These s'mores cupcakes have a graham cracker cupcake base filled with creamy chocolate ganache and are topped with toasted swiss meringue! They taste just like your favorite campfire s'mores but in cupcake form!
The perfect summer dessert for when you're craving s'mores but don't feel like going camping!
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Why You'll Love These S'mores Cupcakes!
- Literally a smore in cupcake form!
- Filled with creamy homemade chocolate ganache - you'll be amazed how easy it is to make chocolate ganache!
- Toasted meringue topping - swiss meringue is basically just homemade marshmallow fluff!
- Tender graham cracker cupcake base - these cupcakes have a moist cupcake base with crushed graham crackers for extra s'mores flavor!
- Super easy to decorate - all you need to make these cupcakes beautiful toasted meringue!
You might also like these s'mores donuts, s'mores macarons, or these pumpkin meringue cupcakes!
Ingredient Notes
Most of the ingredients you need for these s'mores cupcakes are normal pantry staples!
Vegetable Oil - I use oil instead of butter in these cupcakes to help keep the cake super moist and delicious! You can also use canola oil or a neutral olive oil.
Cake Flour - I always use cake flour in my cupcakes because it makes them super soft and tender, but all purpose flour also works great!
Cocoa Powder - My absolute favorite cocoa powder to use in my baking is the King Arthur Flour Triple Cocoa Blend! It's a blend of natural, Dutch, and black cocoa and is perfect for any baking. But you can easily substitute unsweetened Dutch-processed cocoa instead!
Dark Chocolate - Use dark chocolate baking bars as opposed to chocolate chips for the ganache!! Chips contain emulsifiers that help them keep their shape, which also means they won't melt as smoothly as chocolate bars. If desired, you can use milk chocolate instead.
Graham Crackers - I add crushed graham crackers to the cupcake base to help add that classic s'more flavor!
Egg Whites - You need about 5 large egg whites to make the swiss meringue.
Cream of Tartar - This helps stabilize the egg whites for the meringue!
The complete list of ingredients and amounts is located in the recipe card below.
How to Make Chocolate Ganache
Finely chop the dark chocolate and place into a large bowl.
Place the heavy cream in a microwave safe bowl and microwave for 1-2 minutes or until hot to the touch but not boiling.
Pour over the chopped chocolate and let sit for about two minutes.
Using a spatula, gently mix until the chocolate is fully melted and the ganache is fully combined and smooth.
Let sit at room temperature or in the fridge until is has thickened enough to hold its shape.
If your ganache is too firm, microwave for 10 seconds to soften and then stir until ganache is the desired consistency.
How to Make Graham Cracker Cupcakes
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Pulse the graham crackers in a food processor until you have a little more than ½ cup of crumbs.
In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, ½ cup graham cracker crumbs, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
In a separate large bowl, whisk together the vegetable oil, sugar, and brown sugar.
Then add in the eggs and vanilla and whisk until fully incorporated.
Gently mix in half the dry ingredients.
Then add in the milk and the remaining dry ingredients and mix until just combined. The batter will be thin.
Pour about ¼ cup of batter into each cupcake liner (they should be about halfway full).
Bake at 350°F for 18-22 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.
Remove from pan and let cool on wire rack.
Let the graham cracker cupcakes cool completely before filling and frosting.
Use a cupcake corer to remove the center of each cupcake, then fill with 1-2 teaspoons of cooled chocolate ganache.
How to Make Swiss Meringue
Swiss meringue is cooked lightly over a double boiler before whipping which adds stability to the meringue and also makes it safe to eat!
To make meringue, you really need a stand mixer. A hand mixer will do in a pinch, but be forewarned that your arm will get tired!
In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk the sugar and cream of tartar into the egg whites then set the bowl over a saucepan filled with about two inches of simmering water over medium heat. Do not let the bottom of the egg whites bowl touch the water.
Whisk the whites and sugar constantly until sugar is dissolved and mixture has thinned out (about 3-4 minutes). If using an instant thermometer, it should read about 160°F.
You'll notice the mixture is lighter in color and increased in volume.
Place the bowl on the stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat the egg whites on medium low speed for 2-3 minutes and gradually increase the speed until the mixture reaches soft peaks and the bowl is no longer warm to the touch. Then increase the speed to high and beat until stiff peaks form.
Note: Depending on the type of bowl you use, it may take longer for the swiss meringue to cool. A stainless steel mixer bowl is best (they cool the fastest and are the most heatproof)!
I recommend making the meringue right before it's time to serve the cupcakes for best results!
Pipe the meringue over the filled cupcakes.
Then use a culinary blowtorch to lightly toast the meringue.
Garnish the s'mores cupcakes with squares of chocolate and graham cracker crumbs if desired!
Bonus tip: Leftover meringue and ganache, make DELICOUS s'mores with no fire necessary!
Tips for the Best Baked Goods
Use room temperature ingredients! Always make sure ingredients like butter, eggs, milk, yogurt, etc. are at room temperature before baking (unless the recipe indicates otherwise)! This ensures they'll incorporate into the batter more easily and leads to overall better texture. Remove all ingredients from the fridge 30 minutes to an hour before baking for best results.
Measure your flour correctly! It's most accurate to use a kitchen scale, but if you're measuring by volume you want to spoon and level! Fluff up the flour a bit with a spoon, and then spoon flour into the measuring cup. Once it's overflowing, use the back of a knife to level it off. Don't ever pack flour into the measuring cup or you'll end up with way too much! Improperly measured flour can lead to dry, dense baked goods. [Measure cocoa powder the same way!]
Use an oven thermometer! Just because your oven says it's 350, doesn't mean it is! If you oven hasn't been calibrated recently, it can be as much as 30 degrees off, which will negatively affect all baked goods from cakes to macarons! An oven thermometer is the easiest/cheapest way to ensure your oven is always at the proper temperature.
Make sure you baking powder is fresh! Baking powder is important for helping baked goods rise properly, but it has a relatively short shelf life once opened, so it's one of the few items I never buy in bulk! To test if your baking powder is still fresh, add a small amount to boiling water. If it bubbles it's still good to use, but if not it's time to toss it!
Cupcake Decorating Tips
Make sure you let the cupcakes cool completely before frosting!!
Use a cupcake corer to easily remove the center of your cupcakes before filling with chocolate ganache.
For these big beautiful frosting swirls on these s'mores cupcakes, I use the 1M tip from this decorating kit. The tips are much larger than standard sizes and so fun for decorating cupcakes!
After frosting, lightly toast the meringue then top with graham cracker crumbs and chocolate squares!
Recipe FAQ's
These s'mores cupcakes will last in the fridge for up to 3 days. However, they taste best when served at room temperature! I like to let them sit at room temperature for about an hour before serving.
I highly recommend getting a culinary blowtorch to toast the meringue for these s'mores cupcakes. But if necessary, you can place them under the broiler for about 30 seconds, just be careful because the meringue will burn quickly.
Nope! I prefer dark chocolate but milk chocolate works just as well if you want a sweeter ganache!
Tips for Success!
For best results I always recommend using weight measurements (especially when baking) because it's the most accurate. Kitchen scales are super affordable and also reduce the number of dishes you have to do! However, all my recipes also include US customary measurements for convince. Use this chart to convert measurements for common ingredients!
Substitutions: In all my recipes, I've included substitutions that I know will work, but I cannot guarantee results if you substitute ingredients that I have not recommended. [For example, granulated sugar and honey are indeed both sweeteners but they have very different properties so they can not always be swapped 1:1. Using honey in a cookie recipe that calls for granulated sugar will yield a giant mess.] In the recipe card you'll find links to the specific ingredients/brands that I use.
A note on salt: I almost exclusively use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt because it's the best all-purpose salt for cooking and baking. If you're not using kosher salt, consult this handy guide for a conversion chart! When in doubt, if you're using table salt just reduce the amount by half for baked goods. When cooking, I prefer to under-salt because you can always add more! If you've over-salted, adding a little bit of acid (like lemon juice) can help.
More Recipes You Might Like!
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Recipe Card
S'mores Cupcakes
Special Equipment
Ingredients
Chocolate Ganache
- 4 ounces dark chocolate, chopped
- ½ cup heavy cream
Graham Cracker Cupcakes
- 1 ¼ cup cake flour, substitute all purpose flour
- ½ cup graham cracker crumbs, about 5-7 graham crackers
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup whole milk
Swiss Meringue
- 5 large egg whites, room temperature
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon cream of tartar
Instructions
Chocolate Ganache
- Finely chop the dark chocolate and place into a large bowl.
- Place the heavy cream in a microwave safe bowl and microwave for 1-2 minutes or until hot to the touch but not boiling.
- Pour over the chopped chocolate and let sit for about two minutes.
- Using a spatula, gently mix until the chocolate is fully melted and the ganache is fully combined and smooth.
- Let sit at room temperature or in the fridge until is has thickened enough to hold its shape.
- If your ganache is too firm, microwave for 10 seconds to soften and then stir until ganache is the desired consistency.
Graham Cracker Cupcakes
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a cupcake pan with cupcake liners.
- Pulse the graham crackers in a food processor until you have a little more than ½ cup of crumbs.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, ½ cup graham cracker crumbs, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In a separate large bowl, whisk together the vegetable oil, sugar, and brown sugar.
- Then add in the eggs and vanilla and whisk until fully incorporated.
- Gently mix in half the dry ingredients. Then add in the milk and the remaining dry ingredients and mix until just combined. The batter will be thin.
- Pour about ¼ cup of batter into each cupcake liner (they should be about halfway full).
- Bake at 350°F for 18-22 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.
- Remove from pan and let cool on wire rack.
- Let the graham cracker cupcakes cool completely before filling and frosting.
- Use a cupcake corer to remove the center of each cupcake, then fill with 1-2 teaspoons of cooled chocolate ganache.
Swiss Meringue
- I recommend making the meringue right before it's time to serve the cupcakes for best results!
- In the bowl of a stand mixer (make sure your bowl is heat safe - stainless steel is best), whisk the sugar and cream of tartar into the egg whites then set the bowl over a saucepan filled with about two inches of simmering water over medium heat. Do not let the bottom of the egg whites bowl touch the water.
- Whisk the whites and sugar constantly until sugar is dissolved and mixture has thinned out (about 3-4 minutes). If using an instant thermometer, it should read about 160°F. You'll notice the mixture is lighter in color and increased in volume.
- Place the bowl on the stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat the egg whites on medium low speed for 2-3 minutes and gradually increase the speed until the mixture reaches soft peaks and the bowl is no longer warm to the touch. Then increase the speed to high and beat until stiff peaks form.
- Pipe the meringue over the filled cupcakes. Then use a culinary blowtorch to lightly toast the meringue.
- Garnish the s'mores cupcakes with squares of chocolate and graham cracker crumbs if desired!
- Bonus tip: Leftover meringue and ganache, make DELICOUS s'mores with no fire necessary!
Notes
Nutrition
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Patty says
I received a gift of mini Bundt cake silicone molds (cakes are 2” in diameter) and haven’t used them yet (no using instructions provided 🤨) Any suggestions on temp and cooking time when using these with this recipe? My plan is to make the Graham cracker cake base and then embellish with s’more goodies on some and key lime curd on others.
Kyleigh Sage says
I personally don't ever bake with silicone because I find it doesn't cook things as evenly. I also find you often have to slightly overcook items to get them to come out of the molds cleanly - so they won't be as moist. That said, if you want to use silicone molds, I would still bake at 350 but I'm not sure of the baking time. It should be similar but maybe 5-10 minutes longer if they're cupcake size. If the molds are smaller than a standard cupcake it would maybe be about 5-10 minutes less.
Katherine says
I have not made these cupcakes yet but I was wondering if i could use regular brown sugar instead of the light brown sugar
Kyleigh Sage says
Yes absolutely! The flavor is just a little bit richer, but it shouldn’t change anything!
Katherine says
Thank you so much!
yandj says
Did anyone have issues with the cupcakes peeling from the liners? I made 2 batches of these and the same issue both times. I thought I under baked the first batch so I tried again and added 5 min to the bake time. Same results. The taste was wonderful but wondering if the Graham crackers had something to do with it? Thanks for the recipe!
Kyleigh Sage says
It might be an issue with your liners. Some brands are just more likely to stick and tear. I really love the brand “If You Care” because they always peel away super cleanly!