Coffee & Donut Cupcakes

These coffee & donut cupcakes were for a Police Officer's retirement party. Obviously, they were for an officer with a sense of humor :)

I wanted to play off the cops & donuts stereotype, so I knew I wanted to incorporate the donut into the cupcake, as well as coffee flavor. Thinking that a coffee flavored cupcake may be too overpowering for the entire crowd, I chose to make a maple-vanilla cupcake. To top the cupcake, I made a coffee & cream buttercream by using a coffee/espresso flavoring and half & half. Finally, the cupcakes were topped with a baked chocolate donut, with a vanilla glaze & chocolate jimmies.

Maple Vanilla Cupcakes

yield 24 cupcakes

2 1/4 cups cake flour

1 Tbsp baking powder

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1 1/4 cup buttermilk

4 large egg whites

1 stick unsalted butter, softened

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 tsp maple extract

In a large bowl, sift flour, baking powder and salt. In a medium bowl (or large measuring cup), whisk milk, and egg whites. In a stand mixer, beat the butter and sugar at medium speed for about 3 minutes, until light and fluffy. Add vanilla & maple extracts, then add the flour & milk, alternating between the two, starting and ending with the flour. Once everything has been added, beat the batter for 2 additional minutes. Scoop into lined cupcake pans and bake at 350 for 18-22 minutes.

Coffee & Cream Buttercream

2 sticks butter (I used 1 stick salted & 1 stick unsalted)

4 cups powdered sugar

1 Tbsp coffee extract

2-4 Tbsp half & half or heavy cream

In a stand mixer, beat the butter for 3-5 minutes until very light and fluffy. Add the powdered sugar slowly, mixing until incorporated (it may be crumbly at this point). Add the coffee extract and half & half, continuing to beat, until you reach the desired consistency. Pipe on to cupcakes.

Mini Chocolate Donuts

yield 48 mini donuts

1 cup flour

1/4 cup cocoa powder (I used Hershey's Special Dark)

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp nutmeg (don't skip this!)

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1 egg

4 tsp butter, melted

1 tsp vanilla extract

In a large bowl, whisk flour, cocoa, baking soda, nutmeg & salt. In a small bowl, whisk milk, sugar, egg, butter and vanilla until smooth. Add milk mixture to flour mixture, and whisk until blended and smooth. To fill donut pans, put mixture in a ziploc bag and pipe into the cavities*, filling them about 2/3 full. Bake at 375 for 5-7 minutes. Allow to cool slightly before turning out from pan.

*Even though most pans are non-stick, I recommend spraying the pan. Wipe clean & spray each time to ensure the donuts do not stick.

Vanilla Glaze

1 1/4 cup powdered sugar

1 Tbsp + 1 tsp milk

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Whisk ingredients together & use immediately. You can pour over donuts or dip each individually.

Cupcakes adapted from My Baking Addiction

Donuts adapted from The Motherload