Coffee Cupcakes with Espresso Buttercream

A close up of a coffee cupcake with a bite taken out of it.

Print Recipe

5 from 1 vote

Coffee Cupcakes with Espresso Buttercream

Super moist and fluffy coffee cupcakes with a rich espresso buttercream!

Prep Time30

Cook Time25

Total Time55

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Diet: Vegetarian

Servings: cupcakes

Calories: 420kcal

Author: Ella Gilbert

Equipment

cupcake pan

Ingredients

Coffee Cupcakes

2 ½ tablespoons unsalted butter room temperature
2 tablespoons neutral oil
¾ cup white sugar
2 large eggs room temperature
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
¼ cup buttermilk room temperature
1 ⅛ cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon espresso powder
¼ cup coffee

Espresso Buttercream

2 sticks unsalted butter room temperature
3 cups confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
3 teaspoons espresso powder
¼ cup heavy cream

Metric - US Customary

Instructions

Coffee Cupcakes

Preheat oven to 350°Fahrenheit/175°Celsius and line a cupcake pan with 10-12 liners.
In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with hand mixer, beat the butter with the oil and sugar until fluffy. It takes about 2-3 minutes.
2 ½ tablespoons unsalted butter, 2 tablespoons neutral oil, ¾ cup white sugar
Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
2 large eggs
Mix in the vanilla extract and buttermilk.
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract, ¼ cup buttermilk
In a separate bowl, whisk the flour with the baking powder, salt and espresso powder.
1 ⅛ cup all purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, ¾ teaspoon kosher salt, 1 tablespoon espresso powder
Add the flour to the wet ingredients and mix on low speed. As soon as it's combined, stop mixing. Pour in the coffee and stir using a rubber spatula until the cupcake batter is smooth.
¼ cup coffee
Pour the cupcake batter into the prepared pan until they're ¾ full. Bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes. Let them cool for 10 minutes in the pan before removing to cool completely on a wire cooling rack.

Coffee Buttercream

In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, beat the butter and confectioners' sugar together on low speed until well combined.
2 sticks unsalted butter, 3 cups confectioners' sugar
Increase the speed to medium-high and beat for 2 minutes until it becomes very thick.
Stop the mixer and add the salt, vanilla, and espresso powder into the bowl. Beat on medium-high speed for another 2 minutes.
1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ¼ teaspoon kosher salt, 3 teaspoons espresso powder
Turn the mixer to your lowest speed and pour in the heavy cream. Beat until it becomes very creamy and spreadable. Frost your cooled cupcakes!
¼ cup heavy cream

Notes

My recipes have been developed and tested in metric grams. I highly recommend using a weighing scale and measuring out your ingredients the metric way.

I make sure that all of my ingredients are at room temperature before I start the recipe, so pull out all of the ingredients before you start baking.

Butter: I use European style butter in my recipes. This will make your finished bake much creamier and richer.

Salt: If you don’t have kosher salt, halve the amount of salt called for in the recipe. 1 teaspoon kosher salt = ½ teaspoon fine salt. Please note I am using Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt, not Morton Salt. Morton salt is too salty for this!

Buttermilk: If you don’t have buttermilk you can swap it out for sour cream.

Espresso Powder: make sure you are using instant espresso powder and not granules!

Storage: Store the cupcakes in the fridge for up to 5 days. Let them sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before eating.

Nutrition