This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
4 ingredient coffee frosting buttercream recipe with instant coffee granules! This is now our go-to coffee frosting for chocolate cake!
This coffee frosting is dreamy!
I will say this time and time again – my body cannot handle caffeine but I still LOVE the taste and smell of coffee.
It’s a bummer that even decaf coffee can still affect me so I usually get my coffee fix through baked goods. Like espresso cheesecake, coffee whipped cream, espresso brownies. They are all good.
And how did I forget about coffee ice cream?! That is probably where it all started.
Types of Buttercream
If you’re new to the world of buttercream, there’s actually different types – American, Swiss, Italian. American buttercream is the sweetest of them and consists of beating butter and powdered sugar together until you have a light, airy texture.
Buttercream is just a fancy name for frosting. I use them interchangeably now, but before I was a blogger I never used the term buttercream.
Why do I have air bubbles in my frosting and how can I get rid of them?
Air bubbles form when whipping the frosting, which is a necessary step in making buttercream! But you can reduce the amount of air bubbles by beating the frosting on low speed for a minute or by hand mixing the frosting. You are essentially pushing out the air bubbles.
Instant Coffee Granules
One of the easiest ways to make coffee buttercream is to use instant coffee granules. The granules will help give the frosting big espresso flavor without making it too liquid-y, unlike if you were to put actual brewed coffee into the frosting. I like to use decaf instant coffee granules, but you can use regular if you’d like.
I also like that some of the granules don’t dissolve completely so the buttercream has flecks of coffee bits in it.
If you need a starting place for what to use this espresso buttercream with 2 layer espresso chocolate cake!
Cake to pair with coffee frosting
- Doctored Up Pumpkin Cake
- Cinnamon Spice Crazy Cake
- Doctored Up Chocolate Cupcakes
- Homemade Brownies
- White Cupcakes
- Doctored Up White Cake
- Sugar Cookies Bars
- Homemade Chocolate Cupcakes
Tap stars to rate!
Coffee Frosting
Ingredients
- 2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature (1 cup)
- ½ cup vegetable shortening, can substitute with butter
- 2 tsp instant coffee granules dissolved in 2 tbsp milk
- additional 1-2 tsp instant coffee granules
- 2-4 cups powdered sugar
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl, combine the butter and vegetable shortening, beat using an electric mixer until fluffy, 1 minute.
- Add in the instant coffee granules that you dissolved in the milk.
- Add in additional instant coffee granules, about 1 tsp at a time until you get your desired coffee flavor.
- Begin to add the powdered sugar, about 1 cup at a time, mixing by hand first, then with the electric mixer. Continue adding powdered sugar until the frosting tastes good to you, is well mixed, and pipe-able.
My friends and I are doing cupcake wars at our school, we’ve already done the cupcake it self now we need the icing, were doing glow in the dark theme. I want to know how to make a easy glow in the dark icing to make in 40 mins. Please and thank you!
how much milk should you dissolve the coffee in?
2 tbsp milk
Is salted butter okay to use?
Yes!
Thank you! This was exactly what I was looking for!
Can I replace instant coffee with ground up coffee beans?
Yes!
Does this need to be refrigerated? If so how long can it hold without refrigeration?Â
Nope it doesn’t! It could sit out, covered, for a day or overnight.
I’m planning to make this for a shower and want to do as much ahead prep as I can. Can I make it a few days before I pipe it out, or will it collapse? Can it get whipped back up? What’s the ideal for how soon you can make it before piping it? Best to make and pipe right away? Thanks!
Hi Jenny! Buttercream can definitely be made 2-3 days ahead of time, covered and left on the counter! Just rewhip it before piping and it will be nice and smooth, not crusty!
Wouldn’t instant espresso make this “espresso buttercream?” This is just coffee. The two are not the same.
It only says “instant coffee” and “coffee frosting”. If she ever mentions espresso then it’s literally not in the recipe.
Espresso powder also works great but not many at home bakers have that in their pantry! I’m trying to make this recipe accessible to as many as possible by using instant coffee!
what piping tip do you reccomend for this?
My go to is the wilton 1M!
This is a great recipe! I ended up using 3 cups of powdered sugar and a little extra of the non-dissolved coffee for some texture. Also added a pinch of salt to dampen the sweetness a bit. My friends “Starbuck’s Cupcakes” will be a hit, thanks you!