If you love decadent, rich chocolate, you will love these Ferrero Rocher Cupcakes. Each moist chocolate cupcake is topped with homemade ganache and Ferrero Rocher chocolates!
What’s in Chocolate Hazelnut Cupcakes?
If Ferrero Rocher chocolates are your favorite chocolates, you are going to go wild for these Ferrero Rocher chocolate cupcakes. The cupcake, frosting, and chocolate on top offer a triple threat of chocolate!
- Milk: Adds moisture to the cupcakes. I’m using whole milk for added richness, but feel free to use what you have on hand– skim or 2% would work just fine.
- Vegetable Oil: Adds richness and moisture to the cupcakes.
- Eggs: Bind the cupcake batter together.
- Vanilla Extract: Enhances the flavor of the chocolate in the cupcakes.
- Granulated Sugar: Sweetens the cupcakes.
- All-Purpose Flour: Gives the cupcakes structure so they aren’t too wet. Make sure to measure using the spoon-and-level method!
- Cocoa Powder: Makes the cupcakes chocolatey. Make sure to use unsweetened cocoa powder.
- Baking Powder: Helps the cupcakes rise.
- Chocolate: I’m using Ghirardelli semisweet baking bars for the ganache– feel free to use what you have on hand, just make sure it’s good-quality chocolate!
- Heavy Cream: Must be used in order for the ganache to set correctly– lower-fat milks cannot be substituted.
- Hazelnuts: Add a bit of salty crunch to the center of the cupcake– just like a Ferrero Rocher.
- Ferrero Rocher: I’m adding a Ferrero Rocher chocolate to the top of each cupcake so people know what flavor they are!
Pro Tip: Feel free to swap the semisweet chocolate for milk or dark chocolate.
Variations on Ferrero Rocher Chocolate Cupcakes
You can change up the flavor of these cupcakes to mimic any of the Ferrero chocolates.
- To mimic the Rondnoir confection, use dark chocolate and chocolate crisp pearls, mini whoppers, or Rice Krispies cereal in the filling. Top with a Rondnoir chocolate.
- To mimic the Raffaello flavored confection, make a vanilla cupcake and use white chocolate, almonds, and desiccated coconut for the filling. Top with a Raffaello chocolate.
Trademark Note: In the spirit of transparency, I want to note that some of these ingredients are trademarked products. Ferrero is a proprietary brand that I want to acknowledge and give credit to.
Ferrero Rocher are Italian chocolates made by Ferrero (the makers of Nutella). They consist of a whole hazelnut coated in hazelnut filling, wrapped in a thin wafer, and covered in a hazelnut-studded chocolate shell.
Technically speaking, you can swap the vegetable oil for melted butter, but I don’t recommend it. Chocolate cupcakes have a tendency to come out dry, and the vegetable oil helps to ensure that they stay nice and moist!
While you can use any unsweetened cocoa powder you prefer, I like to use Dutch-process cocoa powder here because there isn’t any baking soda to neutralize the acidity of natural cocoa powder.
I have not tried making these cupcakes gluten-free, but I think that using a gluten-free 1:1 baking flour should work just fine!
I often add coffee to my chocolate cupcakes to enhance their chocolatey flavor, but I don’t recommend it here, as the chocolate can quickly overwhelm the hazelnut flavor.
Dry cupcakes can be caused by 2 things. You may have measured the ingredients incorrectly, or you might have overmixed the batter. It’s important to spoon and level your ingredients if you’re not using a scale, and it’s important to have a light hand when mixing the batter.
How to Make Ahead and Store
You can bake the chocolate cupcakes up to 1 day in advance of when you plan to serve them. Store them in an airtight container at room temperature until ready to fill and frost. I do not recommend making the ganache/frosting ahead of time.
Store leftover Ferrero Rocher cupcakes in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Let come to room temperature for 30 minutes before enjoying.
How to Freeze
I do not recommend freezing whole Ferrero Rocher cupcakes; however, you can freeze the chocolate cupcakes tightly wrapped in 2 layers of plastic wrap and 1 layer of aluminum foil for up to 3 months. Let thaw overnight in the refrigerator before filling and frosting.
Serving Suggestions
Enjoy as an after-dinner treat or in the morning with a cup of hot coffee. Add gold sprinkles if you’re looking for an extra element of extravagance!
Ferrero Rocher Cupcakes Recipe
Ingredients
For the Chocolate Cupcakes
- ½ cup whole milk 114 grams, room temperature
- ½ cup vegetable oil 100 grams
- 2 large eggs 100 grams, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 4 grams
- 1 cup granulated sugar 200 grams
- 1¼ cups all-purpose flour 150 grams
- ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder 21 grams
- 1 teaspoon baking powder 4 grams
For the Chocolate Ganache (Filling and Buttercream)
- 12 ounces semisweet chocolate 340 grams, finely chopped
- 1½ cups heavy cream 341 grams
- ¼ cup finely chopped roasted salted hazelnuts 28 grams
- 12 Ferrero Rocher chocolates 152 grams, optional
Equipment
- Kitchen Scale (optional)
Instructions
For the Chocolate Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 350°F and line a 12-count cupcake tin with paper liners. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk the milk, vegetable oil, eggs, and vanilla together.½ cup whole milk, ½ cup vegetable oil, 2 large eggs, 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Add the granulated sugar and whisk to combine.1 cup granulated sugar
- Add the flour, cocoa, and baking powder. Mix just until combined– you don’t want to overmix.1¼ cups all-purpose flour, ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder, 1 teaspoon baking powder
- Divide the batter between the cupcake tin wells, filling each one with about ¼ cup of batter.
- Bake the cupcakes for 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Remove the cupcakes to a wire rack and set them aside to cool completely before frosting.
For the Chocolate Ganache
- Add the chopped chocolate to a medium-sized heat-proof bowl and set it aside.12 ounces semisweet chocolate
- Heat the heavy cream in a small saucepan set over medium heat, just until it begins to steam. Pour the cream over the chocolate and allow it to sit for 1 minute.1½ cups heavy cream
- Stir the ganache until it comes together, about 1 minute.
- Remove ⅓ cup of ganache to a small bowl and stir in the chopped hazelnuts.¼ cup finely chopped roasted salted hazelnuts
- Set the remaining ganache aside for 1 hour, or until it has cooled completely.
- When the ganache is cool, beat it with a hand mixer on medium speed for 3-4 minutes, or until it becomes light and fluffy. If the frosting becomes grainy or wet, add 1 cup of powdered sugar and continue mixing until it comes together into a light and fluffy frosting.
- Transfer the whipped ganache to a piping bag fitted with your choice of tip (I’m using a Wilton 2D).
- To assemble, cut a small hole out of the center of each cupcake (about the size of a quarter) and fill it with the chocolate-hazelnut mixture. Then place the cut out piece of cake back on top and top the cupcake with whipped ganache.
- Top each cupcake with an unwrapped Ferrero Rocher chocolate.12 Ferrero Rocher chocolates
Notes
- You can use any milk you prefer, including non-dairy milk.
- You can use canola oil in place of vegetable oil in the cupcakes, but I do not recommend using melted butter.
- You can use any unsweetened cocoa powder you have on hand, although I recommend Dutch-processed.
- Feel free to swap the semisweet chocolate for milk or dark chocolate.
- Measure your flour using the spoon-and-level method to prevent dry cupcakes.
- Take care not to overmix the batter; otherwise, your cupcakes will end up dense and tough.
- Toast hazelnuts in a 350°F oven for 7-10 minutes, stirring halfway. Let cool and wrap in a kitchen towel, rubbing to remove the skins.
- If you don’t have a piping tip, you can fill a Ziplock bag and snip off one corner to create one.
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