Chocolate Espresso Mini Cupcakes with Mocha Buttercream

These were made for my mom's Marketing class. She's been working on a group project of developing a marketing plan for my imaginary cupcake business (which will not come to fruition until I at least get some business classes and cake decorating classes under my belt, so don't get too excited), and asked for something to sample during their presentation. So, I made mini chocolate espresso cupcakes with mocha buttercream, and topped them all with a chocolate-covered espresso bean. They were a hit.

I got both the cake and frosting recipes from Allrecipes.com.

My KitchenAid mixing up the batter like a champ

This recipe makes a TON of minis. Filled up two pie carriers and my two-dozen mini cupcake carrier, with a few to spare for David to take to work.

Chocolate Mocha Cake I Recipe (from Allrecipes)

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 cups white sugar
• 2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 tablespoon instant coffee powder
• 1 cup hot water

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease two 9 inch round cake pans. (I of course used mini cupcake pans and liners, adjust the baking time to about 10 minutes per pan)
2. Measure flour, sugar, cocoa, oil, eggs, buttermilk, baking powder, soda, and salt into a mixing bowl. Dissolve instant coffee in hot water, and add to mixing bowl. Beat at medium speed for 2 minutes until smooth; batter will be thin. Pour into prepared pans.
3. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until an inserted wooden pick comes out clean. Cool in pans for 10 minutes, and then turn out onto racks to cool completely.

Nutritional Information 

Amount Per Serving  Calories: 318 | Total Fat: 11g | Cholesterol: 36mg

Coffee Butter Frosting (from Allrecipes)

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/3 cup butter or margarine, softened
• 1 tablespoon strong brewed coffee (I used two tablespoons for stronger flavor)

Directions

1. In a small bowl, stir together the confectioners sugar and cocoa powder. In another bowl, beat the butter until creamy, gradually beat in the sugar mixture, being sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl, occasionally. Finally stir in the coffee, and beat until smooth.

Nutritional Information 

Amount Per Serving  Calories: 105 | Total Fat: 5.2g | Cholesterol: 14mg