Week 11: The Five Star Irish Stout; Chocolate Guinness Stout Cupcakes with Chocolate Ganache and Bailey's Buttercream Swirl


Hi friends! Even though my home is still drying out and my hardwood floors resemble a washboard (severely warped), I was still able to come up with a fabulous cupcake for this week! I really think you will love it!

I remember making a "Guinness Stout Cake" a while back when I had a subscription to Bon Appétit magazine. The more time I spent at my "Five Star" hotel, the more inspired I became with this combination, again! As you well know, I am a fan of anything chocolate. With St. Patrick's Day around the corner, I wanted to come up with something unique and most definitely not cliché, so I tried very hard to find the recipe I remembered seeing so many years ago. The changes I made to the recipe (with my own Cupcakery twist) are below!

The cake is so moist and surprisingly not as dense as you would think. It is definitely from the sour cream. The Guinness Stout adds such depth of flavor that does not make the "chocolate" part of the cupcake taste too sweet. I would be remiss if I did not tell you how luscious the Guinness and butter simmering before adding the Dutch-process cocoa smelled. I could almost swear a loaf of fresh baked bread was in the oven (it was that good)! I have made this recipe with and with out mini-morsel chocolate chips; It's entirely up to you - but if you really like chocolate... the more, the merrier! The ganache is a perfect complement to the robust flavors of the cake and then I added a swirl of Bailey's Buttercream frosting on top of all this deliciousness. This, if I may say, was a really unexpected surprise for the tastebuds each time I make this recipe.

This, to me, is proof that God loves the Irish! Even if you are not Irish, eating this wonderful combination made with some of Ireland's most popular and flavorful beverages, you will be Irish enough to make anyone's eyes smile!

If you get a chance to kiss the Blarney Stone this year, may you have a lifetime of eloquence! If you don't get to the Emerald Isle, I can just about guarantee this cupcake will transport you there! Happy St. Patrick's Day!

These cupcakes are also perfect for a regular Tuesday at work also!
Best!

Chocolate Guinness Stout Cupcake

2 cups Guinness Extra Stout
2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder (preferably Dutch-process)
4 cups all purpose flour
4 cups sugar
1 tablespoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
4 large eggs
1 1/3 cups sour cream
1 pkg. Hershey's mini-morsel semi-sweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350° degrees. Line baking cups with paper liners and set aside.

2. Bring 2 cups stout and 2 cups butter to simmer in large saucepan over medium heat. Do not boil.

3. Add cocoa powder and whisk until mixture is smooth. Cool slightly.
(Once the cocoa powder is added, your mixture should look steamy like this.)

4. Whisk flour, sugar, baking soda, and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt in large bowl to blend.

5. Using an electric mixer, beat eggs and sour cream in another large bowl to blend.

6. Add stout-chocolate mixture to egg mixture and beat just to combine.

7. Add flour mixture and beat briefly on slow speed.

8. Using a rubber spatula, fold batter until completely combined. Gently fold in mini-morsel semi-sweet chocolate chips.

(Mixture will appear robust and lumpy as pictured.)

9. Divide batter among paper liners and bake 17 - 22 minutes. Cupcakes are done when tester inserted into center of cakes comes out clean. Let cool for about 10 minutes on a wire rack.

10. VERY IMPORTANT: Let the cupcakes cool completely before frosting!

Chocolate Ganache

12 ounce pakage Nestle semi-sweet chocolate chips (or milk chocolate)
1/2 cup heavy cream

1. Combine both ingredients in a double boiler.

2. Continue to mix thoroughly over boiling water until ingredients are smooth and chocolate is completely melted.

3. Layer this ganache on completely cooled cupcakes and allow to harden.

Bailey's Buttercream Swirl

4 oz. (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
2 3/4 cups powdered sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. plus 1 tsp. whole milk
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 (2 1/2 Tbsp. Bailey's Irish Cream)

1. With an electric mixer, cream the butter and salt for about 30 seconds.

2. Add half of the powdered sugar and the milk to the butter and beat again until combined. Scrape down the bowl.

3. Add the remainder of the powdered sugar, vanilla, and lemon juice. Beat until combined. Scrape down the bowl again.

4. Add Bailey's Irish Cream and beat on high speed for 5-6 minutes or until the frosting is fluffy.

5. It is preferable to use the frosting on the same day you make it, but it can keep in the refrigerator for 3 days if tightly wrapped. Make sure and stir the buttercream well before using to get the air bubbles out of the frosting and then pipe onto completely cooled cupcakes.

Comments

Unknown said…
these sounds absolutely fabulous! i am irish and these seem to perfectly capture the important elements of our staple diet...baileys and guinness! brilliant! happy st. paddy's day 2 u or in irish Beannachtaí na Féile Páraic oraibh!
ley said…
These look tres fab! You should totally enter them in The St Paddy's Day Pub Crawl! (It's hosted by Emiline, at SugarPlumSweets.blogspot.com.) YUM!
Wendy Joan said…
Airy Fairy: Thanks so much! I think it is splendid a true Irish girl thinks these cupcakes are worthy! xoxo

Ley: Thank you for telling me about the Pub Crawl... I entered the cupcakes! Let's see how they make out. They are scrumptious! Thank you for checking in! xoxo
Emily said…
Wow, those look great! This recipe must make a ton of cupcakes.
I like that they have ganache, AND frosting. Mmm. You get extra points for using Baileys.
Great entry!
Kimberly Ann said…
This looks wonderful. I will be linking to this post for my Saturday at the Movies with a cupcake feature on my blog. Glad I found your blog.
CWYT said…
Those cupcakes look delicious! they must have taken forever to make but the outcome looks sooo worth it. i hope you're doing all right with the flooding fiasco and everything: did you manage to make these at the hotel??
crystal said…
I made your cupcakes last night and blogged about them this morning! I linked back to you. They are WONDERFUL!! Thanks so much!
http://backyardacademy.blogspot.com/2008/03/lifes-too-short-not-to-be-irish.html
Br. Jonathan said…
Nice!
I've made these before, but without the chocolate ganache and with a sour cream frosting instead.
Wonderful recipe!
Wendy Joan said…
Hi friends! Wow! What a response! Apologies for my delay in writing, please know each of your comments absolutely makes my day. Thanks for reading and please keep sharing your thoughts with me! I love them! xoxo

EMILINE: I cannot wait to see what your ST PADDY'S DAY PUB CRAWL entries look like. Thanks for taking a peek at mine! xoxo

CB: I am honored to be in the "circle" once again! xoxo

MIVI: That's pretty much what I said too; it is divine! xoxo

KIMBERLY ANN: Thanks for checking in and adding me! Cupcake love! xoxo

CUNTSTORM: They really didn't take that long to make, there is just so much batter you get a ton of cupcakes! As for the water -- ugh! I'll have another Guinness! xoxo

CRYSTAL: I am so excited you tried them out! I will be checking out your blog! Splendid! xoxo

BUCK: A sour cream frosting sounds like a great combination - I also thought of a cream cheese frosting! Thanks for checking in! xoxo
iTink said…
these look amazing. I think I;ll bake these tomorrow for 'Beer o'clock' for my Dad. lol. He's love that!
Wendy Joan said…
MA BAKER - "Beer O'Clock" sounds great! I just got a cookbook from the Yuengling Beer Brewery which has some delicious ideas. I hope your Dad loved the cupcakes! Thanks for checking in! xoxo
Jeff/Cindy said…
These cupcakes sound wonderful! One question - listed in the Bailey's topping it says 2 (2 1/2 tblspns Bailey's). Should I to interpret that as 5 Tablespoons of Bailey's? Can't wait to make them!
Wendy Joan said…
Hi JEFF & CINDY: I used 2 to 2 1/2 tbsp of Bailey's, but you can certainly use more to your taste! The Bailey's will be more fragrant and you will be able to taste more of it in the frosting. It can only be a win-win situation! I would just caution you to perhaps increase the powdered sugar so you can make a swirl that is not too runny! I hope they turn out well and you enjoy them! Best! xoxo
Colleen said…
Those were absolutely fantastic!

For folks who plan to make them, the recipe makes 4 dozen (amazingly delicious!) cupcakes. While I have made myself popular by leaving cupcakes everywhere I've gone in the past three days, if you don't need quite so many, you might want to halve the recipe. This will leave half a guiness unused in the recipe, so you might have to, ah, take one for the team. A tragedy of epic proportion, no doubt.
Colleen said…
Oh, one more thing -- definitely follow the recipe and use paper cup liners with these! I've used my silicone baking cups for many other recipes with no problem getting the muffins/cupcakes out but these were quite difficult to extract.
amylovesvegas said…
Hi I just found these and they look delicious! My question is when do I add the Hershey's mini chips? I see them in the ingredient list, but not in the process. Thanks for sharing your recipe. I can't wait to make these!
Wendy Joan said…
Hi AMY: These cupcakes are delicious and honestly, each time I make them people are always surprise they are made with Guinness! You were absolutely right about the mini-chocolate chips. I updated the recipe and added them to Step 8. After all the mixing is done, just fold them into the batter. Enjoy! Let me know how yours turn out. I love to see pictures! :-)
Wendy Joan said…
COLLEEN: Maybe some non-stick cooking spray would help loosen the cupcakes from the silicone baking cups? Sometimes the denser recipes need a little help! I am happy you liked this cupcake and I agree with not wasting the leftover Guinness! Best! xoxo