I made these for my best friends birthday a few weekends ago. I used my dark chocolate cupcake base from these Dark Chocolate Pumpkin Cheesecake Cupcakes and added a delicious espresso buttercream with KAHLUA in it. How can you go wrong when adding alcohol to baked goods? To top them off, I rolled the cupcakes in mini semisweet chips. For the chocolate coffee lovers. Make these for New Years! They can be your last treat of 2014.
Makes about 14 cupcakes
For the cupcakes:
1 stick butter, melted and cooled
1 1/2 c. all purpose flour
1/2 c. dark cocoa powder (I used Hershey’s Special Dark)
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. espresso powder
1 c. granulated sugar
1 large egg
1/4 c. plain Greek yogurt (I used 0%)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/2 c. buttermilk
mini semisweet chips for rolling
For the buttercream:
1 c. butter, softened
1/2 tsp. cocoa powder
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 tsp. espresso powder
2 tsp. Kahlua
3 c. powdered sugar
Preheat oven to 350℉. Line a cupcake tin with liners. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and espresso powder. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg and sugar. Whisk in the Greek yogurt, vanilla, buttermilk, and butter until smooth. Add dry ingredients to wet and mix until just combined. Pour batter into tins and fill them 3/4 the way full. Bake for 18-20 minutes until tops are no longer jiggly and a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool completely before filling them. I keep them in the tins for 10-15 minutes and then cool the rest of the way on a cooling rack.
To make the buttercream, combine cocoa powder, vanilla, espresso powder, and Kahlua in a small bowl. Stir to combine. Add the butter to your electric mixer and whip for 4-5 minutes on medium high speed until light and fluffy. Next, add cocoa espresso Kahlua mixture, and beat for another 1-2 min. Reduce speed and gradually add powdered sugar, 1/2 c. at a time. Once incorporated, beat for an additional 1-2 minutes on high speed.
Pipe frosting onto cooled cupcakes, and then roll edges in semisweet chips if desired.
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