Coffee Cupcakes

Do you remember the butter cake recipe I put up back in September? Here is something else you can do with it!

I decided I wanted to make cupcakes and had the batter all ready to go, then decided "hm, no, I want a flavour" and wondered what I could use. Chocolate? Nah, not in a chocolate mood. Coconut? No way. Coffee? Ooohhh yes!

So, take the butter cake recipe and add about 3 teaspoons of coffee powder to the flour. If you're like me and drink the "freeze dried" stuff that's fine - crush it up in either a mortar and pestle or through a strainer. You could also try dissolving it in the milk instead of adding it to the flour. Make the cake as per usual and dollop it out into cup cake pans - I find a tablespoon-full makes a nice, small cake, just right for snack-size (I like 'em small, then I feel like I can eat more!). For these small ones bake them for about 20 minutes, or until they've risen and spring back to the touch. When they're thoroughly cold make up some icing. I used a cup of icing sugar and small amount of hot water. Dissolve the coffee in the hot water and add it a bit at a time until you have the consistency you want. Just remember that if you make it runny it'll take FOREVER to set, and also run everywhere, so if it's runnier than you would like add some more icing sugar. I've followed recipes when they state how much icing sugar vs how much water or butter, and they're almost always not quite right, so play with it a little. Then I found some little chocolate sprinkles in the cupboard, et voila, coffee cup cakes! This made about 30 of the li'l buggers. Obviously if you make bigger cakes there'll be fewer, and you may have to cook them a few minutes longer too. Get out there, go crazy, give it a go!