Mocha Chip Cupcakes

Oh yeah, these were good. Originally designed for my friend Maria's birthday party way back in May (the lady enjoys coffee), I reprised them recently for a July 4th BBQ. The secret of intense coffee flavor is instant coffee - crappy to drink but amazingly handy in baking - which also gives the cupcakes a beautifully deep, dark color.



Mocha Chip Cupcakes

Ingredients

(Makes about 24)

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1/2 cup hot water
1/4 cup instant coffee granules, plus more
3/4 cup milk
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chocolate chips

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners, or ready your silicone cups, and set aside. Dissolve 1/4 cup instant coffee into 1/2 cup hot or boiling water, and set aside. Make sure this isn't too hot (we want warm, not steaming) by the time you use it in the recipe.
2. Sift together cocoa powder, flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl. Add eggs, coffee mixture, milk, oil, and vanilla, and mix until smooth, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of bowl to assure batter is well mixed. Fold in chocolate chips (I used incredily tasty Trader Joe's milk chocolate ones).
2. Divide batter evenly among muffin cups, filling each about 2/3 full. Bake until tops spring back when touched, about 20 minutes, rotating pan once if needed. Transfer to a wire rack; let cool completely, and top with lots of coffee buttercream frosting, and a chocolate covered espresso bean if you're feeling fancy.

Coffee Buttercream Frosting

Dissolve 1 tsp instant coffee into 1 tsp vanilla extract. Beat a stick of butter into a cup of powdered sugar, adding dashes of the coffee gloop until it's a nice color and consistency. You may need to add more powdered sugar as you go, too.



And save a cute one for yourself - because these will be gone very quickly!



Adapted, as many of my cupcakes are, from Martha Stewart's simple 1-bowl chocolate cupcakes.