If you’re like me, you might find yourself avoiding the plethora of “boozy” cupcake recipes that circulate the web.  Since I’m more of a wine girl, recipes cooked with beer, whiskey and other liqueurs didn’t ever really call to me.

Yes, some recipes call to me.  And they don’t shut-up until I make them.  It’s a problem.

I’m not sure why I finally broke down and made these.  Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that I’ve come to really love St. Patrick’s Day.  Since my husband is mostly Irish, we really embrace the day and celebrate with a big, Irish feast, lots of green and fun little treats for the girls.  Our milk will be dyed green, the girls will have a treasure hunt for “gold” coins, and I’m sure our Leprechaun friend will play some silly pranks on our unsuspecting children.  I can’t wait!

I’m really glad I gave these a try.  They’re really tasty, and while you can definitely taste hints of the alcohol used in the recipe, it’s definitely not an overpowering flavor.  The cake is moist, the ganache filling is rich and flavorful, and the frosting – oh…the frosting.  It’s fantastic.  It’s made with Irish Cream.  Need I say more?  I’m pretty sure that this frosting will return to this blog in the future.  Once is definitely not enough.

I know that some of these filled cupcakes seem intimidating when you read the recipe.  There are quite a few steps involved, but it’s definitely worth it.  They payoff for your time is extraordinary.  You can spend an hour making and frosting cupcakes from a box mix, or you can spend 90 minutes making these.  And once you make your first successful filled cupcake, you’ll be hooked.  Using a pastry bag to frost cupcakes seems “fancy” but it’s actually quite a time saver.  I can frost 24 cupcakes in about a minute.  You can buy a 16 inch pastry bag for about $4.00, and a tip for about $2.00.  If you have questions, send me a note and I’ll help you get started.

3/4 teaspoons salt
2 eggs, room temperature
2/3 cup sour cream (full-fat)

Whiskey Ganache Filling Ingredients:
8 ounces semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped
2/3 cup heavy cream
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
2 teaspoons Irish whiskey (I used Jameson)

Irish Cream Buttercream Ingredients:
2 cups unsalted butter, at room temperature
5 cups confectioners sugar
6-10 Tablespoons Bailey’s Irish Cream

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees (F).  Prepare cupcake tins with liners, and set aside.

In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine Guinness and butter over medium heat.  Stir frequently, until the mixture comes to a soft boil.  Remove from heat, and add the cocoa powder.  Whisk until combined and smooth.  Set aside to cool slightly.

In a large bowl, whisk together the salt, flour, baking soda and sugar.    In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together the eggs and sour cream until creamy.  Add the Guinness and chocolate mixture to the eggs and beat just until combined.  Reduce the speed to low, and slowly add the flour mixture.  Beat just until the flour is incorporated, then finish combining using a spatula, folding the mixture together until no white streaks remain.

Fill your cupcake liners no more than half full.  Bake for 17 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.  Allow to cool completely on a wire rack.

Prepare the cupcakes for filling.  To do this, hollow out a circle in each cupcake, about 1/2 to 2/3 the depth of the cake.  I used the metal edge of my pastry tip, but you can also use a spoon, a knife or a cookie dough scoop:

To make the whiskey ganache, pour the heavy cream into a medium, microwave safe glass bowl.  Heat cream in microwave until it’s steaming hot, but not boiling.  Remove from microwave and add chocolate.  Allow the chocolate to sit in the hot cream for 1 minute.  Then, using a whisk, stir the chocolate and cream until the chocolate is melted.  Add the butter and whiskey and continue to stir until smooth and shiny.  Allow the ganache to cool until it’s thick but soft.  Using a piping bag or a spoon, fill each cupcake with ganache.   Prepare frosting.

To make the frosting, in the bowl of a stand mixer, whip the softened butter  until it’s pale and fluffy.  Scrape the bowl as needed.  Reduce the speed to low and add the confectioners sugar.  Add the Irish cream and beat the frosting for 3-4 minutes, until very light and fluffy.  Frost cupcakes as desired.

Store in an airtight container for 2-3 days.
Enjoy!

Source: Brown Eyed Baker