St. Patty's Day Cupcakes

I feel like I've been planning to make this cupcake for at least a year now.  This was inspired by the Irish Car Bomb shot!  Guinness cupcake, filled with a Jameson ganache, and a Irish Cream whipped cream topping.  It's like dessert, but it gets you drunk...seriously.  Fantastic cupcake for St.Patty's day, and really easy to make.

Stout Cupcake: 

Makes 24 cupcakes (original recipe found on www.foodnetwork.com)

• 1 1/2 cups Irish stout (recommended: Guinness)
• 4 ounces unsalted butter
• 3/4 cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder
• 2 cups dark brown sugar
• 3/4 cup sour cream
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Line a cupcake pan with 24 regular cupcake liners.

Step 1:

In a medium size sauce pan, add the butter and the stout. Melt the butter on medium heat. Then turn the heat off.

Step 2:

In a side bowl, add the cocoa powder and dark brown sugar, mix it around and then add it to the sauce pan. Give it a good mix to combine.

Step 3:

In a bowl, add the sour cream, eggs, and vanilla.  Mix with a fork and then slowly add it to the sauce pan while stirring the chocolate mixture.

Step 4:

In a bowl, sift the flour and the baking soda together.  Then add this to the sauce pan and give it a mix until it's all the same colour.  The batter will be a little lumpy, don't worry, it's perfect the way it is :-)

Step 5:

Fill your cupcake liners to about 3/4 's full  and bake for 13-18 minutes.  I know this is a big range but with a convection fan it took me 13 minutes, but without it you will have to leave them in closer to 18 minutes.  They will spring back when touched if they're done. Or check with a toothpick, it will come out with a couple of soft crumbs.  While they are cooling you can go ahead and make your ganache....

Chocolate Whiskey Ganache:

• 10 oz dark chocolate ( I used one of those big Lindt chocolate bars)
• 8 Tbsp heavy cream
• 4 Tbsp whisky (You might want to start with 3 and then add another one if it's not strong enough, I liked mine with 4)

Put everything into a microwaveable bowl and microwave on high for 30 seconds.  Stir until melted and then put the mixture in the fridge to cool (or to make it faster, put it in the freezer, just don't forget about it).  Check on it every 5-10 minutes, you don't want it to get too hard or you won't be able to get it in the cupcakes.  It should be the consistency of chocolate pudding when you fill the cupcakes.

While your ganache is cooling, make your Irish cream whipped topping.....

Irish Cream Whipped Topping:

• 2 cups heavy cream (very cold)
• 1/3 cup Irish cream
• 1/3 cup icing sugar

Put everything in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat until stiff peaks.  You can add more Irish cream or sugar to make it taste just the way you like. 

Once your cupcakes are cool and your ganache is the consistency you want it (pudding consistency , you're ready to assemble.

Step 1:

Cut a hole in the cupcake and remove the cake, try to keep the top in tact so that you can place it back but remove a little bit of the cake so there is room for the ganache.  

Step 2:

Fill the cupcake with the ganache and place the top of the cake back on.  To do this I put my ganache in a plastic sandwich bag and cut off one of the corners to create a makeshift piping bag.

Step 3:

Ice the cupcakes with the whipped topping.  I used a big star tip on a piping bag to do this.

Serve immediately (or keep cold until you can serve it).

If you leave it at room temperature for too long the whipped cream will start to lose it's shape.  To help prevent this you can add a stabilizer to your cream before you whip it.  I usually go with Dr.Oetker's whip it which is about a dollar for two small packs.  I think Cool Whip sells one too.  It will be in your local grocery store in the baking aisle.

Yum !!