Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes

Happy early St Patrick's Day to you all! I know the day is not until Saturday, but unfortunately, SOME of us don't have the luxury of celebrating the day away (aka I am stuck working this St. Patrick's Day...lucky me.) So to celebrate, I decided instead to do some baking!

There are TONS of St Patty's Day recipes out there but this one in particular caught my eye. I loved the idea of it, each component of the cupcake incorporates one part of the "Irish Car Bomb" drink. I have never actually had an Irish Car Bomb before (the idea of having to drink it all before the Baileys curdles doesn't sound appetizing to me....maybe someday I'll work up the courage) but I still think it is a really neat idea.

I had also never tried a Guinness before I made these. Since there is some in the cupcakes, but not a whole can, I had some left over. I was pleasantly surprised, considering the nasty things I had heard from friends. Try something new everyday, am I right?

The hollowed out cupcakes

These did take me quite a while to make, and they can be a little bit labor-intensive for the novice cupcake maker. On the upside, they're tons of fun to make, and you can decorate them however you want. Plus they are pretty impressive and people will definitely love them!

These will be a great addition to any St Patty's Day party or get-together. I hope you all enjoy the holidays and enjoy this recipe!

A view of the ganache filling

Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes
Yields: 26 cupcakes

Ingredients:
THE CUPCAKES:
1 cup Guinness stout
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup cocoa
2 cups flour
2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 tsps baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
2 eggs
2/3 cup sour cream

THE GANACHE FILLING:
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate
2/3 cup heavy cream
2 Tbsps butter, softened
2 tsps Irish whiskey

THE ICING:
2 cups unsalted butter, softened
4 1/4 cups icing sugar (You can add more to get the consistency you want)
6 Tbsps Baileys Irish Cream

Directions:
1) Heat oven to 350 F. Line your cupcake tray with muffin cups.
2) Combine Guinness and butter together in a saucepan over a medium heat and simmer. Add cocoa and whisk together until completely combined. Set aside to cool.
3) In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda and salt. In a separate mixing bowl, beat together eggs and sour cream until combined. Add chocolate mixture and stir until just mixed, then slowly add the dry ingredients, stirring until completely combined.Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.
4) Divide the batter into the cupcake cups and bake until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out mostly clean, about 18-20 mins. Cool the cupcakes on a wire rack
5) For the ganache, finely chop the bittersweet chocolate and put into a heat proof bowl. In a sacuepan, heat the heavy cream until it reaches a simmer. Pour the cream over the chocolate and let sit for a minute. Then slowly stir the chocolate mixture to combine the two ingredients completely. Add the butter and whiskey and stir until completely mixed. Let it cool until thickened, but still soft enough to be piped.
6) Using a small spoon or cookie scoop (I used a small rounded teaspoon), dig out a small hole in the centre of each cupcake. Be sure to only go about 2/3 of the way deep. Pipe some of the ganache filling into the centre of each cupcake until the ganache reaches the top of the hole. If your ganache is still really soft, pop the filled cupcakes in the fridge for a few minutes until the ganache has firmed up.
7) For the icing, use the whisk attachment of your mixer, and beat the 2 cups of butter on high for a few minutes, until light and fluffy. Add the icing sugar a cup at a time, beating in between each cup. Once all your icing sugar is in, beat on high for a few minutes until light and fluffy. Add the Baileys and mix. Ice and decorate cupcakes as desired.


(Recipe adapted from Browneyedbaker)