These Chocolate Red Wine Cupcakes are quick and easy to make from a box cake mix, but taste like they are homemade! They are light and airy and a little fancier than your typical chocolate cake mix cupcake. Although they are a delicious and special treat any time of the year (especially for the wine lover in your life), these cupcakes are ideal for Valentine's Day, a girl's night, a wine lover's birthday, a Galentine's Day celebration, Mother's Day or any special occasion!
This red wine cupcake was inspired by my Red Wine Chocolate Strawberry Cake on this site, and pairs perfectly with my Strawberry Whipped Cream Frosting (with jam). The red wine flavor melds perfectly with the chocolate flavor, totally elevating a simple box mix cupcake. Even if you are not a red wine drinker, you'll love these cupcakes!
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I learned to doctor boxed cake mixes (pretty expertly, I might add 🙂 ) during my cake-making and cake-decorating business days. Not to mention, it makes for a super fast and easy elegant cupcake!
If you love the simplicity of doctored boxed cake mix recipes, give my Tiramisu cupcakes a try too!
🥘Ingredient Notes
If you're a fan of light-textured cakes and cupcakes, you'll love this red wine cupcake. Although I love to bake from scratch, so many cake recipes are too dense and heavy for my liking, while doctoring a box cake mix guarantees a light and airy crumb.
For this chocolate cupcake recipe, you'll need:
- Chocolate cake mix (from box mix). I prefer to use Duncan Hines or Betty Crocker cake mixes, as I find they taste the best. And for these cupcakes, Devil's Food Chocolate cake mix is ideal.
- Red wine. I use Shiraz or Cabernet Sauvignon (either is a great choice)
- Milk. I use 1%
- Instant coffee granules. You can use any brand. I use Folgers or Maxwell House or whatever type I have on hand.
*See recipe card for full list of ingredients and quantities.
📖Substitutions & Variations
- Diary-free - you can use water instead of milk or dairy-free milk and a dairy-free cake mix. *Find out which cakes mixes are dairy-free HERE
- Milk - you can use whole milk or 2% milk instead of 1%
- Gluten-free - use a gluten-free cake mix
- Dark Chocolate Red Wine Cupcakes - Use a dark chocolate box mix
- Red Wine- bold dry red wines like Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Pinot Noir, or Merlot work best with this recipe
- Kid-friendly - use non-alcoholic red wine (I recommend Leitz Pinot Noir) and decaffeinated coffee. You can also try grape juice with a tablespoon of red wine vinegar for a similar flavor profile.
- Add-ins- add in a cup of chocolate chips for and extra chocolatey cupcake!
- Frosting - These cupcakes are ideal with any frosting, but I especially love them with my Strawberry Whipped Cream Frosting (with jam). But they are also superb with my Chocolate Frosting (without butter). You could also use a cream cheese frosting.
🔪How to Make Chocolate Red Wine Cupcakes
PREP: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F/175 degrees C and line 2 - 12 muffin tins with liners.
- Step 1: Add dry cake mix, eggs, milk, instant coffee, vegetable oil, and red wine (you do NOT need a red wine reduction) to a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer and mix on low speed for 20 seconds.
- Step 2: Turn the mixer up to medium and beat for another 30- 45 seconds, or until fully incorporated, scraping the sides of the bowl. *If you are using a stand mixer, use the paddle attachment.
- Step 3: Pour batter/chocolate mixture into lined muffin cups to ⅔ - ¾ full, dividing the batter evenly between all 24. Baking time: Bake for 15 minutes or until cake tester or toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes in tins, then move to a wire rack (cooling rack) to cool. Once cooled, frost cupcakes with your favorite icing, I recommend my Strawberry Whipped Cream Frosting - it's the perfect pairing!
Expert Tips
- Only fill the cupcake liners up to ⅔ - ¾ full (at most). If you overfill them they will bake up too high and spill over the muffin tins.
- Don't Skip the Coffee. Instant coffee granules intensify the chocolate flavor without adding a strong coffee taste. If you're worried about caffeine, use decaf coffee granules.
- Use a cake tester. A cake tester (affiliate links) is the best way to check for doneness. It should come out clean when the cupcakes are ready.
- Pair with the Right Frosting: These cupcakes pair beautifully with fruit-flavored frostings like Strawberry Whipped Cream Frosting or classic chocolate frosting. The fruity or rich flavors complement the wine undertones.
- Enhance Presentation: Top the frosted cupcakes with heart-shaped sprinkles, shaved chocolate, or a fresh strawberry for an elegant touch, especially for special occasions like Valentine’s Day or Galentine's Day.
👪 Serving Size
This red wine chocolate cupcakes recipe makes enough for 24 cupcakes or you can make a 1-8 inch chocolate red wine cake. However, you can half, double, or triple the recipe by clicking on the serving number and selecting the number of servings you'd like. The ingredient quantities will automatically adjust.
🌡️Storage
Store these easy chocolate red wine cupcakes in an airtight container, at room temperature, for up to 5 days. However, if you frost them with a perishable frosting, they need to be refrigerated.
These wine-infused cupcakes freeze well in an airtight container for up to 3 months.
❔Recipe FAQ's
Yes! This recipe works well as an 8-inch round or square cake. To make a layer cake, double the recipe and pour batter into 2 greased 8-inch round or square pans and adjust the baking time to about 25-30 minutes and check for doneness with a cake tester or toothpick
This usually happens if the oven temperature is too high, causing the cupcakes to rise quickly and collapse. It can also occur if the batter is overmixed, incorporating too much air.
Use a piping bag with a decorative tip- I recommend a 1M frosting tip. For smooth frosting, ensure the cupcakes are completely cool before decorating.
❤️More Valentine's Day Desserts
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My family couldn't get enough of these cupcakes; I didn't even get the chance to share them with anyone else! So if you're looking for an easy red wine chocolate cupcake, you'll love how effortless these are when you make them from a box mix!
📋 Chocolate Red Wine Cupcake Recipe
Ingredients
- 15 oz - box of chocolate cake mix * I use Duncan Hines or Betty Crocker Devil's Food Cake Mix
- ¾ cup red wine
- ½ cup milk
- 3 large eggs
- 2 teaspoon instant coffee granules
- ½ cup vegetable oil
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F/175 degrees C and line 2 - 12 muffins tins with liners.
- Add cake mix (dry), eggs, milk, instant coffee, vegetable oil and red wine to a large bowl and mix on low for 20 seconds.15 oz - box of chocolate cake mix, ¾ cup red wine, ½ cup milk, 3 large eggs, 2 teaspoon instant coffee granules, ½ cup vegetable oil
- Turn mixer up to medium speed and beat for another 30- 45 seconds, or until fully incorporated, scraping the sides of the bowl. If you're using manual beaters, beat for 2 minutes. *If you are using a stand mixer, use the paddle attachment.
- Pour batter/chocolate mixture into lined cupcake tins, dividing the batter evenly between all 24.
- Bake for 15 minutes or until cake tester or toothpick comes out clean. Cool in tins for 5 minutes, then move to a wire rack to cool.
- Once cooled, add frosting to the top of the cupcakes with your favorite icing (with a piping bag), and sprinkles, if you desire. I recommend my Strawberry Whipped Cream Frosting and mixed heart sprinkles- this frosting is the perfect pairing for this cupcake and also quick and easy to make! (https://foodmeanderings.com/strawberry-whipped-cream-frosting-with-jam/)
Notes
-
- Only fill the cupcake liners up to ⅔ - ¾ full (at most). If you overfill them they will bake up too high and spill over the muffin tins.
-
- Don't Skip the Coffee. Instant coffee granules intensify the chocolate flavor without adding a strong coffee taste. If you're worried about caffeine, use decaf coffee granules.
-
- Use a cake tester. A cake tester (affiliate links) is the best way to check for doneness. It should come out clean when the cupcakes are ready.
-
- Pair with the Right Frosting: These cupcakes pair beautifully with fruit-flavored frostings like Strawberry Whipped Cream Frosting or classic chocolate frosting. The fruity or rich flavors complement the wine undertones.
-
- Enhance Presentation: Top the frosted cupcakes with heart-shaped sprinkles, shaved chocolate, or a fresh strawberry for an elegant touch, especially for special occasions like Valentine’s Day or Galentine's Day.
- Diary-free - you can use water instead of milk or dairy-free milk and a dairy-free cake mix. *Find out which cakes mixes are dairy-free HERE
- Milk - you can use whole milk or 2% milk instead of 1%
- Gluten-free - use a gluten-free cake mix
- Dark Chocolate Red Wine Cupcakes - Use a dark chocolate box mix
- Red Wine- bold dry red wines like Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Pinot Noir, or Merlot work best with this recipe
- Kid-friendly - use non-alcoholic red wine (I recommend Leitz Pinot Noir) and decaffeinated coffee. You can also try grape juice with a tablespoon of red wine vinegar for a similar flavor profile.
- Add-ins- add in a cup of chocolate chips for and extra chocolatey cupcake!
- Frosting - These cupcakes are ideal with any frosting, but I especially love them with my Strawberry Whipped Cream Frosting (with jam). But they are also superb with my Chocolate Frosting (without butter). You could also use a cream cheese frosting.
Jeanine S.
Do you need to add the instant coffee? Just wondering what it’s purpose is, as I’m not a coffee drinker as not fond of its taste. But these cupcakes sound delicious so I don’t want to leave the coffee out if it enhances the wine flavor?? Thanks!
Terri Gilson
Hi Jeanine: Coffee enhances the chocolate flavor, actually, not the wine. You really can't taste it, but maybe if you are super sensitive to it, you will taste it. I love coffee, but don't taste it. But that being said, you don't have to add the coffee, it's just better with the coffee.
Hope you enjoy it!
Terri
nancy
love this easy cheat hack to make things easier
Fouzia Husainy
Your cup cakes look amazing! The icing is making them stand out!
Bernice
Wow! What a great way to doctor up a cake mix. You are so right, chocolate and wine go so well together, it's like it was meant to be.