Mocha cupcakes
Photography by Brett Stevens. Food styling by Kristen Wilson
Mocha cupcakes
INGREDIENTS
1 tablespoon instant coffee granules
¼ cup (60ml) hot water
125g butter, softened
¾ cup (165g) caster sugar
2 eggs
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
1 cup (150g) self-raising flour
2/3 cup (80g) almond meal
125g dark chocolate, melted
¾ cup (180ml) buttermilk
coffee beans, to decorate, optional
coffee buttercream
3 teaspoons instant coffee granules
1½ tablespoons hot water
185g unsalted butter, softened
2¼ cups (360g) icing sugar, sifted
METHOD
Preheat oven to 180°C (160°C fan-forced). Line a 12-hole, 1/3-cup (80ml) capacity muffin pan with paper cases.
Combine coffee granules and hot water in a cup. Stir until dissolved.
Beat butter and sugar in a medium bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until just combined between additions.
Fold in half of the combined sifted cocoa and flour, all the almond meal and then the chocolate. Fold in the buttermilk, remaining flour mixture and the coffee mixture.
Divide mixture among paper cases. Bake for about 20 minutes or until cooked when tested with a skewer. Cool cakes on a wire rack.
Coffee buttercream
Combine coffee granules and hot water in a cup. Stir until dissolved. Beat butter in a medium bowl with an electric mixer until as pale as possible. Gradually beat in half the icing sugar, all the coffee mixture, then the remaining icing sugar.
Using a piping bag fitted with a small plain nozzle, decorate cakes with Coffee Buttercream. Top each cake with coffee beans, if desired.
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