Dirty Chai Cupcakes combine the best of both worlds with chai latte cakes swirled with creamy, espresso buttercream frosting and topped with a chocolate covered espresso bean!

These Dirty Chai Cupcakes were inspired by a friend who’s a fan the Dirty Chai butter coffee at Picnik — a local, Austin-based food truck (and now brick & mortar) that specializes in food that accommodates all dietary restrictions. Truthfully, these cupcakes don’t have any special dietary accommodations. In fact, they only accommodate those who love coffee and crave cupcakes.

If this sounds like you, read on!

Never heard of a Dirty Chai?

It’s the best of both worlds, combining the dessert like spices of a chai latte with the toasty notes of espresso. Think sweet, creamy & caffeine!

The cake in these Dirty Chai Cupcakes is made with a parade of spices — cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, allspice, clove, nutmeg and a dash of black pepper for a hint of spiciness and warmth. This combined with the caramelly, molasses notes of brown sugar bring a subtle, toasted sweetness to the Dirty Chai Cupcakes. A friend who tasted these cupcakes mentioned they’d be great sans the frosting as a chai breakfast muffin!

Bake the Cupcakes!

These Dirty Chai Cupcakes bake up thick and chewy yet moist! The key to these cupcakes is the addition of an apple cider vinegar & baking soda mixture added just before scooping the batter into cups for baking.

Much like in science class, mixing these two ingredients together forms a quick reaction and a mass of bubbles. Adding the bubbling vinegar and baking soda mixture to the batter creates air within the cake when it bakes, allowing the cupcakes to rise up and bake into fluffy, Dirty Chai Cupcake masterpieces!

Whip up the frosting!

Since you can’t have Dirty Chai Cupcakes without some sort of coffee involved, I’ve topped these delicious chai cakes with rich, creamy espresso flavored frosting. To make this frosting, I created a high-concentrated instant coffee mixture that’s drizzled into the buttercream as it’s mixing. The coffee flavor has the rich notes of espresso without any bitterness.

To bring an extra jolt of coffee flavor, these Dirty Chai Cupcakes are topped with a simple chocolate covered espresso beans!  This small dark chocolate bean also adds a beautiful contrast to the espresso colored frosting and a hint of class to the Dirty Chai Cupcakes.

Perfect for Fall!

My Dirty Chai cupcakes are the perfect afternoon treat paired with a cup of coffee. Their chai spice flavor is on par for the Autumn season and they’re a bit of a change up from the traditional ol’ Pumpkin Spice hype this time of year!

5.0 from 4 reviews

Dirty Chai Cupcakes -- Chai Spiced Cake with Espresso Frosting

 

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Prep time

90 mins

Cook time

20 mins

Total time

1 hour 50 mins

 

Dirty Chai Cupcakes are the best of both worlds, combining the dessert like spices of a chai latte with the toasty notes of espresso.

Serves: 32

Ingredients

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup milk (1%, 2% or Whole)
• 3½ cups all-purpose flour
• ¾ teaspoon baking soda
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons cardamom
• 2 teaspoons ginger
• ½ teaspoon allspice
• ¼ teaspoon clove
• ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• 6-7 cups confectioner's sugar*
• 1 cup butter, softened
• ½ cup shortening
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon instant coffee
• 4 tablespoons warm milk
• dark chocolate espresso beans, optional for decorating

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350*F
2. Line 2 cupcake pans with cupcake liners and set aside
3. Before making the cake, prepare the coffee for the frosting by whisking together the instant coffee and warm milk. Once mixed, set aside to cool.
4. To make the cake, sift together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, allspice, clove, nutmeg, black pepper and salt in a medium bowl and set aside.
5. In a stand mixer, add 1 cup softened butter and beat on high for 2-3 minutes
6. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add both sugars and the 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
7. Cream on high for an additional 1-2 minutes
8. Scrape down the sides and one at a time, add in the eggs, mixing well before each new addition
9. In separate additions, add the ⅓ of the flour mixture followed by ⅓rd of the milk mixing on medium speed between each new addition
10. Once fully incorporated scrape down the sides and prepare the baking soda & vinegar mixture
11. In a small bowl, whisk together the baking soda and vinegar, quickly, while it's still bubbling pour the mixture into the batter and mix together on medium speed
12. Evenly distribute the batter into the prepared cupcake liners (makes ~32 cupcakes total)
13. Bake for 19-20 minutes
14. Remove the cupcakes from the oven and allow cakes to cool completely before frosting
15. To make the frosting, cream 1 cup softened butter and ½ cup shortening on high for 2-3 minutes
16. In 1 cup additionals, add in the confectioner's sugar
17. After 4 cups, add ½ teaspoon of vanilla extract
18. With the mixer on low drizzle in the cooled coffee extract
19. Add in the remaining confectioner's sugar, 1 cup at a time until the desired consistency is reached
20. To frost the cupcakes, place the frosting in a piping bag with a star tip
21. Cupcakes will keep 2-3 days, covered at room temperature

Notes

* I used 7 cups as I prefer a stiffer frosting to pipe with

3.5.3217