Thick Dark Chocolate Cupcakes, filled with Soft Coconut Filling,

frosted with my heavenly Coconut Buttercream,

rolled in a toasted Almond & Coconut Crumble,

drizzled in Dark Chocolate Ganache,

and topped with those addicting COSTCO coconut almond truffles.

 

I mean, ARE YOU KIDDING ME!?

No, I’m not kidding you. haha. These are the real deal, and can confidently say they will most likely be your new favorite cupcake!

I’ve never really liked Almond Joy’s growing up (a popular candy with milk chocolate, and a coconut filling), but when I tasted Mounds (same candy, dark chocolate instead), I was sold. There’s something about the way chocolate and coconut were honestly made for each other. The toasty warmth of the coconut and the deep rich chocolate are timeless, and making them into a cupcake together was a no-brainer.

This cupcake all started when my friend Ali (who is a Meghan Markle clone, I’m sure of it) sent me a text with those insanely addicting chocolate almond coconut truffles from COSTCO (those brown spheres on top of the cupcakes you see here). She said something along the lines of these being inspiration for a new cupcake :).

Challenge accepted.

I started off with my dark chocolate cake base and turned them into cupcakes (did you know you can turn any of my cakes into cupcakes? YES! Just adjust your baking time to 12-15 minutes instead). They bake up thick and gorgeous, and have such a dark (almost black) color. I knew it was perfect.

Next, I knew I needed to somehow mimic the filling of Almond Joys (or mounds) – shredded coconut is something I’ve heard that people don’t especially love, but when you saturate it in sweetened condensed milk, it’s hard for even the most coconut-skeptical friend of yours to resist. For my Cake Confidence cookbook, I have a more thick filling that I adore for my Almond Joy Cake, but for this one, I wanted something more gooey and soft. Hollow out your cupcakes when they’re frozen or chilled and you should be able to get a hollowed out space for your filling without any crumbles taking over.

Next, my coconut buttercream is SO SO DREAMY. I could slather it on just about anything and be happy eating it. It’s my classic vanilla buttercream, but with a touch of coconut emulsion. It’s the perfect hint of coconut without it slapping you in the face. I wanted balance and that touch of emulsion was all it took to make it happen. You can always substitute coconut cream in for the heavy cream if you’d like to amp up the flavor even more.

For the buttercream decor, I used a Wilton 6B or 8B french star piping tip. I LOVE the way it looks with the extra ridges than the usual Wilton 1M provides. It somehow seems more elegant this way.

I feel like the star of the show with these cupcakes is that amazing coconut almond crumble wrapped around the buttercream! It adds so much warmth, and a little bit of crunchy texture to the already soft cupcake. Toasting them up is pretty easy – just add them to a frying pan and slowly toast them over medium heat (don’t burn, or you’ll have to start over). Stay close, keep stirring every so often, and you’ll get there. Once they’re all toasted up, remove them from the pan, or else they keep toasting! I just tip the pan onto a plate or bowl and let the crumble cool completely before adding it to the cupcake.

Lastly, give the cupcakes a drizzle of that sinfully delicious ganache and top it off with the truffles.

Try as hard as you can to not eat them all in one day…

… but honestly, it will be the hardest not to!

Dark Chocolate Coconut Cupcakes
Recipe Type: Cupcake
Cuisine: Dessert
Author: Mandy Merriman | Baking with Blondie
Dark Chocolate Cupcakes, Coconut Filling, Coconut Buttercream, Almond Coconut Crumble, Dark Chocolate Ganache Drizzle, and Coconut Almond Truffles.
Ingredients
  • Dark Chocolate Cupcakes: [br]
  • ⅔ Cup sour cream
  • ¾ Cup buttermilk
  • ⅓ Cup vegetable oil
  • 3 eggs + 1 egg white
  • 1 Tablespoon Vanilla
  • 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
  • ½ cup mini chocolate chips
  • ¼ cup of flour for high altitude
  • ¼-½ cup dark chocolate cocoa
  • 1 Duncan Hines “Dark Chocolate” Cake Mix
  • [br]
  • Coconut Buttercream [br]
  • 3 sticks (1 1/2 cups) unsalted butter
  • pinch of salt
  • 1-2 Tablespoons coconut emulsion
  • 1 Tablespoon Vanilla
  • 1/4 Cup Heavy Cream or Coconut Cream
  • 6-8 Cups Powdered Sugar, sifted
  • [br]
  • Coconut Almond Crumble[br]
  • 1 cup shredded coconut
  • 1/2 cup sliced almonds
  • [br]
  • Coconut Filling [br]
  • 1 Cup shredded coconut
  • 14oz can sweetened condensed milk
  • [br]
  • Dark Chocolate Ganache[br]
  • 1 Cup Dark Chocolate Melts
  • 1/4 Cup Heavy Cream
  • [br]
  • Garnish[br]
  • COSTCO Dark Chocolate Almond Coconut Truffles
Instructions
  1. FOR THE DARK CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES: [br]
  2. Preheat oven to 325 degrees, prep cupcake pans with cupcake liners. Set aside.
  3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the sour cream, buttermilk, vegetable oil, eggs + egg white, vanilla, extract until thoroughly combined.
  4. Sift in the flour, cocoa, and cake mix. Stir until combined, don’t overmix! Divide between cupcake liners (should have 24), about 1/2 or 2/3 full, and bake for 12-15 minutes. Remove from oven, let cool in the cupcake tins for 3 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
  5. FOR THE COCONUT BUTTERCREAM: [br]
  6. Remove butter from the fridge for about 20 minutes.
  7. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, whip up the butter on high speed until light and fluffy.
  8. Add in the salt, coconut emulsion, vanilla, and heavy cream (or coconut cream). Mix until thoroughly combined.
  9. Slowly add in the powdered sugar 1/2 cup at a time. You may not use the full 8 cups! This all depends on the consistency you want. More powdered sugar means more of a thick buttercream. So if you want it thicker, use it. If you need to thin it out, use a touch more heavy cream.
  10. Whip buttercream on high speed for 3 minutes until light and fluffy in texture and color. Turn the speed on low for about 30 seconds to whip out any air bubbles. Hand beat with a wooden spoon to beat out any and all remaining air bubbles.
  11. FOR THE COCONUT ALMOND CRUMBLE:[br]
  12. Place shredded coconut and almond in a pan over medium heat. Toast for about 2-3 minutes until they are light and golden in color, then remove from the heat and place in a bowl to cool.
  13. FOR THE COCONUT FILLING: [br]
  14. Stir the coconut and condensed milk in a bowl until combined. Set aside.
  15. FOR THE GANACHE: [br]
  16. In a small glass bowl, stir together the melts and heavy cream. Microwave for 30 seconds, stir until thoroughly mixed and melted through. Add 15 seconds if needed. Place in a squeeze bottle for drizzle.
  17. ASSEMBLY: [br]
  18. Hollow out cupcakes and place in filling. Pipe on buttercream with a large start French tip and then carefully add on crumble to the bottom half of the buttercream swirl. Drizzle on ganache, and top with truffles. Enjoy!

 

Here’s a quick video of me making them:

 

As always, I love to see YOUR Baking with Blondie inspired creations!!! Tag me on Instagram with #bakingwithblondie or @bakingwithblondie. 🙂