Lindt Truffle Cupcakes

Lindt Truffle Cupcakes are chocolate cupcakes filled with Lindt Truffles baked into them, frosted with Chocolate Swiss Meringue Buttercream.

Lindt Truffle Chocolate Cupcakes

Chocolate ganache is poured over the frosting, and then, we top the cupcake with a Lindt truffle to make things even better.

Chocolate cupcakes topped with chocolate swiss meringue buttercream and ganache and a lindt truffle on a wooden board

Also, today I am editing this post to change something in the instructions. The first time I published it, I was instructing for the truffles to be inserted in the middle of the cupcakes before baking.

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However, with some cupcakes from the batch (not all), the truffles would often sink to the bottom of the cupcakes.

So I’ve experimented with freezing the truffles, coating them in flour, and adding them to the middle of the cupcakes this way. Same thing happened, some would sink, and some would stay in the middle of the cupcakes.

Lindt Truffle Cupcakes

Then I knew I had to come up with a better alternative. And I did!

To make this happen in the best way possible, and have the truffles stay in the middle of the cupcakes without sinking, they have to be added to the cupcakes mid-baking.

So after the cupcakes have been baking for about 10 minutes, open the oven and quickly top each cupcake with a truffle.

Lindt Truffle Chocolate Cupcakes

It’s very important to be quick when doing this so the oven doesn’t loose a lot of heat in the process. Make sure to unwrap the truffles before hand, and have them ready to go when it’s time.

In the video located on this page and on my Youtube channel, you can see precisely how I do this.

Lindt Truffle Chocolate Cupcakes

A few other tips I have about these Lindt Truffle Cupcakes are mainly concerning the Chocolate Swiss Meringue Buttercream.

Making Swiss Meringue Buttercream can be tricky if you aren’t aware of some tips.

So please read the tips below to help you make the perfect Swiss Meringue Buttercream, and troubleshoot any issues you might be having.

Lindt Truffle Chocolate Cupcakes

Tips on how to make Chocolate Swiss Meringue Buttercream

First and foremost, you will have to make the ganache beforehand, because by the time you make the Chocolate Swiss Meringue Buttercream, the ganache should be at room temperature to be added to the frosting.

Which leads me to one of the most important factors about making Swiss Meringue Buttercream: you have to ensure that the butter is at room temperature as well.

And by this, I mean the butter can’t be warm and melty. If the butter has been sitting out for too long, it’s not going to be optimal.

Ideally, you want to remove the butter from the fridge 1 to 2 hours before making the buttercream. And that’s depending on how warm or cold the kitchen is.

The butter should be firm, but not cold. It should be softened, but not warm. This is very very important!

My next tip is: make sure to whip the meringue to stiff peaks!

This is crucial!

If you don’t whip the meringue to stiff peaks, the buttercream will never come together.

Lindt Truffle Chocolate Cupcakes

Troubleshooting the Swiss Meringue Buttercream

Soupy Buttercream

If the buttercream is soupy and not coming together no matter how long you whip it, it’s one of two things that went wrong: the butter was too soft, or the meringue wasn’t stiff.

In the case that the butter was too soft, this can be fixed by placing the bowl with the frosting in the fridge for about 10 minutes, and then trying to whip it again after. It should come together. If not, leave it in the fridge a bit longer.

Now, if this didn’t work at all, and if you are sure the butter was at optimal temperature, the issue is with the meringue. And if the meringue was too soft before adding the butter, there’s nothing we can do to fix it now.

Lindt Truffle Cupcakes showing the middle of the cupcakes, filled with a lindt truffle, also topped with a lindt truffle

Lumpy buttercream

If the buttercream is lumpy, it’s because the butter wasn’t at room temperature when you added. If the butter is cold, it will form lumps in the buttercream, and there’s not much that can be done to fix this either.

I’ve done this before, and even leaving the buttercream at room temperature and then re-whipping in, in the hopes that the butter would soften up, did not work for me.

Which is why it’s super important to pay attention to the butter temperature when making Swiss Meringue Buttercream.

Chocolate cupcakes topped with chocolate swiss meringue buttercream and ganache and a lindt truffle on a wooden board

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed today’s recipe. Make sure to watch the video on this page or on Youtube to see how I made these delicious Lindt Truffle Cupcakes.

More Cupcake suggestions (click on the names below to be directed to the recipes):

And click here to see all the Cupcake recipes from the blog!

Lindt Truffle Cupcakes showing the middle of the cupcakes, filled with a lindt truffle, also topped with a lindt truffle

Thanks for reading and tag me on instagram, and please leave a review below if you make these!

Lindt Truffle Chocolate Cupcakes

Lindt Truffle Cupcakes

Camila Hurst
Lindt Truffle Cupcakes are chocolate cupcakes filled with Lindt Truffles baked into them, frosted with Chocolate Swiss Meringue Buttercream. Chocolate ganache is poured over the frosting, and then, we top the cupcake with a Lindt truffle to make things even better.
4.93 from 14 votes
Prep Time 45 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
0 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 14 cupcakes
Calories 450 kcal

Ingredients
  

Lindt Truffle Chocolate Cupcakes
  • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 190 grams, 6.75 oz
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder 31 grams, 1.125 oz
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 3/4 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp espresso powder optional
  • 1/4 tsp fine sea salt
  • 1/2 cup canola oil 107 grams, 3.8 oz
  • 1 cup brewed coffee (or hot water)
  • 1 tbsp white vinegar (or apple cider)
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 cup granulated sugar 200 grams, 7 oz.
  • 14 Lindt truffles
Lindt Chocolate Ganache
  • 3/4 cup chopped chocolate of choice I used Lindt 78% cocoa (170 grams, 6 oz)
  • 3/4 cup heavy cream 180 ml
Chocolate Swiss Meringue Buttercream
  • 170 grams Lindt Chocolate Ganache (recipe above) about 3/4 cup, 6 oz
  • 3 egg whites
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar 150 grams, 5.3 oz
  • 18 tbsp unsalted butter 255 grams, 9 oz
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
To assemble
  • 113 grams Lindt Chocolate Ganache (recipe above) about 1/2 cup, 4 oz
  • 14 Lindt Truffles

Instructions
 

Lindt Truffle Chocolate Cupcakes
  • Pre-heat oven to 350F. Line a cupcake pan with cupcake liners or grease it with butter and flour. This recipe makes 14 cupcakes.
  • Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, espresso powder, and salt together in a large bowl.
  • In another bowl, mix the oil, coffee, vinegar, vanilla, and sugar. Pour the dry sifted ingredients over wet ingredients. Whisk briefly, until incorporated. Be careful not to overmix. As soon as you see no more streaks of dry mixture, stop whisking.
  • Distribute batter evenly in cupcake pan.
  • Bake the cupcakes for about 10 minutes, until they are puffy but not fully baked. Open the oven and quickly place one Lindt truffle in the middle of each cupcake, the truffle will sink in naturally, or you can press it down gently.
  • Continue to bake for another 8-10 minutes until completely baked.
  • Remove and let it cool.
Lindt Chocolate Ganache
  • Chop the chocolate finely.
  • Heat the heavy cream in the microwave or in a small saucepan, until very hot.
  • Pour the hot cream over the chocolate.
  • Whisk until combine. Make sure all chocolate melts. If you see little pieces of chocolate that aren’t melting, microwave for about 10 seconds at a time, stirring in between, until all little specs of chocolate have melted.
  • Set the ganache aside to cool. You want the chocolate to cool completely.
  • 3/4 cups of the ganache will be used in the Chocolate Swiss Meringue Buttercream, and the rest will be used to drip on top of the cupcakes.
  • You want the consistency of the ganache to be just perfect. You don’t want the ganache to be even slightly warm when you add it to the Chocolate Swiss Meringue Buttercream, because that will melt the butter in the frosting.
  • Make sure the ganache is 100% at room temperature, not warm at all, but also not cold, because then it will form lumps in the buttercream.
Chocolate Swiss Meringue Buttercream
  • Very important before starting to make the Chocolate Swiss Meringue Buttercream is to make sure that the butter is at room temperature. Not too soft to the point that it's losing shape, and not cold. If the butter is too soft, it will make the buttercream soupy, and if it's cold, the buttercream will have tiny lumps of butter in it that won't incorporate.
  • So before you begin, make sure both the butter and the ganache are at room temperature!
  • Place the egg whites and sugar in a heat-proof bowl or in a double boiler pan with barely simmering water, making sure the bottom of the bowl isn't touching the water, so that the whites won't get cooked.
  • Whisk constantly until the egg whites and sugar reach 140ºF temperature. This ensures that the egg whites will have reached a safe temperature to be consumed.
  • As soon as the egg whites and sugar reach temperature, remove the syrup from the double boiler and immediately start whisking with an electric mixer at medium speed.
  • Beat the meringue until stiff peaks form. Now, this might take a while. Usually takes me about 10 to 15 minutes. The reason for that is that the egg whites have to cool down first and then they will be able to reach stiff peak. Make absolute sure that the meringue has reached stiff peaks.
  • Once your meringue has reached stiff peaks, start adding butter, with the mixer on medium-high speed.
  • Add one slab of butter at a time. Waiting a few seconds before adding the next one, to give the butter a chance to incorporate.
  • At times, you will question yourself if your meringue will ever form, the answer is mostly likely: yes it will form. Just be patient. Keep whisking it.
  • After adding all the butter, you may have to keep whisking for another few minutes, until the buttercream firms up and becomes fluffy and creamy.
  • Once that happens add the vanilla extract.
  • Now, pour the cooled 3/4 cup of ganache over the Swiss Meringue Buttercream, and whisk briefly until completely incorporated. Scrape the sides of the bowl to make sure everything is well incorporated.
To assemble
  • Frost each cupcake with the Chocolate Swiss Meringue Buttercream. Then, pour a little bit of ganache over cupcakes. Top with a Lindt truffle.
  • To pour the ganache, you can use a spoon or a piping bag.
  • If the ganache is too thick, and not pouring, then insert it in the microwave for 3 to 5 seconds at a time, mixing in between, checking for consistency.
  • If the ganache becomes too thin, then either wait for it to cool down a bit, or insert it in the fridge for a few minutes, mixing in between and inserting back in the fridge if necessary.
Storage
  • Cupcakes will keep well in the fridge for up to 4 days, in a covered container.

Notes

Canola oil: feel free to use any oil you prefer such as avocado, grape seed, or another vegetable oil.
Coffee: feel free to use hot water if you don’t want to use coffee.
Espresso: totally optional. The coffee and the espresso powder give a depth of flavor to the chocolate cupcakes.
Truffles: be very quick when adding the truffles to the middle of the cupcakes, because you don’t want the oven loosing too much heat.
Chocolate for the ganache: feel free to use chocolate chips instead. Some readers have reported they have used milk Lindt chocolate, and it compliments the Lindt truffle theme really well.
Ganache: make sure the ganache is at room temperature (not warm, not cold) before adding to the buttercream and dripping it on top of the cupcakes.
Soupy buttercream: if the buttercream is too soupy and not coming together, it can be because the butter was too soft, or your kitchen is too hot. In this case, insert the frosting bowl in the fridge for about 10 minutes, and then try whipping again to see if it comes together. If it doesn’t come together, it can be because you didn’t whip the meringue to stiff peaks. In this case, not much can be done. So make sure to whip the meringue into stiff peaks before adding the butter.
Butter: make sure the butter is at room temperature, not warm and melty, and not cold.
Frosting: I used an Ateco 828 tip to frost the cupcakes.
 
 
Keyword chocolate, cupcakes, lindt

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69 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Okay! These are my new favorite cupcakes! They look incredibly delicious and beautiful! Truly, there isn’t anything about these cupcakes that I don’t like and I can’t wait to make them.

    1. These are beautiful. We have an egg allergy so the frosting makes me nervous. Could I do a regular butter cream frosting in place of the swiss?

  2. 5 stars
    You had me at Lindt Truffle! but then you added brewed coffee and stole my heart. These are so yummmm and downright gorgeous! Just pinned (and wishing I had one in front of me right now!)

  3. 5 stars
    These look so wonderful! It’s nice to know they can keep in the refrigerator for 3 days, but not sure how they would last that long!!.

  4. I tried these and the cake part came out amazing. but could not get the meringue icing to work. I had stiff peaks with the egg white and sugar but when I added the 36 tblsp of butter as the recipe reads???, I could not get it to stiffen again. It was just greasy. Is that a typo or do you actually use 4 sticks of butter on the icing?? If so, maybe some pointers. I’m not sure what I did wrong. Thanks for sharing the recipe.

    1. Hey Lisa, thanks for writing. The recipe was actually wrong. I wrote the large batch recipe for the frosting, and the amount of the ingredients should be less so you don’t have too much leftover frosting. I have fixed the recipe now and wrote the smaller batch. (so thanks for that lol) However, the proportions are still the same. With the smaller batch, you will have to use 24 tablespoons of butter, or 3 sticks. Yes, Swiss Meringue Buttercream takes a lot of butter! It’s crazy lol. But the fact that yours was looking greasy and wasn’t working, has probably something to do with the temperature of the icing or the butter when you started to add it in. Was your butter too soft? Sounds like the icing was separating, which means that either the meringue wasn’t cooled down enough when you started to add the butter in, or the butter was too soft.
      The temperature of the meringue should be around 90F when you start to add the butter in. And the butter should be slightly softened. Neither hardened, or too soft. That’s why I like to get the butter out of the fridge a bit before I start to gather my ingredients, to give it a chance to soften a bit, but not get to room temperature. Then I chop it into thin slices before adding them to the meringue. That will help incorporate the semi-cold pieces of butter. Make sure to add them at a slow pace, so they have a chance to incorporate to the meringue.
      In some cases you can troubleshoot this issue by placing the bowl with the frosting in the fridge for 20 minutes or so, and then rewhipping it after.
      That’s a tricky part of making Swiss meringue buttercream, that I myself have failed at before.
      Thank you again for making my recipe and for writing back, Lisa! Have a nice day! 🙂

  5. 5 stars
    Sounds amazing
    Got home from the store and I’m currently making these and realize your ingredients list for the cupcakes have a missing ingredient. Espresso powder.
    Set two has the dry ingredients and list espresso powder.
    I’m guessing they will be fine without them since no one has noticed before lol
    Just thought you’d like to know

    1. Yes you will be fine without the espresso powder! It just helps elevate the chocolate rich taste, but it will be totally ok without it!! Thank you for making my recipe!!

  6. The espresso powder amount is not listed in the ingredient list. Also the butter says 24 Tbsp but 4 sticks. Going to make this tomorrow. What are the correct amounts?

    1. Stephanie thank you so much for your comment. Someone had pointed out to me about the espresso powder on instagram a couple days ago, but my computer was broken so I couldnt fix it. I have fixed the recipe now. And the correct amount of butter is 24 tablespoons. Sorry about the mistakes! As much as I do review my recipes a few times before I publish them, somethings do slip by. I really appreciate people like you who kindly point it out to me and help me improve my website. Thank you so so much for coming here and for making my recipe. These cupcakes are really delicious, I hope I fixed the amounts in time for you to still make them! Thank you again, have a fantastic day!

      1. I baked yesterday. Getting ready to ice. Made a double batch and used 1 1/2 tsp Expresso. Tasted delicious built had trouble removing some from the pan as the truffle melt made them stick. Baked another dozen just now (actually made 15) with foil cups and came out beautifully!

  7. Hi there I was wondering if the chocolates you put in the middle fall to the bottom? And if so whats the best way to stop this? Also does it help if I freeze the chocolates before?

  8. I only used the recipe for the cake, and it was delicious! So moist! Not overly sweet. Just really nice. I overfilled the cups. Next time I will try filling 2/3 and could probably make at least 15 cupcakes. Also, I used Ferrer Rocher chocolates, EXCELLENT!

    1. I think that would work. I’ve never tried freezing frosted cupcakes, but I am assuming it would be fine since I’ve always frozen frosting, and cupcakes, separately lol. To thaw, I would perhaps place them in the fridge overnight. Also, if you do freeze them, make sure to package them really really well so they dont get freeze burnt! Thanks Annie, have a fabulous day!

  9. Hi i noticed that there were no eggs in the recipe, Is that correct.? Does the truffle melt completely into the middle and remain soft like inside the truffle.

    I’m intrigued to try this recipe

    1. Hello Robyn!!
      The truffle stays soft and delicious inside the cupcake! And it’s correct, no eggs in this recipe. I don’t use eggs on my chocolate cupcake recipe🙂
      Thank you! Have a fabulous day!

      1. HI
        I made these last night. they are delicious but I found that the truffle melted to the bottom and made it difficult to eat. Any suggestions how to keep it in the middle of the cupcake so that the Cupcakes don’t fall apart.

        Thank you

        1. Hello Robyn, what could help in this case, would be to bake the cupcakes halfway, and then insert the truffles and gently press them down. And then keep baking until fully baked!
          I hope this helps!
          Thank you so much!!

  10. Would you please edit your recipe to help with the melting truffle issue? I made a double batch and found out the hard (expensive!) way that the truffles melt and sink to the bottom. I also feel like freezing them would help. The flavor is absolutely phenomenal and the Swiss meringue is the best thing on the planet. They also look so impressive! Thank you!
    Robin

  11. I just made these using the caramel lindt truffles. They are delicious, however the truffles did sink to the bottom of the cupcake and melt. I wish you had changed the baking instructions to say “bake cupcakes half way then insert truffles and continue baking until done. This updated information would have been really helpful before I made them.

  12. Hi there! Making these delicious cupcakes for the second time at the request of my coworkers. One thing I noticed last time and am seeing again, is the recipe for the ganache. The ingredient list says to use 170 g of chocolate and 170 grams of cream however that only amounts to 340 grams. Once you get to using it, the recipe says to use 300 g for the meringue and ~ 100 g for the topping. If I remember correctly I used 170 and 170 last time and had plenty of ganache leftover to top all of the cupcakes but just wanted to point this out!

    Thank you for the delicious recipe.

    1. Thank you so much Courtney! I do have to adjust that! I am making this recipe in 10 days, to make a video, and I hope to adjust the measurements correctly, I will make sure to double measure everything again! I am so happy your coworkers like this cupcake! It was also one of my favorites ever! 🙂

  13. 5 stars
    Hi quick question. When putting the truffle in after 10 minutes of baking, should it be frozen, or does that not matter? If it was frozen would it not have time to melt inside the cupcake?

  14. 5 stars
    Hi there, i loveeee the cake recipe, gives the most amazing chocolate sponge. Do you think the batter could be split into 2 sandwich tins and used to make a layered chocokate cake? Thank you x

    1. I usually use a different recipe for my chocolate cake, but I don’t see why you couldn’t do that! I usually make a chocolate cake with a butter base and eggs to give more structure to the cake because this makes it easier to stack and decorate the cake. This cupcake is super fluffy and I am not sure if it would be sturdy enough to stack more than 2 layers. If it’s only 2 layers and some simple frosting, it might work fine!! And thank you for the compliment! Best of luck!

  15. 5 stars
    Hi Camila, loving your SMBC recipe but just wondering if it’s possible to double the recipe at all? Wasn’t sure if it would be an issue with the meringue or the amount of butter being added?

    1. Hi there, a lot of people don’t recommend doubling the recipe. I believe that if you double the recipe for example instead of using 3 egg whites you’d use 6 egg whites, then you can also double the amount of chocolate (use 340 grams). However, you will need 2.5x more butter and sugar. So you’d need 375 grams of sugar, and 637 grams of butter. Let me know if it works.

  16. Thanks for the recipe!! One tip for the buttercream…mine was lumpy because my butter was too cold but I used a blow dryer and warmed the mixing bowl while running the mixer and my buttercream came together! Just a tip so people dont need to think all of their hard work went to waste.

    The recipe is delicious by the way!!

  17. Hi there! I just noticed the recipe does not have eggs listed in the ingredients for the cupcakes…is this correct??

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