As I said the other day, tomorrow, May 23rd, is Jay’s birthday. And every year for his birthday I ask him what kind of cupcakes he wants, then I make him an entire batch of whatever he requests all for himself. Usually he shares them with his family or co-workers, since he’s not going to eat 12 (or 24) cupcakes all by himself. Previously he’s asked for these cupcakes two years in a row, and last year he wanted Funfetti cupcakes (which I made with no help from Pillsbury, thankyouverymuch). So this year I asked him really early,  in March, just randomly, what cupcakes did he want for his birthday. And it must have been close to St. Patrick’s Day when the Bailey’s cupcakes were still fresh in his mind … because he said without hesitation (as a matter of fact, practically interrupting me mid-sentence): “Guinness cupcakes with Bailey’s frosting- Irish car bomb cupcakes!”

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Easy enough. Car Bombs are, in case you don’t know…

An Irish Car Bomb is a beer cocktail similar to a boilermaker made with Irish stout, Irish Cream, and Irish whiskey.^[1]

The name refers to the drink’s Irish ingredients – typically Guinness stout, Baileys Irish Cream, and Jameson Irish Whiskey – and the car bombings notoriously used by the Provisional Irish Republican Army (PIRA) during the Troubles. The whiskey is floated on top of the Irish Cream in a shot glass, and the shot glass is then dropped into the stout. Once mixed, the drink must be consumed quickly because it will curdle.^[2][3]

They’re so delicious. And really, what kind of improvement could you make on a car bomb except for making it into a cupcake? Guinness cupcakes (or chocolate stout cupcakes) are a really easy and unique spin on the regular chocolate cupcake. Even if you aren’t a fan of stout beer drinking-wise, in a cupcake it’s a totally different ballgame. And I kicked some of these up a notch with some Jameson Irish Whiskey filling. Those aren’t for the faint of heart, believe me.

GUINNESS STOUT CUPCAKES

Ingredients:

• ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• Pinch fine salt
• 1 bottle stout beer (recommended: Guinness)
• 1 stick butter, melted
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 3 large eggs
• ¾ cup sour cream

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the cocoa, sugar, flour, baking soda, and salt.
3. In another medium mixing bowl, combine the stout, melted butter, and vanilla. Beat in eggs, 1 at time. Mix in sour cream until thoroughly combined and smooth. Gradually mix the dry ingredients into the wet mixture.
4. Lightly grease 24 muffin tins. Divide the batter equally between muffin tins, filling each ¾ full. Bake for about 12 minutes and then rotate the pans. Bake another 12 to 13 minutes until risen, nicely domed, and set in the middle but still soft and tender. Cool before turning out.

BAILEY’S IRISH CREAM BUTTERCREAM FROSTING

Ingredients:

• 1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons (maybe more) Bailey’s Irish Cream

Directions:

1. Cream the butter on high speed for approximately 3 minutes.
2. Add the Bailey’s and mix thoroughly. Slowly add the powdered sugar until well blended.
3. If necessary, add more Bailey’s to thin or more sugar to thicken it to desired texture.

Obviously the cupcake recipe makes around 24 cupcakes. The frosting should be plenty enough to frost that many, I can’t remember exactly, but I halved both and got the perfect amount.

Half of the cupcakes are filled with a “glaze” made with Jameson Irish Whiskey. This is really easy to make, just add a few tablespoons (up to a quarter cup) of Jameson to a cup or so of confectioner’s sugar, until it reaches a consistency that works. You don’t want it runny but you don’t want it to be a paste. It has to be a thick mixture that makes it easy to fill the cupcakes, yet not too thick or too drippy. Eyeball it, test it, and you’ll be fine. I poked holes in the cupcakes using a 1A Wilton tip, removing part of the cake. Then I just filled the holes with the Jameson filling, allowed it to set a little, then frosted them. On the other half I didn’t use the filling, but I put some chocolate shavings on top to differentiate. We’re having dinner with Jay’s family for his birthday, & his grandma & sister probably wouldn’t be down with a Jameson filling. Especially since that shit is STRONG as hell! Yes, it really does taste like Jameson. A bit sweeter thanks to the sugar, but there’s no amount of sugar in the world to compete with the taste of Jameson. So please believe me… if you don’t like whiskey (a LOT), aren’t a big drinker, or aren’t a big fan of Jameson… steer clear of the filling. It’s potent.

The Jameson filling

The filled cupcakes, all frosted

Both the filled & non-filled cupcakes together in harmony…

….

The chocolate shavings are easy, too. I just took a 1-ounce square of semi-sweet baking chocolate bar and grated it using the small part of a grater. You could also use a regular Hershey or Cadbury bar. And if you like, you can use any kind of stout in this recipe, not just Guinness. Sam Adams Cream stout, Brooklyn Brewery Black Chocolate stout, etc. I have another cupcake recipe specifically for chocolate/cream stouts that you can use also, but it’ll be totally fine to substitute for this recipe as well. Feel free to use a local stout of your choice. I’ll take this time to pimp Lyns at Sweet Cuppin’ Cakes Bakery & Cupcakery Supplies for her awesome black & white polka dotted liners. I swear, they’re the most masculine ones I have, and without them Jay would’ve had pink plaid or leopard print liners for his birthday.

Happy birthday Jay! I love you!