Mocha Cupcakes with Espresso Buttercream Frosting
These mocha cupcakes are coffee and espresso-infused, with a subtle chocolate flavor, and topped with an espresso-spiked buttercream frosting.
These mocha cupcakes are a chocolate and coffee lover’s dream come true. If you can’t get your day going without your favorite cup of coffee, you’re in luck.
I might even go so far as to suggest that you should just skip your morning cup of coffee or trip to Starbucks and have one of these instead. The cake part itself strikes a subtle balance between light chocolate and a hint of creamy coffee. Not overwhelming on either end of the spectrum, and the combination results in a smooth, clean flavor, which is perfect for topping with espresso-spiked buttercream.
I love this recipe because it’s incredibly low maintenance in terms of preparation. I used my hand mixer and had these babies into the oven less than 30 minutes after I got started. I am absolutely infatuated with the texture of the cupcake – it’s so incredibly soft and tender, with not even a hint of dryness. It’s basically the perfect cupcake and I’m dying to think of other recipes to use the same base recipe.
As always, I try to achieve at least a 1:1 ratio of frosting to cake when frosting my cupcakes. Frosting is dreamy, yes? I could eat it with a spoon, straight from the mixing bowl. I pile it way high!
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I’ve mentioned many times that I’m not a big coffee drinker, mostly because I don’t like the flavor of black coffee, so I need to doctor it up with all kinds of cream and sugar to enjoy it, and I figure if I’m going to do that, I might as well just have some dessert… Oh wait.
These mocha cupcakes are pretty much how I like to ingest my coffee. Sugar? Check. Cream? Check.
While I don’t drink coffee, I absolutely, positively LOVE these cupcakes, and I’m willing to bet that many of you will, too!
Four years ago: Cherry Coke Float Cupcakes
Mocha Cupcakes with Espresso Buttercream Frosting
Ingredients
For the Cupcakes:
- ½ cup (118.5 ml) brewed coffee, at room temperature
- 1½ teaspoons (1.5 teaspoons) espresso powder
- ½ cup (122 ml) whole milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1⅓ cups (166.67 g) all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup (28.67 g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon (0.25 teaspoon) salt
- ½ cup (113.5 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (110 g) light brown sugar
- 1 egg, at room temperature
For the Espresso Buttercream Frosting:
- 1 cup (227 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 2½ cups (300 g) powdered sugar
- 1½ teaspoons (1.5 teaspoons) vanilla extract
- 1½ teaspoons (1.5 teaspoons) espresso powder
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a standard-size muffin tin with paper liners.
- Make the Cupcakes: In a measuring cup, whisk the espresso powder into the brewed coffee until completely dissolved. Add the milk and vanilla extract; set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- With an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the butter and both sugars until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the egg and beat until combined. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour mixture in three additions, alternating with two additions of the coffee mixture, mixing each until just combined. Using a rubber spatula, give the batter a final stir to ensure everything is incorporated.
- Fill each muffin cup about two-thirds full with batter. Bake for 17 to 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting the cupcakes.
- Make the Frosting: In a small bowl, whisk the espresso powder into the vanilla until dissolved; set aside.
- Using the whisk attachment of a stand mixer, whip the butter on medium-high speed for 5 minutes, stopping once to scrape the sides of the bowl. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the powdered sugar a little at a time, waiting until it is mostly incorporated before adding more. Once all of the powdered sugar has been added, scrape the sides of the bowl and increase the speed to medium-high and whip until fluffy, about 1 to 2 minutes. Add the espresso and vanilla mixture and continue to mix at medium-high speed until it is completely incorporated, scraping the sides as necessary. Frost the cupcakes as desired (I used the Wilton 1M decorating tip).
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @thebrowneyedbaker on Instagram so I can see it!
This recipe was originally published on August 13, 2010.
I really want to make this to top the chocolate cupcakes i just made, but i dont have espresso powder, only instant coffee powder. Would that work? Please respond!! Thanks!!!
Hi Elle, Yes, as long as it’s instant the coffee powder should work.
how do you ice your cupcakes like this?
This sounds like a great recipe. I will definitely have to try it. Do you think if I wanted to makes these even more “chocolatey” I could add some bittersweet chocolate chips to the batter–or do you think it might change the consistency too much?
Hi Janet, You could; I tend to not like adding chips to cupcakes that are meant to be light and fluffy because I think it weighs them down. I save those for double chocolate muffins :) You could always try it, though! No harm in experimenting!
Hi!
I just made the espresso buttercream frosting and it looks like the espresso powder didn’t dissolve so much as just mix with the vanilla. You can see the espresso IN the frosting. Is that normal?? lol…
Tastes divine though!
Thank you for sharing with us!
Hi Caroline, My espresso powder dissolved right into the vanilla and you couldn’t see the specks in the frosting. Be sure you’re using instant espresso powder, and not just regular espresso powder – it will make a difference.
Ugh. I’m pretty sure it’s not instant. It still tastes fantastic, but… I don’t like the specks. :p
Thank you!
OMG!!! What a difference!!!! DIVINE!!!!
THANK YOU!!!
I have followed you for about two years and you are my go to person when I want to make a dessert to impress. These were delicious and I got all kinds of compliments. Your frosting is prettier than mine. How do you make it look like layers of ribbon?
Hi Lorrie, So glad you enjoyed the cupcakes! I used a Wilton 1M decorating tip for the frosting. Instead of swirling, I lingered in each section a little bit, which is what I think gave it that ribbon look. Hope that helps!
I made these and they came out absolutely perfect! They were melt-in your mouth perfect! Everyone who tried them loved the taste! The cupcake came out really moist and soft and the butter cream complemented the cupcake well! Thanks so much for this wonderful recipe :)
Hey is the brewed coffee with milk or is it the plain black coffee?
Hi Indra, Just plain black coffee, no extra milk.
Turned out great, except I definitely didn’t end up with enough frosting for a 1:1 ratio. I would double the frosting directions to have enough, you may even have a little too much then.
I’m not an experienced baker, but this recipe was the bomb! People raved about these. I couldn’t find espresso powder either – I used 2 Starbucks Italian Roast ready brew packets. Thank you!
Where is the EGG? Talks about it in the recipe but nowhere in the list of ingredients… Am I missing something?
Yvonne, Egg is the last ingredient listed.
Thanks Michelle. I must be blind!
They turned out really well. Just need that M1 tip! On it.
I’m needing to make 36 of these but the recipe only makes 12 can you help me out ?
Hi Sara, You’ll need to triple the recipe.
I had question. Do you mix the flour and coffee mixture afterwards or mix them each time you add it?
Hi Isabella, You add the flour mixture, mix, then the coffee, mix, then flour again, mix, coffee, mix, and lastly flour, mix.
I LOVE your recipes! I have made a few of your cupcakes, and they have all been a huge hit. They are so light and just the perfect amount of sweetness…nothing too crazy sugary. I just took these babies out of the oven and I AM SO EXCITED TO EAT THEM :)
Wow! These are hands down the best cupcakes I’ve ever made. Super moist and the espresso flavor was sublime. I’m practicing decorating with a 1m frosting tip (and that was super easy too) for an upcoming wedding shower/reception. I’m excited to use this recipe. Thank you!
I’ve baked these cupcakes a few times. The first time was when I was visting a cousin in New Jersey. She knows I love to bake and asked me to make something, so I picked this recipe. She has a Nespresso coffee machine with the pods. The cupcakes tasted like an amazing combination of Mocha and Espresso – I could taste it in the batter and in the cupcake after it came out of the oven. I came back to Vancouver, Canada and baked these with a Nespresso coffee again, and they tasted quite different – not like the amazing combination I recalled in New Jersey.
I’m wondering if dissolving espresso powder into the coffee would help enhance the flavour more. Any suggestions?
Hi Satbir, That’s interesting, I wonder what would have caused them to be different. I wonder if there is a difference in the water? In any case, you could dissolve some espresso powder for a more pumped-up flavor.
what pattern is the decorating tip? it’s beautiful!
Hi Joanne, Thank you! I used a Wilton 1M decorating tip.
you are welcome. is there any special kind of pattern on the decorating tip or any special code number for it? because i have a Wilton 1M too and it doesn’t come out like yours. maybe you can take a picture of your Wilton 1M and post it here for the convenience of me and everyone else who are wondering too? thanks! :)
Hi Joanne, Not that I’m aware of. It’s a Wilton 1M, which is a large open star tip. You can see it here: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001683S5O/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B001683S5O&linkCode=as2&tag=broeyebak-20
thank you so much! i don’t have the same decorating tip as yours but i am sure to buy one like yours the next time i visit the bakery store. by the way, i have tried baking your peanut butter chocolate cake and it was superb! i especially love the peanut butter frosting a lot. i have received many compliments for that cupcake. however, i think the chocolate cake is a bit too oily as the baking tray has a layer of oil over the surface. i also had to use paper towels to absorb the oil from the cake. is this normal? or did i make any pistake during the preparation? other than that, it was good. i’m going to try the espresso mocha cupcakes soon! thanks for sharing such wonderful recipes. :D
Hi Joanne, No you should not be sopping up grease after the cupcakes are baked, something must have been wrong there.
hrm…i used a bar of butter (250g) for 1 recipe. is it too much butter? because the cupcakes turned out to be very oily.
Joanne, The recipe calls for 1/2 cup butter, which is 4 ounces. I did a quick Google calculation and found that 4 ounces is equivalent to about 113 grams, so it looks like you used about twice as much butter as you needed to, which would explain the problem.
oh my goodness. that must have been the problem! i will definitely write that down in the recipe. thank you so much for giving me the exact amount in grams. that will definitely help a lot. thanks again! :D
Just made these myself and they are great! Thanks so much for the recipe, I dusted mine with cinnamon and would suggest that for anyone thinking about making them, it adds depth to the flavor and hides any mistakes you make while icing them. I also made a double batch of the cake part but kept the frosting as a single batch, and I still had leftovers! I can never seem to use enough of my frosting when I make cakes…
I made the cupcakes and they are awesome!!! The icing tastes great but it has a LOT of bubbles, netx time Im not gonna use the whisk attachment … other than I loved it!!
Inspired by the BEB, I took this recipe, the margarita cupcake recipe (to ensure the proper amount of alcohol blend), and chocolate buttercream recipe and made a fantastic conundrum.
I followed the majority of the cupcake recipe, but substituted 2 TBL of Patron Cafe for 2 TBL of the coffee.
I also brushed the tops with Patron Cafe.
I love chocolate (don’t think I’m alone here) and I love french vanilla (hazlenut and vanilla if you didn’t already know) so for the frosting I followed the espresso buttercream recipe, but increased the powered sugar to 2 3/4 c, and added 2 TBL of Patron Cafe, 1 Tea of Hazelnut extract, and 4 oz of melted semisweet chocolate.
And it’s amazing!!!!
The conundrum is do you eat them in the morning because of the espresso or in the evening because of the Patron Cafe…or maybe both. =D
Can’t wait to try these, they sound amazing. Thank you for posting.
I tried these cupcakes last night and they came out really light, like they weren’t finished cooking, but they did. I followed everything step by step. Also I had a really hard time dissolving the expresso powder into the coffee. Almost impossible. Any advice on making them better?
I threw out the first batch of these cupcakes I made, because in following the above recipe which says to split the batter into 12 liners in a standard size pan made the cupcakes overflow and burn. The batter tasted so good that I tried it again, this time in 20 standard size cups. Much better results this time. Will post another comment after they cool and they are frosted. They smell sooooooo good!
I made these cupcakes a couple of times now…. THEY ARE THE BEST! I bought some of those stick cookies (tuiles) that I bought at the grocery store.. they have a chocolate filling) I just put a half of one standing up in the icing.. looks sort of like a straw. These cupcakes are everyone’s faves!
Kathy
I just made this frosting. I reduced the icing sugar by about 1/2 a cup and i added about 4 ounces of melted white chocolate. I also just about tripled the expresso powder. It turned out great!
This is the recipe i used for the cupcakeshttp://www.annies-eats.com/2009/04/28/white-chocolate-mocha-cupcakes/
All together everything turned out great!
Thank You for posting the recipes!
This recipe is phenomenal! I enjoy baking cupcakes for my family and friends, so I often find a great recipe and put my own twist on it. After spending my summer fulfilling cupcake orders, I’ve learned how to determine if the result will taste delicious just by the ingredients and their amounts. This was one of those recipes. I did change things up a bit, however it was nothing that would change the consistency, and as is, this a recipe I will be keeping and making plenty of times! I needed a coffee inspired recipe so I made mocha coconut cupcakes by switching out the vanilla for coconut extract, and I used kona blend coffee. I greatly crave the frosting as much as the cake, and the frosting recipe more than frosted all my cupcakes and then some. I don’t prefer such gritty frosting so I usually add several tablespoons of half and half once I do the initial bowl scrape, but since I bought an 12oz whole milk for the recipe I used that instead. It seemed to work just fine. To finish the recipe, I topped it with a homemade caramel drizzle, and some toasted coconut flakes (super easy to do btw!). Doubling the cake recipe gave me 24 3/4full regular ice cream scoop cupcakes, and 16 mini cupcakes. So the original recipe would yield around 15-16 regular cupcakes using this scoop. I decided at the last minute not to substitute the espresso so I searched my city until I found it. It was more than worth it and I would suggest against it if you’re in the same situation. If you aren’t in a hurry, put on some good Pandora and enjoy the time it takes to bake these- don’t hurry if you can! These cupcakes are worth the wait! Thanks so much for such a great recipe :)
I made these this past weekend. They were AWESOME! I used instant coffee granules because that’s what I had on hand. I used 2x as much granules in the frosting to get more of an Espresso flavor vs regular coffee. My sister-n-law took the leftovers to her school & they were a HUGE hit! The other teachers said it was better than $5-6/cupcakes at a local cupcake shop! The icing was fluffy & light!
I absolutely adore your blog & recipes! I have made dozens of your recipes & have not found a single one that doesn’t turn out divine! Thank you so much for sharing!
Just finished making these and they are sooooo good! Wow! Thanks for sharing the recipe.
These came out amazing. I ended up with more than 12, but still the best ones I’ve made to date. So yummy. The frosting is my favorite. I am wondering though, would it be possible to make these into a cake? I have tried using cupcake recipes for cakes before and they come out completely different. Thank you so much for such a great recipe.
Often the only thing that changes is the time cooked because they are individual cakes rather than one big cake. Any cake or cupcake recipe can be made into the opposite. Depending on the temperature, cupcakes bake anywhere from 16-20 minutes and cakes 32-40 (size dep. as well). If you’re making in a standard cake pan I would start peeking in at 30 minutes- you can tell when it needs 2 minutes or 10 minutes. I’m sure your cake will turn out great!! :)
Awesome cupcakes. I’m a coffee addict and this mocha cupcake combined with espresso frosting will be heaven for me. :)
I just got done making these. I greeted them w/ lukewarm feelings when i pulled them out of the oven. But then i took a bite after frosting them and… OH MY. They are delicious! The cake or frosting by themselves are sort of bland but together they are wonderful! I couldnt find espresso pwdr @ the store so i used instant coffee instead. I’ll definetly make again!