Mochaccino Muffins | Baking with Dorie

Give me a mochaccino muffin with the morning java. That’d surely make my day; it will also lighten my heart and waken my senses. What more can I say! You can find the recipe on page 68 in Baking with Dorie, which I received as a holiday gift. Since then I’ve already found my favorite cookie and, lately, the breakfast quiche inspired by Spring ingredients. I’m only getting started on baking through the book; what a treasure it’s been!

The Process:

• You may consider baking without a recipe as the ingredients and steps are straight forward.
• Gather the dry ingredients: all-purpose flour (272g or 2 cups), unsweetened cocoa powder (21g or 1/4 cup), baking powder (2 1/2 tsp), ground cinnamon (1/2 tsp), sea salt (1/2 tsp), baking soda (1/4 tsp), sugar (133g or 2/3 cup), ground coffee (2 tbsp). Mix the ingredients well in a large bowl.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients: milk (180 ml or 3/4 cup), 2 large eggs, 2 teaspoons of coffee extract or concentrate, and a stick of melted butter. I use two teaspoons from a small single shot of espresso coffee from a machine for an extra-strength coffee flavor and aroma. Make sure all the ingredients are at room temperature. Consider melting the butter first and let it come to room temperature.
• To amp up the coffee flavor, ground cinnamon (see the list of dry ingredients above) is indispensable and perhaps use a little more than 1/2 teaspoon. In addition, the finely chopped dark chocolate contributes to the texture of the mochaccino muffins. They taste well and look good together.
• Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients, until all the ingredients are incorporated. The batter now looks like a thick brownie mix. Then fold in the chopped chocolate.
• Finally, bake the muffins in a regular-size muffin tin, lined with cupcake papers, in a 400°F oven for 18-20 minutes.

Dry ingredients: flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, ground coffee

Room-temperature wet ingredients help improve the muffin’s texture

More Tips:

A word on sifting the dry ingredients: Don’t skip it. That takes care of the lumps in the batter, especially the flour and cocoa powder, and makes the final mixing a breeze. That’s coming from someone who regularly resists the obligatory sifting.

A further word on sanding sugar for sprinkling: make it part of the recipe. I see the advantage to add crunch and deepen the flavor by sprinkling cinnamon sugar on top of the muffins.

Baking with Dorie