Coffee Cake. Literally.

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 cups white sugar
• 0.25 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup butter
• 3 tablespoons instant coffee granules
• 1 cup boiling water
• 0.5 cup buttermilk
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 0.75 cup butter, softened
• 3 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1 tablespoon instant coffee granules, or more to taste
• 2 tablespoons heavy cream, plus more as needed

Steps

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease two 9-inch cake pans and dust with flour. In a large bowl, stir together flour, white sugar, and salt until thoroughly combined.
2. Melt 1 cup of butter in a small saucepan; in a bowl, stir together 3 tablespoons of instant coffee with boiling water until coffee has dissolved. Pour coffee mixture into melted butter, bring to a boil over medium heat, and stir for about 10 seconds; set butter-coffee mixture aside to cool.
3. Mix buttermilk, eggs, vanilla extract, and baking soda in a bowl until baking soda has dissolved. Mix cooled coffee mixture into flour mixture, then gently stir in buttermilk mixture. Pour batter into the prepared cake pans.
4. Bake in the preheated oven until cakes are browned, and a toothpick inserted into the center of each cake comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Allow cakes to cool in the pans for about 10 minutes before cooling completely on racks.
5. Mix 3/4 cup of softened butter, confectioners' sugar, 1 tablespoon of instant coffee, and cream in a mixing bowl with an electric mixer on High speed until frosting is light and creamy; mix in additional cream, 1 teaspoon at a time, if needed to whip frosting to spreadable texture. Frost cooled cake layers.