Mocha Cupcakes

How about a little mocha for your Monday? I made these cupcakes this past weekend and decided to post them right away because they were heavenly, and I'm all about starting the week off with some baked goodness! 

My office had a department outing on Friday; we played laser tag and it was so much fun. It was my first time playing laser tag, and I loved it! I was skeptical at first, but I work with an energetic group of people and found myself highly entertained. My team won; go blue team! :) And then, I won a gift certificate for a nice dinner for two (date night!) to a restaurant in town. My week definitely ended on a high note, so I was ready to keep it rolling when I got home. That was my motivation behind baking these delightful treats while my darling hubby grilled us a lovely steak dinner; what a fantastic start to my weekend!

I set out originally to make toffee mocha cupcakes (a recipe I've had my eye for a while), but I was rushing to get the cupcakes in the oven before dinner and completely forgot to mix in the toffee... whoops! So I settled for plain mocha cupcakes, however, these were the complete opposite of plain. These luscious cupcakes are full of flavor and will undoubtedly gratify any sweet tooth. I highly recommend these with your morning cup of coffee... nothing quite like (delicious) cake for breakfast! :) Enjoy!

Ingredients
Yields 16 cupcakes
Cupcakes:
2 tbsp instant espresso granules
1 cup boiling water
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup natural unsweetened cocoa
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

Frosting:
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3 3/4 cups confectioners' sugar
1 1/2 tbsp vanilla extract
3 tsp instant espresso granules
miniature semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:
For cupcakes... Dissolve espresso granules in boiling water; cool. 

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line muffin pans with paper liners; set aside.

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

In a medium bowl, sift together flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Gradually add flour mixture to creamed mixture, alternating with espresso mixture.

Fill prepared muffin cups three-fourths full. Bake 24-26 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes in pans, then transfer to wire racks to finish cooling.

For frosting... In a large bowl, whip butter with an electric mixer on medium speed for about 3 minutes. Gradually add confectioners' sugar. Add vanilla, mix until incorporated. Add espresso, and mix until incorporated. Frost cupcakes; sprinkle with chocolate chips.

Source: adapted from Taste of Home Fall Baking Cookbook magazine, frosting adapted from Brown Eyed Baker's Vanilla Buttercream Frosting