When it was Father's Day a couple of weeks ago I was browsing Pinterest for a little inspiration of what to bake and stumbled across a pin of alcoholic cupcakes.  Which lead me to these boozy cupcakes and when I scrolled down and saw the Irish Car Bomb cupcakes I knew these would be just perfect for my dad with his Irish roots and love of Guinness and Whiskey.  Now if you've not heard of an Irish Car Bomb it is a drink where a shot of Whiskey and Baileys is dropped into a glass of Guiness.  Doesn't sound too yummy right?  But I can promise you these cupcakes are so yummy!  Coming from someone who doesn't like Baileys, I can honestly say the Bailey's buttercream is one of the most delicious buttercreams I have ever tasted.

I hunted high and low for an English recipe as it's quite difficult to convert cup measurements into grams but couldn't find one anywhere, but don't be put off as these cupcakes are well worth the effort. I wasn't too disappointed anyway as it gave me an excuse to buy these super cute measuring cups that I've had my eye on for a few months now.

Measuring cups, £8 - Wilkinsons

Ingredients 

(makes 15-20 depending on the size of your cases)

Cupcakes:

1 cup of Guinness or other Irish Stout

1 cup of unsalted butter

3/4 cup of cocoa powder

2 cups of plain flour

2 cups caster sugar

1 and a 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder

2 eggs

2/3 cup of sour cream

Whiskey Ganache Filling:

225g dark chocolate

2/3 cup of whipping cream

2 tablespoons of unsalted butter

2-3 teaspoons of Irish Whiskey (depending how strong you'd like it to taste)

Baileys Buttercream:

2 cups of unsalted butter

5 cups of icing sugar

6 tablespoons of Baileys or other Irish Cream

1. Preheat oven to 180ºc/Gas Mark 4.  Put the Guinness and butter in a saucepan on a medium heat until the butter is melted and the mixture is simmering.  Add the cocoa powder and stir until smooth.  Leave to cool slightly.

2. Whilst the Guinness mixture is cooling combine the flour, sugar and baking powder in a large bowl.  Using an electric mixer or whisk beat together the eggs and sour cream, then add the Guinness mixture and combine.  

3.  Reduce the speed to low and gradually add the flour mixture.  Once fully combined divide the mixture between your cases, filling them just over half full and bake in the oven for 17-20 minutes.

4.  Whilst the cakes are cooling finely chop the chocolate into a heatproof bowl for the whiskey ganache.  Heat the whipping cream in a small saucepan until simmering, then pour over the chocolate and stir until all the chocolate has melted.  Stir in the butter and whiskey, then leave to cool until it thickens but is still soft enough to pipe.

5.  Once the cupcakes have cooled cut out the centres using a small round cutter or the bottom of a large decorating tip.

6. Fill a piping bag with the whiskey ganache and snip off the tip, then fill the cupcakes.

7. To make the buttercream use the whisk attachment on an electric mixer or an electric whisk and beat the butter on a high speed for 5 minutes, scraping down the sides occasionally.  Reduce to a medium speed and gradually add the icing sugar.  Add the Baileys and increase to a high speed for 2-3 minutes until it is light and fluffy.

8.  Fill a piping bag with the buttercream and pipe onto the cupcakes and decorate however you like.  I used some little chocolate crunch balls from Asda.

Delicious!!

I definitely recommend giving this recipe a whirl, even if like me you're not a fan of Baileys or Whiskey, but somehow it just works as these are some of the yummiest cupcakes I've baked.