Chocolate and espresso are one of my all time favorite flavor combinations. Coffee is known to enhance the flavor of chocolate and chocolate is a classic pairing with your afternoon cappuccino. They make great dance partners, like Fred and Ginger, and these cupcakes are bursting with both flavors in an addictively delicious way.
Let’s get started…
To begin, you will need some freshly brewed coffee and a stick of butter and an egg set out at room temperature.
Once your coffee is brewed, whisk 2 teaspoons of espresso powder into 1/2 cup of freshly brewed coffee and when the espresso has fully dissolved, add 1/2 cup of heavy cream and 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract.
Next, whisk 1 1/3 cups of all purpose flour with 1/3 cup of natural unsweetened cocoa powder, 1 teaspoon of baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda and 1/4 teaspoon of salt into a medium bowl and set aside.
In a large bowl, use an electric hand mixer to cream together 8 tablespoons of room temperature salted butter with 1/2 cup of granulated sugar and 1/2 cup of brown sugar. Once the butter and sugars are fully combined, add an egg and continue mixing until everything is smooth and creamy.
Add the dry ingredients and the coffee mixture and mix until the ingredients are just combined.
Fill lined cupcake tins 2/3’s of the way and bake in a 350 degree oven for 14-16 minutes.
This batter creates such moist cupcakes, so when you are testing to see if they are done, it is ok to have a few crumbs on a toothpick pulled from the center. If you gently touch the tops of the cupcakes, they should feel set.
Once they are done, allow the cupcakes to cool for about 5 minutes in the pan and then transfer them onto a cooling rack to cool fully before frosting.
Speaking of frosting, this is how I make my mocha cream frosting to top these beauties off…
Begin by creaming together 8 tablespoons of room temperature salted butter with 4 ounces of room temperature cream cheese, 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract, 1 tablespoon of espresso powder, 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder and about a half cup of sifted confectioners sugar using an electric hand mixer on medium.
Continue adding sifted confectioners sugar (about 2 1/2 cups in total) until the frosting have developed the sweetness level and consistency that you prefer.
Once the cupcakes have cooled, top them with a generous swirl of mocha cream frosting and add a little shaved chocolate over each cupcake.
These espresso chocolate cupcakes are moist, flavorful and I am telling you, if you like coffee and chocolate, these are going to be your favorite cupcakes from now on. Enjoy!!
Espresso Chocolate Cupcakes
Ingredients
Espresso Chocolate Cupcakes
- 1/2 cup of freshly brewed coffee, warm
- 2 teaspoons of espresso powder
- 1/2 cup of heavy cream
- 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
- 1 1/3 cup of all purpose flour
- 1/3 cup of natural unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon of baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon of salt
- 8 tablespoons of salted butter, room temperature
- 1/2 cup of granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup of brown sugar, packed
- 1 large egg, room temperature
Mocha Cream Frosting
- 8 tablespoons of salted butter, room temperature
- 4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon espresso powder
- 2 tablespoons of natural unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 1/2-3 cups of confectioners sugar, sifted
- 2-3 tablespoons of heavy cream (if thinning is desired)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees
- Whisk 2 teaspoons of espresso powder into 1/2 cup of freshly brewed coffee and once the espresso has dissolved, add 1/2 cup of heavy cream and 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract and set aside
- In a medium bowl, sift together 1 1/3 cups of all purpose flour, 1/3 cup of natural unsweetened cocoa powder, 1 teaspoon of baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda and 1/4 teaspoon of salt and set aside
- Cream together 8 tablespoons of room temperature salted butter at with 1/2 cup of granulated sugar and 1/2 cup of brown sugar using an electric hand mixer
- Add 1 egg and continue mixing on medium until creamy
- Add the dry ingredients and the coffee mixture and mix until the ingredients are just combined
- Transfer the batter into 12 lined cupcake tins and bake at 350 degrees for 14-16 minutes. The cupcakes are finished when a toothpick will come out of the center of the cupcakes with only a few crumbs
- Transfer the cupcakes onto a cooling rack to cool fully before frosting
- To make the frosting, cream together 8 tablespoons of room temperature salted butter, 4 ounces of room temperature cream cheese, 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract, 1 tablespoon of espresso powder, 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder and about a half cup of sifted confectioners sugar using an electric hand mixer. Add another 2-2 1/2 cups of sifted confectioners sugar until the frosting has reached the sweetness level and consistency that you prefer
- Add the frosting onto the cooled cupcakes and enjoy!
