Gluten free mocha cupcakes with mocha buttercream frosting are decadent, rich and moist. As soon as you taste these coffee cupcakes, your heart will skip a beat because they are that good! They are sure to please a crowd, and you will never have a crumb leftover!
This mocha cupcakes recipe has the perfect combination of sweetness, chocolate, and coffee flavors. You will also find a subtle cinnamon flavor that adds to the depth of these cupcakes. The star of the show is the mocha buttercream frosting because it’s creamy and delicious!
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My daughter is a whiz at decorating cakes, and I am always happy to make tasty treats for her to decorate. She loves being artistic and expressing her creativity with these beautifully baked masterpieces! And Mr. Fearless Dining is always happy to eat them too!! So it is a double win if you ask me.
If you love this mocha cupcakes recipe, you should take a look at these other scrumptious cupcake recipes:
- These Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcakes With Chocolate Frosting are perfect for a birthday party.
- If you love chocolate, these Super Chocolatey Gluten Free Chocolate Cupcakes are delicious with chocolate frosting,
- Mr. Fearless Dining loves this Gluten Free Carrot Cake Cupcakes With Cream Cheese Frosting recipe. I hope you do too!
- These Gluten Free Lemon Cupcakes With Lemonade Icing are perfect and are bursting with lemon flavor.
This recipe was inspired by my good friend April's incredible mocha cake recipe called Mocha Cake With A Twist. I wanted to make a gluten free version of her recipe as cupcakes. April is in the U.S. a few times a year and I love when she is visiting and we are able to bake in the kitchen together.
The last time she was here, she made a gluten version of my gluten free scones, and I converted her Bakewell Tart into a Gluten Free Bakewell Tart for my readers.
Let me just say the gluten free mocha cake version turned out incredible!
For all of my best gluten free cupcakes on the blog, check out my Gluten Free Cupcakes resource page!!
I see specialty cupcake stores all over the Bay Area. Do you have them in your town too? Many have gluten free options, but I often wonder about cross-contamination.
After cupcakes became a craze on the commercial level, individuals started to figure out they could make gorgeous cupcakes at home. Just watch Cupcake Wars or the Great British Baking Show for ideas!
(*Note in April's recipe, she uses a standing mixer. I know many of my readers do not have a standing mixer so I am showing you directions to make this recipe with mixing bowls and a whisk (and strong muscle power.)
Recipe step by step:
Step 1: Add your dry ingredients to a bowl and whisk to blend. I used instant coffee, Via actually, that I got at my local Starbucks...but any instant coffee will do.
Step 2: In a smaller bowl, add your wet ingredients and mix well.
*I want to talk to you a little bit about the powdered coffee I used for the mocha cupcakes recipe with coffee buttercream frosting. You can use any instant coffee that you like, but I went with Starbucks Via.
I love the extra deep coffee flavor that it adds to the coffee cupcakes. (Make sure to look at the ingredient list to ensure it is gluten free!)
Step 3: Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until just barely mixed.
Step 4: Add the batter to a muffin tin. Fill each section ¾ full and bake at 350F for 20-22 minutes until done. To make your cupcakes all the same size, use a large cookie scoop to scoop the batter in.
Step 5: To make the mocha frosting, add powdered sugar, instant coffee, softened butter, water, and vanilla to a standing mixer and mix until the frosting is fluffy.
Step 6: Put frosting into a piping bag and pipe onto each baked cupcake.
Expert Tips and Recipe FAQ:
Tips for perfect cupcakes:
If you LOVE light and fluffy cupcakes here are a few tips to help you make sure that your cupcakes come out perfectly every time.
- #1 most important, don’t overmix the batter. Often people think that they need to keep mixing it and that adds additional air to the mix. This creates a dense and heavy tasting cupcake.
- Room temperature ingredients – I used to think this was silly but now I let everything sit out, even the eggs. If the ingredients are too cold it can affect how they bake. Allow butter and other cold ingredients to sit at room temperature before mixing.
- I like to use a large cookie scoop to put the batter in the cupcake tin. Then you will have perfect uniform cupcakes.
- Don’t overbake or bake at too high of a temperature. Double check your oven temperature and check the cupcakes often to ensure you don’t over bake. Otherwise, they will turn out dry and not as flavorful.
I like to use Starbucks Via coffees. You can also use Anthony's (available via Amazon), Maxwell House, and Walmart's Great Value Brand.
I love to use parchment paper muffin paper liners to prevent sticking. they are so easy to use. You can find them on Amazon or in most grocery stores.
To test for doneness, insert a toothpick into the center of a cupcake. If the toothpick comes out clean, it is done baking. If you see batter or crumbs, the cupcakes needs to bake longer.
These cupcakes will keep up to 3 days in an air-tight container. Store in the refrigerator.
Looking for some more sweet desserts?
- Paleo Delicata Squash Coconut Flour Brownies
- Drool-Worthy Gluten Free Banana Bread Pudding
- Gluten Free Cookie Dough 7 Layer Magic Bars
- Simple Gluten Free Cinnamon Crumb Cake
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📖 Recipe
Gluten Free Mocha Cupcakes with Mocha Buttercream Frosting
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 ¼ cups granulated sugar
- 3 eggs room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2¼ cups gluten free flour blend * see note
- ½ cup cocoa powder not drinking chocolate
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon instant coffee one that is finely ground like Starbucks via dissolved in ⅓ cup boiling water, cooled
- 1 cup almond milk * see note
Frosting:
- 1-2 tablespoons instant coffee one that is finely ground like Starbucks via
- made with 1 teaspoon instant espresso powder dissolved in 3 tablespoons boiling water Amount used depends on caffeine level you want
- 2 cups confectioner's sugar
- 3 tablespoons cocoa
- ½ cup butter softened
- 1-2 tablespoons water
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (170°C).
- Add cupcake paper liners to a muffin tin.
- Cream the butter and sugar together in a standing mixer or bowl.
- Add the eggs and vanilla and mix together well.
- In a bowl, add the dry ingredients and whisk to blend.
- Add to a small bowl the cooled coffee and the almond milk
- Add the flour mixture to the batter alternately with the coffee/buttermilk mixture, beating after each addition. (Use two additions of the flour mixture and two of the liquid mixture.)
- Pour the mixture into the cupcake liners.
- Bake for 20-22 minutes or until the top springs back when touched lightly and a skewer inserted in the cake comes out clean.
- Cool the cupcakes on a cooling rack.
- Add the frosting ingredients to a standing mixer and beat until fluffy.
- Decorate the cupcakes any way you like!
Notes
- For this recipe, I used instant crystals, Via, that I bought from Starbucks.
- I have tested this recipe with King Arthur Measure for Measure GF and Bob's Red Mill 1 to 1 GF blend. That doesn't mean others will not work, I just have not tested other flours.
- If your gluten free flour blend doesn’t contain Xanthan Gum or Guar Gum, please add 1 teaspoon.
- To make this recipe dairy-free, substitute the butter for vegan butter.
- To test for doneness, insert a toothpick into the center of a cupcake. If the toothpick comes out clean, it is done baking. If you see batter or crumbs, the cupcakes need to bake longer.
- I used almond milk but other dairy-free kinds of milk will work but I do not recommend canned coconut milk.
- These cupcakes will keep up to 4 days in an air-tight container, or up to 4 months in the freezer.
Nutrition
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Faye
Hi. I made these cupcakes and they were super moist the day of. I put them in the fridge and frosted them the next day and then tried one and it was not so moist. A bit drier and hard. I made sure I didn’t over mix either. Is this normal for it to be harder after refrigeration even after letting it come to room temperature? I’ve been requested to make a gluten free birthday cake later this wk so I would like to perfect this. Help.
Sandi Gaertner
Hi Faye, can you provide more info? What gluten free flour blend, liquid (milk or type of non-dairy milk) etc? Did you make any substitutions? Mine didn't become hard like what you are describing so hoping more info can help us figure it out.
Kristina
Do I need to add xanthan gum if my GF flour blend doesn’t contain it?
Sandi Gaertner
Hi Kristina, you will need to add 1 teaspoon of Xanthan gum to the dry ingredients.
Denise Raymond
I'm desperately trying to find an excellent dairy free /gluten free recipe to bring t o a birthday this weekend. I've been gluten dairy free for about 3/4's of a year now made a huge difference in my life but it's to revamp a lot of my recipes some work some don't. So I was wandering if I could replace the unsalted butter with either vegan margarine or vegan butter. I can't find any unsalted ones in our stores. I cannot wait to try this recipe and pray it all works out great!
Sandi Gaertner
Hi Denise, I haven't tried vegan butter sticks, but I have to assume they would work well in the cupcakes. I am not fully sure for frosting, you may consider checking Pinterest for vegan frosting recipes.