Cinnamon Mocha Cake with Chocolate Cinnamon Buttercream

My boys and husband wanted a chocolate cake with chocolate frosting "just for fun" last month but I find those flavors to be a bit boring.  I decided to add a bit of a cinnamon to both and see if anyone noticed or minded.

Well, they definitely noticed but everyone thought it gave the cake a great little flavor boost!  



For the cake:

2 cups sugar

2 cups flour

3/4 cup cocoa powder

2 eggs

3/4 cup almond milk (regular milk is fine too!)

3/4 cup vegetable oil

2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 cup brewed espresso (we use a single serve instant packet and 1 cup boiling water for this) 

For chocolate cinnamon buttercream:

2 1/2 stick butter, softened

3 1/2 cups powdered sugar

3/4 cup cocoa powder

4-8 tablespoons milk (I used almond milk since it's what I had on hand)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 

Optional bottle of chocolate sprinkles for the topping


To make the cake I heated my oven to 350 and greased and floured my pans. Then began mixing the batter together in my stand mixer.  I combined the sugar, flour, cocoa powder, eggs, vegetable oil, milk, baking soda, baking powder, salt, extract, and cinnamon all together they slowly added in the espresso.  It is a very runny cake mix; but it will cook up beautifully. 



I divided my batter evenly between my two cake pans (I used a 9" size) and gave them a few taps on the counter to release any air bubbles. Then I baked them for 25 minutes (ovens may vary though and can take up to 30 minutes).  Bake until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. 


Let them cool in the pans for at least an hour before turning them out to cool on a wire rack. 


Level the cakes and start making your frosting!  I always prepare my piping bag ahead of time by inserting my piping tip, cutting a hole in the bottom and then pulling the large end over the sides of my Pyrex measuring cup like this:


It just makes it so much easier to fill.


Using my (cleaned!) stand mixer bowl and the paddle, I combined the butter, powdered sugar, cocoa powder, milk, extract, and cinnamon.  I made sure to stop the mixer periodically and scrape down the sides.  You can always add a bit more milk or a bit more powdered sugar until you have a consistency you like. 
 
While the color is off in this shot, I did like the consistency so I stopped mixing and added a couple of generous scoops to my waiting piping bag. 



I started with a generous amount of frosting between my layers and smoothed it out with an offset spatula.


Then I frosted the top layer and all of the sides using my star tip.  Since I had a hard time getting my top layer to be nice and flat I topped the cake with a bottle of chocolate sprinkles. 







It was pretty quick, easy, and delicious! 



Linking up with:









Comments

  1. Oh my goodness, I'm drooling! I've never succeeded with a good chocolate cake, but I LOVE the addition of cinnamon to anything, so I'll definitely be trying this one! Beautiful!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Looks good! I would not have thought to add cinnamon to chocolate cake or icing but it looks like it was a good call on your part! I add icing to my bag similar to the way that you do but I put the bag over a fairly tall plastic cup. The tip does not touch the bottom of the cup. I add coffee to one chocolate recipe that I have. It's supposed to enhance the chocolate flavor. I assume that is why the espresso is in yours?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, we love a good mocha chocolate flavor and the espresso just amps that up a bit.

      Delete
  3. Ok this just looks so delish AND so perfect- like out of a professional bakery! :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Oh wow! This looks and sounds amazing! The cinnamon is such a great addition.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you! I really expected someone to object since they don't all love cinnamon as much as I do but most of the family couldn't really identify what that added flavor was just that it was a little something "extra."

      Delete
  5. Absolutely drool worthy. So good and beautifully decorated.
    Visited you via Homemaking Link Up
    If not already part of SSPS, this is a personal invite to hop over and come and share your posts with us at Senior Salon Pit Stop, every Monday to Saturday.
    See my entries: 14+15 and then navigate to the bottom of my page for the Senior Salon Pit Stop linkup, we hope to virtually meet you there.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I shared my handmade cards and scrapbook pages at the SSPS yesterday. Thank you so much for your invite!!

      Delete
  6. Well this is where your son gets his talent. Now I understand!!
    Xoxo
    Jodie
    www.jtouchofstyle.com

    ReplyDelete
  7. That looks scrumptious, Joanne! I like the idea of adding cinnamon.

    https://marshainthemiddle.com/

    ReplyDelete
  8. Oh my goodness, just when I'm drinking my evening coffee and craving for something sweet!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. My sugar craving has been crazy lately.. and especially in the evening. Wish I could send you a piece.

      Delete
  9. Wow! Joanne, you made such a beautiful looking cake and I bet it tasted delicious. Thanks for the recipe.

    ReplyDelete
  10. I am sending this to Dave and Rachel to make for my birthday next week. It sounds delicious!!!

    ReplyDelete
  11. This looks amazing! I love pretty much everything with cinnamon!

    ReplyDelete
  12. I need to try this! It looks and sounds amazing!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Share Our Lives: 5 Items I Can't Live Without

Prime Purchases in February 2023

Let's Look At... Our Grocery haul