Guinness Cupcakes

All I can say is WOW!!!  These are fabulous!  I know lots of people think you can’t make a cakey dessert with beer (or bourbon) and chocolate but really it adds such a depth of flavor to the baked good.

I had some trouble with the frosting so the next time I make this I will just bake a regular buttercream frosting and  use the reduced Guinness for some of the liquid.  I also did not use the vanilla bean ~ $11.99 for ONE bean and that’s just not happening so I added a bit more vanilla.   And I am a lousy frosterer!

@JanetRudolph tweeted this recipe last week and it comes from her blog ~ Dying for Chocolate Her blog is just chock full of chocolate ~ YUM!

Give these a try and see what you think!

I want to blog chocolate all week in time for Valentine’s day but I am getting a cold so if you don’t see me for a day or two, that’s why!

Guinness Cupcakes

1 cup Guinness extra stout
12 tbsps butter
3/4 cup unsweetened chocolate chunks (I broke up 1 Ghiradelli unsweetened chocolate baking bar)
2 cups sugar
2 cups flour
1/2 tbsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
2 eggs
3/4 cup sour cream

Preheat oven to 350º.

Place the stout and butter in a saucepan and bring to a simmer ~ do not boil ~ over medium-low heat.

Add chocolate chunks to hot stout/butter mixture and whisk until the chocolate melts. Take the pan off the heat and let the mixture cool.

Add the sugar to the chocolate mixture and stir to combine well.

In a bowl, sift the flour, baking soda and salt together.

Using a mixer with a whisk attachment throughout, combine the eggs and sour cream. Add the stout/chocolate mixture to the egg/sour cream mixture mixture and combine until well mixed.

Slowly add the flour mixture to the egg/chocolate mixture in thirds, scraping the sides of the bowl as you go along.

Place cupcake liners in pans and fill to about 2/3 full.

Bake at 350º for about 18-24 minutes or until a toothpick stuck in the middle comes out clean. Mine took 18 minutes.

Cool on wire rack before frosting.

Frosting

1 cup butter, room temp
2 1/2 cups sifted confectioner’s sugar
1/4 cup milk
1/2 whole scraped vanilla bean
1/2 tbsp vanilla extract
1 cup Guinness extra stout

In a small saucepan, simmer Guinness on low heat for about 10-15 minutes. Stout will reduce and become somewhat syrupy. Be careful that it doesn’t burn. Let cool.

Using a mixer, cream the butter for one minute. Slowly add the powdered sugar in thirds, alternating with some of the milk each time. Mix until creamy.

Add scraped vanilla bean and extract.

Slowly add reduce Guinness a bit at a time. Taste until you get to your desired flavor. I used a couple of tbsps so you may not use all the reduction.

Place in a piping bag with a large start tip and frost or just frost with a knife if you prefer.

Makes 24 cupcakes.

Happy Cooking!