Baked Dark Chocolate Doughnuts with Coffee Buttercream

Mmm… chocolate and coffee. One of my favorite flavor combinations! Along with chocolate/mint, chocolate/peanut butter and basically chocolate with anything. With these delicious doughnuts you’re able to have your coffee and eat it, too! Watkins recently sent me a box of baking goodies, which included a coffee extract. I couldn’t wait to give it a try and figured this would be the perfect recipe to experiment with it! I’ll be honest. Sometimes baked doughnuts disappoint me because you aren’t actually getting the same crispy-yet-soft texture as a fried doughnut. Yes, it’s in the shape of a doughnut, but it’s basically just a cake. Even though I prefer fried doughnuts, baked doughnuts are so much easier to make (and slightly healthier, right?). They are still amazing, but you just have to go into it knowing this isn’t going to be the same greasy, dense treat that you’d find at your local doughnut shop. But hey, who doesn’t like a cake-like treat?! These chocolate doughnuts are very moist thanks to the buttermilk and have a delicious, rich flavor thanks to the instant espresso powder. The buttercream is my typical recipe, but with coffee extract instead of vanilla. It’s a tasty combo that can work for breakfast or dessert!

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I had some batter leftover so I used a mini whoopie pie pan to make these little treats!

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Baked Dark Chocolate Doughnuts with Coffee Buttercream

These baked doughnuts are moist, flavorful and topped with a delicious coffee buttercream. It's the perfect treat for breakfast or dessert!

Ingredients

For the doughnuts:

• 3/4 cup flour
• 1/3 cup dark cocoa powder
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 2 1/2 Tbsp. butter melted and cooled to room temperature
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 3 Tbsp. granulated sugar
• 1 tsp. instant espresso powder
• 1 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
• 2/3 cup buttermilk

For the buttercream:

• 6 Tbsp. butter room temperature
• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 3 Tbsp. heavy cream
• 1 1/2 tsp. pure coffee extract (I used Watkins)
• pinch of salt

Instructions

For the doughnuts:

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Spray six-cavity doughnut pan with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.

2. In a medium bowl whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt.

3. In a separate medium bowl whisk together butter, egg, sugars, instant espresso powder, vanilla extract and buttermilk until combined. Spoon into a large piping bag then cut the tip and pipe into prepared pan. It should be about 2/3 full. With leftover batter you can either use another donut pan or use a mini cupcake pan to make doughnut holes. 

4. Bake for 9 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Let cool in pan for about 5 minutes then transfer to wire rack to cool completely. 

For the buttercream

1. In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until smooth and creamy. Gradually add powdered sugar and heavy cream, mixing on low until combined. Mix in the extract and salt. Use a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl, then mix on medium-high for 1 – 2 minutes.

2. Transfer to a piping bag, cut the tip and create a flower shape on top of the cooled doughnuts. 

3. To garnish, dust with cocoa powder.