Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes

Last week was my birthday and there was a lot of celebrating and eating out. This week I was sick and started work so there was chinese food and Mr. Lawyer cooking. So there has been a lack of experimenting in the kitchen. However, for my birthday I did make some delicious Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes, or if you're being politically correct Chocolate Whiskey and Beer Cupcakes with Baileys Buttercream Frosting. But since it's named after the drink, I'm sticking with the original name. These cupcakes were amazing but really rich. I have a huge sweet tooth but could only eat one at a time. The Baileys Buttercream Frosting is an amazing gift to mankind! Sadly, it looses it's flavor after a day so if you make the cupcakes ahead of time, don't make the frosting until right before your gathering. My Pancake Pen was extremely useful and amazing at filling the cupcake pan since I always make a mess and can never keep them even.

Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes!

Guinness Chocolate Cupcakes Ingredients:
1 cup stout (such as Guinness)
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 cups all purpose flour
2 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
2/3 cup sour cream

Chocolate Whiskey Ganache Filling Ingredients:
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate
2/3 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons butter, room temperature
1 to 2 teaspoons Irish whiskey

Baileys Buttercream Frosting:
3 to 4 cups confections sugar
1 stick unsalted butter (room temperate)
3 to 4 tablespoons Baileys

Cupcake Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 24 cupcake cups with liners. Bring 1 cup stout and 1 cup butter to simmer in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add cocoa powder and whisk until mixture is smooth. Cool slightly.
2. Whisk flour, sugar, baking soda, and 3/4 teaspoon salt in large bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat eggs and sour cream in another large bowl to blend. Add stout-chocolate mixture to egg mixture and beat just to combine. Add flour mixture and beat briefly on slow speed. Using rubber spatula, fold batter until completely combined. Divide batter among cupcake liners, filling them 2/3 to 3/4 of the way. Bake cake until tester inserted into center comes out clean, rotating them once front to back if your oven bakes unevenly, about 17 minutes. Cool cupcakes on a rack completely.


Ganache Filling Directions:

1. Chop the chocolate and transfer it to a heatproof bowl. Heat the cream until simmering and pour it over the chocolate. Let it sit for one minute and then stir until smooth.  

2. Add the butter and whiskey and stir until combined.

Assembly Required!:

1. Let the ganache cool until thick but still soft enough to be piped. Meanwhile, using your 1-inch round cookie cutter or an apple corer, cut the centers out of the cooled cupcakes. (Or your sweet, sweet cupcake corer!) 

2. Put the ganache into a piping bag (or a baggie with the tip cut off) with a wide tip and fill the holes in each cupcake to the top.

Baileys Buttercream Frosting Directions:

1. Whip the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, for several minutes. You want to get it very light and fluffy. Slowly add the powdered sugar, a few tablespoons at a time.

2. When the frosting looks thick enough to spread, drizzle in the Baileys and whip it until combined. If this has made the frosting too thin beat in another spoonful or two of powdered sugar.

3. Frost your cookies!

YUM!