Coffee Cupcakes with Vanilla Coffee Buttercream
These coffee cupcakes with vanilla coffee buttercream are fluffy, moist, and super easy to make! With instant coffee powder and vanilla bean paste, they have a ton of coffee flavor. These cupcakes are one of my favorites for dinner with friends, holidays, or parties!
Ingredients
Coffee Cupcakes
- 210 grams all-purpose flour (1 3/4 cups)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoons Kosher salt
- 114 grams unsalted butter, softened (1/2 cup)
- 200 grams granulated sugar (1 cup)
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 60 grams full-fat sour cream (1/4 cup)
- 60 milliliters neutral oil, canola, avocado, etc. (1/4 cup)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste or pure vanilla extract
- 120 milliliters whole milk (1/2 cup)
- 6 grams instant coffee powder (2 Tablespoons
Vanilla Coffee Buttercream
- 228 grams unsalted butter, softened (1 cup)
- 360 grams powdered sugar (3 cups)
- 30 milliliters whole milk (2 Tablespoons)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste or pure vanilla extract
- Pinch of Kosher salt
- 3 grams instant coffee, plus more to taste (1 Tablespoon)
- 1 teaspoon cocoa powder (for color)
Equipment
- Kitchen scale (or measuring cups)
- Cupcake pan
- #20 scoop
- Piping bag & tips
Instructions
Coffee Cupcakes
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Line two cupcake pans with 18 paper liners. Then, whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a small bowl. Set aside.
- Using a stand mixer or hand mixer, cream the butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl until the mixture is light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time until thoroughly mixed. Then, mix in the sour cream, oil, and vanilla bean paste.
- In a liquid measuring cup, whisk the milk and instant coffee together until the coffee is dissolved.
- Pour half the flour mixture into the wet ingredients, followed by half of the coffee-milk mixture. Mix on low just until combined. Repeat with remaining flour mixture and coffee-milk mixture, stirring just until the batter comes together and there are no more dry spots. Don't over-mix! Then, using a #20 scoop, divide the batter evenly between 18 cupcake liners.
- Bake the cupcakes for 15-18 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake has a few moist crumbs on it. Let the cupcakes cool for 5 minutes in the pan, and then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Vanilla Coffee Buttercream
- Using a stand mixer or hand mixer with a whip attachment, beat the butter and half of the powdered sugar together in a large mixing bowl until a thick frosting forms. Add the rest of the powdered sugar and beat until combined.
- Add the milk, vanilla bean paste, and a pinch of salt. Turn the mixer on high and whip the frosting until it's light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Scoop about 1/3 of the vanilla frosting into a small bowl and set aside.
- Then, add the instant coffee and cocoa powder to the remaining 2/3 of the frosting and mix until smooth. Taste and add more instant coffee if you want a stronger coffee flavor.
Two-Tone Buttercream
- Fit a reusable or disposable piping bag with a large tip. Then, use a rubber spatula to fill 1/3 of the piping bag with vanilla buttercream. Use another rubber spatula to fill the remaining 2/3 of the bag with coffee buttercream. Gently "squish" the bag to fill in any air pockets. It doesn't have to be perfect!
- Twist off the top of the bag and pipe the cooled cupcakes with the frosting, adding more buttercream to the piping bag as needed. Enjoy the cupcakes immediately or store for later.
Notes
It's very important to properly measure the ingredients with a scale instead of measuring cups. Adding too much flour can make the cupcakes dry and dense. If you don’t have a scale, then make sure you’re measuring the flour the right way. First, fluff the flour with a whisk or fork. Then, spoon the flour into the measuring cup and level it off without packing it in.
Instant coffee is the secret ingredient for adding lots of coffee flavor to this recipe. Don't skip it! You can find coffee powder in the coffee or baking aisle of the grocery store or online. Unfortunately, brewed coffee just won't do the trick. Not only does it add too much liquid to the batter but the flavor won't shine through.
Don't over-fill the muffin tins or you'll end up with a big puddle of batter at the bottom of your oven. The tins should be about 3/4 of the way full.
The cupcakes are done when an inserted toothpick has just a few moist crumbs on it. If the toothpick has liquid batter on it, bake the cupcakes for a 2-3 more minutes.
If you don't want two-toned frosting, you can make all coffee buttercream instead. Just skip the step of saving the plain vanilla frosting.
To easily fill a piping bag with buttercream, place the bag into a tall drinking glass and fold the opening of the bag over the rim of the glass. The glass will help keep the bag in place while you fill it with frosting. And, it keeps the frosting inside the bag for less mess and stickiness!
For high-altitude (tested at 4,500 feet):
- Use 3/4 teaspoon baking powder.
- Use 1/2 cup + 2 Tablespoons whole milk.
- Bake the cake at 375°F.
- Use 3/4 teaspoon baking powder.
- Use 1/2 cup + 2 Tablespoons whole milk.
- Bake the cake at 375°F.
Serving: 1cupcake, Calories: 347kcal, Carbohydrates: 41.2g, Protein: 2.4g, Fat: 19.3g, Saturated Fat: 10.7g, Cholesterol: 63mg, Sodium: 111mg, Potassium: 92mg, Fiber: 0.4g, Sugar: 31.3g, Calcium: 37mg, Iron: 1mg
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