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Sweet Coffee Cupcakes with Mocha Buttercream Frosting will make all your coffee loving friends jump for joy! Tender cupcakes full of wonderful coffee flavors and topped with the most delightful, slightly chocolaty, coffee flavored buttercream frosting! These cupcakes are what coffee lovers' dreams are made of!
I love sugar! It's an addiction. I love coffee! That's another addiction. Making coffee cupcakes was such a good idea to cure my addictions even if I have to dance for days to work one cupcake off! FYI... I hate running, so I could never run off my sugar intake! Ha! However, I love dancing and the occasional yoga, so when I eat sugar, I dance. So in retrospect I am dancing all the time, and the caffeine helps with this!!! Don't believe me? Ask the kids! 😉
How to Make Coffee Cupcakes with Mocha Buttercream Frosting
First, we are going to focus on the cupcakes...
For the Cupcakes you Will Need
- ½ cup canola oil
- 2 eggs
- ¾ cup milk
- 1 cup strong brewed coffee at room temperature
- ¼ cup instant coffee granules
- 2 cups sugar
- 3 cups unbleached all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
To make the cupcakes, first preheat the oven to 350° and line a cupcake/muffin pan with paper liners or grease well.
In a large mixing bowl, beat the oil and eggs together until pale in color. Next add the milk, brewed coffee and instant coffee. Beat until everything is mixed together well, then beat in the sugar until fully incorporated.
Now add the cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and 2 cups of the flour. Mix until incorporated. Lastly, add the final cup of flour and mix just until incorporated being careful not to over mix the batter.
Using a large scoop, evenly distribute the cupcake batter among the liners. This recipe makes 24 cupcakes.
Finally bake those cupcakes for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Let the cupcakes cool completely.
Time to make the frosting...
For the Frosting you Will Need
- 1 cup salted butter, softened
- 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon instant coffee granules
- ¼ cup strong brewed coffee at room temperature
- ¼ cup heavy cream or milk
To make this heavenly frosting you will first need to cream together the butter and cocoa powder until fluffy. Now, combine the brewed coffee and coffee granules together. Stir it a bit, to help the granules dissolve some.
Next add the powdered sugar to the butter, one cup at time, beating well after each addition. Slowly add the coffee and granules followed by the heavy cream. Once it is all mix together, turn the speed up to medium and let the frosting mix for 2-3 minutes until its light and fluffy.
Tip...
If you are using milk instead of heavy cream, start by adding 2 tablespoons. Milk is thinner than heavy cream, so you might not need the entire ¼ cup for the perfect consistency.
Frost the Cupcakes!
I use a zip top bag most of the time, but a pastry bag works well too. For these cupcakes I didn't use any fancy decorating tips or tools. I just used a zip top bag. Put the frosting in the bag and push it into one corner as best you can. Zip it closed almost all the way. Take a scissors and cut the tip of the bottom corner off. Be careful not to cut too much, you just need to cut about ¼-1/2 in deep off the corner. Then frost in a circular motion on top of the cupcakes! Practice makes perfect!
No need to feel intimidated if you are not a pro decorator. You can most definitely use a butter knife or off set spatula and frost them that way too. You do whatever you are most comfortable with!
For a More Fun and Fancy Look....
Top the cupcakes with chocolate covered espresso beans! They are glorious and look so adorable!!
If you are a sugar addict like me, try some of these other favorite recipes of mine!
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Monster Cookies
Dark Chocolate Walnut Brownies
Scotcharoo Popcorn
Apple Crisp
After you make these Coffee Cupcakes with Mocha Buttercream Frosting and all your coffee loving friends and family fall in love with them, tell me all about it in the comments below! You can also follow me on Social Media to see what other crazy things my family and I are doing!
Pin the recipe for later!
Coffee Cupcakes with Mocha Buttercream Frosting
Ingredients
For the Cupcakes
- ½ cup canola oil
- 2 large eggs
- ¾ cup milk
- 1 cup strong brewed coffee, room temperature
- ¼ cup instant coffee granules
- 2 cups sugar
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 3 cups unbleached all purpose flour
For the Frosting
- 1 cup salted butter, softened
- 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- ¼ cup strong brewed coffee, room temperature
- 1 tablespoon instant coffee granules
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- 24 chocolate covered espresso beans, optional
Instructions
For the Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 350° and line cupcake pan with liners or grease well.
- Beat together the oil and eggs until pale in color.
- Add the milk, coffee, and coffee granules and beat until mixed thoroughly.
- Add sugar and beat until completely incorporated.
- Add the cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and 2 cups of flour. Mix together just until incorporated.
- Add the last cup of flour and mix on low just until mixed together. Be careful not to over mix.
- Using a large scoop, divide the batter evenly among cupcake liners.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool Completely.
For the Frosting
- Cream together the butter and cocoa powder until fluffy.
- Combine the brewed coffee and granules together, so the granules will dissolve a bit.
- Add the powdered sugar one cup at a time, beating well after each addition.
- Add the coffee and granules and mix well until its fully incorporated.
- Add the heavy cream and mix until incorporated. Increase the speed to medium and beat for 2-3 minutes until the frosting is light and fluffy.
- Place the frosting in a plastic zip top bag or pastry bag. Snip the bottom corner of the bag and frost the cooled cupcakes in a circular motion. Top the frosting with a chocolate covered espresso bean for extra flare!
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