Espresso Martini cake

Taste of a cocktail in a cake
Celebrate the festive season in style with this luxurious Espresso Martini cake.
Buttery coffee cake soaked in a vodka & coffee liqueur syrup topped with flavoured whipped cream.
A decadent dessert for adults inspired by the classic flavours and textures of a velvety Espresso Martini cocktail.
The cake is drizzled with a coffee syrup made from espresso coffee, sugar, vodka and coffee liqueur. The whipped cream topping is similar to the frothy top of a classic Espresso Martini cocktail.
Serve chilled in a Martini glass or as a whole cake, this dessert is a gorgeous way to end a dinner or celebrate a special occasion like Christmas.
Delicious espresso coffee flavour
I used Montville Coffee Fairtrade organic Sunshine Coast Blend coffee beans for this recipe (that I bought from a local shop). Their coffee beans are roasted in Montville in the Sunshine Coast Hinterland. The fantastic aroma and taste of their coffee works perfectly with this recipe.
I ground the coffee beans myself and made espresso coffee from them. The espresso has a wonderfully dark and rich flavour that goes well with the buttery cake, vodka and coffee liqueur.
You should make Espresso Martini cake because it is:
- Decadent and delicious!
- Full of rich coffee flavour.
- Versatile: make four individual cakes or one larger cake.
- A perfect dessert for celebrations like Christmas and birthdays.
Espresso Martini cake’s main ingredients:
- Espresso coffee
- Coffee cake
- Vodka
- Coffee liqueur
- Cream
Tips for busy cooks
If you don’t have time to make my easy coffee cake, you can buy store-bought coffee cake instead and follow the recipe from step 4.
Serving suggestions:
- In Martini glasses – top the flavoured cream with a couple of coffee beans to make it look like a cocktail.
- As a whole cake – spread cream on the cake and cut it into slices.
A celebratory coffee dessert
How will you serve your Espresso Martini cake? In a Martini glass or as a whole cake cut into slices?
Let me know by leaving a comment and a recipe rating below – I’d love to hear from you.
Have you made this recipe? Tag @vegcoastcook on Instagram or use the hashtag #vegcoastcook so that I can see!

Espresso Martini cake
Ingredients
- Unsalted butter for greasing
- Easy coffee cake batter *see Recipe Notes
Coffee syrup
- 4 tbsp freshly brewed espresso coffee
- ½ tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tbsp vodka
- 4 tbsp coffee liqueur
Topping
- 400 ml thickened cream lightly whipped to soft peaks
- Coffee beans
Instructions
-
Preheat oven to 190°C fan. Grease a four hole non-stick muffin tin with butter.*See Recipe Notes
-
Make the easy coffee cake batter and transfer batter to muffin tin. Bake in oven for 20-25 minutes. Check to see if the cakes are cooked by putting a skewer in the centre of one of the cakes – if it comes out clean then the sponge is cooked. Remove from oven and turn out cakes onto a wire rack to cool.
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Meanwhile, put all the ingredients for the coffee syrup into a saucepan and heat on a low heat while stirring until the sugar dissolves. Bring to the boil, turn down to a simmer and cook for 1 minute. Remove from the heat and cool slightly.
-
Transfer the coffee cakes to four Martini glasses. Put them in the glasses upside down so you have a flat surface to spread the cream onto (you will have to cut the sides of the cakes to make them fit in the glasses).
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Using a skewer make several small but deep holes in the top of the cakes. Pour over the majority of the coffee syrup – keeping one tablespoon of the syrup to mix through the cream later. Cover each glass with cling film and refrigerate for a minimum of 2 hours or overnight if possible.
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Fold one tablespoon of cold coffee syrup through the whipped cream and mix with an electric hand mixer for 30 seconds on a high speed. Remove cling film from glasses. Top the syrup-soaked cakes with the whipped cream & syrup mixture and a couple of coffee beans. Serve chilled.
Recipe Notes
*Easy coffee cake batter: follow my easy coffee cake recipe.
*If you do not have Martini glasses, this recipe also works well as a whole cake. Grease a 15 cm round diameter cake tin (instead of a muffin tin) with butter and add the cake batter. Bake in oven for approximately 30-35 minutes. When cool, transfer the cake to a serving plate and follow steps 5 and 6 (spreading syrup-infused cream over the top of the cake to serve).
Made this recipe? Tag @vegcoastcook on Instagram or use the hashtag #vegcoastcook