irish coffee cupcakes with whiskey chocolate frosting
Here I go again, breaking out the booze and baking it into random shit.
Except I promise these cupcakes are far, far away from being shit.
When the weather chills out, I quite like spiking a cup of coffee with some type of sweet liqueur. This weekend in Pennsylvania my sister treated us to Bailey’s infused mugs of steaming French press brew and, with the dreary, windy, and sub-40 clime we faced, sipping the stuff was a real embrace. The holidays are a lovely time to indulge a bit, fancy up the typical plain black. I actually own a bottle of pumpkin spice liqueur I haven’t touched yet. An idea for Thanksgiving morning…
I think Baileys was my first exposure to alcohol in my younger years, though I can’t say my memory spans that far back. Jesus, I talk as if I’m 90. Back in the old days, which you young whippersnappers wouldn’t comprehend…Ahem. I always appreciated the sweetness of Irish cream and I grabbed ahold of it pretty quickly. Strangely, Kahlua took me much longer to enjoy, but I’ve thrown it in the ever-popular Caramel Macchiato Cake, No Churn Vanilla Fudge Ice Cream, and Churro Fudge Poptarts.
Kahlua is irrelevant to this particular recipe, but I’m just saying.
A golden whipped whiskey buttercream swirls atop a vanilla espresso cupcake infused with Irish cream: the temperament of the Irish Coffee Cupcake. Just enough chocolate without overwhelming the snap of the alcohol. For the adults at your Thanksgiving gathering, or whatever occasion you find, a treat the kids can’t swipe even if they wanted to. Not that you’ll get drunk off these, unless you consume a whole dozen. Then you probably have greater problems than you prefer to acknowledge.
Luck of the Irish Cream
The cupcake itself is effectively a vanilla cake, excepting a bite of Irish cream and espresso for the flavor apropos to the name.
As with any cake, start with creaming the butter and sugars – here, white and brown, the latter for a malty backdrop. Whip in eggs one at a time, then vanilla.
In another bowl, whisk together flour, instant espresso, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Measure together some buttermilk and the Irish cream separately. Then, in two turns, alternate the flour and the buttermilk into the sugar mixture. Do not overmix, beat just enough so the final streak of flour vanishes.
Line 24 cupcake molds with parchment tins (2 pans, probably, unless you own a monstrosity of a pan) and fill each about 3/4 of the way with the batter. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted emerges clean. Cool in the tins for 5 minutes, then set onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Rain Makes Corn, Corn Makes Whiskey…
And whiskey makes my cupcake a little bit frisky…
I don’t even know why that came to mind. I hate puke and twang music.
Cool the cupcakes completely. Then, prepare your frisky buttercream. Powdered sugar, softened butter, cocoa powder, whiskey, and a bit of heavy cream to thin it out. Beat until floof and poof. Enlist your favorite piping bag and attachment, or a ziptop baggie with a corner snipped off. Scoop in the frosting, and decorate as you please! I chose a simple coffee bean feather in the cap to finish the cakes off.
Among the whiskey varieties in existence, I reach for Irish less often. I think my last bout with the liquor was on St. Patty’s Day last year when I spontaneously mixed an Irish coffee for each of us – remembering this obscure instance inspired these cupcakes. Pretty sure my brain lifted these to fruition during a run, or at 4 am during an automated brain buzz inevitable of the early hour. Who knows.
I recommend these as part of a Thanksgiving or holiday get-together due to the ease of baking up a large amount. This recipe makes 24 little dudes. You can arrange them on a big platter in a pretty shape around a Chai Bourbon Pumpkin Pie (damn, we’ve quite the array of alcoholic baked goods for T-Day. I like it.)
If you’re looking to make these ahead, I’d recommend doing so no more than two days prior to consumption. You could go for a bit longer, but the freshness will certainly falter and the texture quality inevitably lessens. If you can, bake the cupcakes and refrigerate until the day of serving, during which you complete the treat my frosting them. Again, if you’re really time crunched, you can frost them too at the same time. Just store them very mindfully in nothing that will smoosh the nice swirls you created.
Tried this recipe out? Leave a comment below with your thoughts, and don’t forget to come say hi on Instagram and show me what you made!
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter (2 sticks), softened
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 3 eggs, at room temperature
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp instant espresso
- 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 cup buttermilk
- 1/2 cup Irish cream liqueur
whiskey chocolate frosting
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 3 tbsp Irish whiskey
- 2-4 tbsp heavy cream, as needed
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 12-slot cupcake pans with muffin tins, or grease generously with butter.
- In a bowl, cream the butter, sugar, and brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Beat in eggs one at a time until incorporated. Beat in the vanilla.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, instant espresso, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- In a glass measuring cup, combine the buttermilk and Irish cream.
- In two turns, alternate the flour and buttermilk mixtures into the sugar mixture, whipping thoroughly in between. After the last turn, mix until everything is just combined. Do not overmix.
- Fill each muffin tin about 3/4 of the way full with batter. Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center emerges clean. Cool for 5 minutes in the tins, then set onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- When ready to decorate, prepare the frosting. Beat together the powdered sugar, butter, cocoa powder, Irish whiskey, and 2 tablespoons of heavy cream until fluffy and smooth. If the frosting is too stiff, add heavy cream 1 tablespoon at a time until you reach the desired consistency.
- Use a piping bag or a ziptop bag with a corner snipped out to swirl frosting onto each cupcake. Alternatively, you can spread a glob atop with a frosting knife. Garnish with coffee beans.
