramel into baked cupcakes or put a caramel candy in the center of each tin full of cupcake batter and bake.
Caramel is a great filling for a Snickers cupcake, but also try it with vanilla, brown butter, coconut (with some chocolate, this could become a samoa cupcake), apple (for a caramel apple pie cupcake), and banana flavors.
3. Candy
Add candy into the center of your unbaked cupcake for an extra sugary treat. Upgrade your chocolate cupcake by filling it with a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup, or add some pizzaz to your peanut butter cupcake by inserting a Butterfinger.
4. Nut Butter
Nut butter, specifically peanut butter, is fabulous on its own, but it's even better inside a cupcake. Peanut butter filling with a peanut butter flavored frosting might be too much for some, but it sounds like heaven to a peanut butter lover like me. Fill your baked cupcakes with a piping bag full of peanut butter.
5. Jam
This filling is a classic for everything from pop-tarts to doughnuts, so why not fill a cupcake with jam too? Use a piping bag to fill up your cupcake with jam. It's a great filling for peanut butter, vanilla, and banana cupcakes.
6. Fruit
Like jam, fruit is a classic sweet filling. Bake your cupcake, core it, and then stick a piece of fruit in it. Good cupcake and fruit combinations include: peanut butter & strawberry, cinnamon & apple, and chocolate & berries.
7. Pudding
Chocolate pudding in a chocolate cupcake? Yes, please. This flavor infusion tastes best in chocolate, coffee, and vanilla cupcakes. Add that pudding in after the cupcake has baked and cooled, then frost the cupcake with either more pudding or with actual frosting.
8. Cream or Cream Cheese
I always love a good cream top to my cupcakes, but they are even better inside the cake itself. Use a cream fillings to turn your regular cupcake into a Boston cream pie cupcake.
9. Lemon Curd
Lemon curd filling makes a decent cupcake a delectable zingy treat. Just plop some lemon curd into the middle of a baked cupcake and frost. This filling is perfect for lemon, fruit, vanilla, and coconut cupcakes... it really brightens up any cupcake.
10. Buttercream (aka more frosting)
Any cupcake can be improved with more frosting. It's a fact. Just pipe frosting (specifically buttercream frosting) into a baked cupcake and top with some more frosting. Peace, love, frosting.
11. Cookie Dough
Cookie dough is bomb by itself, but add it to a cupcake and you get a masterpiece. Fill baked cupcakes with cookie dough and enjoy. Cookie dough is great inside vanilla or chocolate cupcakes. Beware: it could be overpowering if you use too dramatic of a base.
12. Oreos
Fill cupcakes with Oreos for a sweet, and crunchy surprise. Simply place Oreos in the middle of each batter-filled cupcake tin and bake. Oreos would be great in plain cupcakes, or within ra red velvet cupcake cupcake.
13. Brownies
Who doesn't want another dessert inside of a dessert? That's what you get with brownie-filled cupcakes. To make, put a cooked brownie into each cupcake tin filled with batter, then bake like usual. Enjoy your double dessert!
14. Marshmallows
When you bake marshmallows into cupcakes, they get gooey and s'more-like. This is an easy filling- literally just stick a marshmallow into your unbaked cupcake and bake per usual, with no fancy ingredients or filling equipment necessary. This is a great filling for chocolate cupcakes, graham cracker crumb filled cupcakes (s'mores cupcakes!!), fruity cupcakes, hot cocoa cupcakes, and so much more.
15. Sprinkles
Sprinkles isn't just a famous cupcake store; it's also a fun cupcake filling. These sprinkle-filled cupcakes are like a dessert piñata. You can make by hollowing out baked cupcakes and filling them with sprinkles.
Now, go make some cupcakes and fill them with some of these insane cupcake fillings.