The luck of the Irish

I know it's not quite St. Patrick's day but I will be in class the remainder of this week so I had to do my "celebrating" a little early.  And, maybe this will give our readers a chance to enjoy these delicious treats for themselves on Thursday.

So what do you get when you mix chocolate cake mix, Guiness Extra Stout and Bailey's Irish Cream?

Deliciousness, that's what.  I took the chocolate cake mix and replaced the water with equal parts Guiness.  You really don't taste the beer but apparently beer acts a bit like coffee when paired with chocolate--it enhances the flavors.  Joe claimed he could get a little taste of it but I couldn't.  The cupcakes results in very moist and tender.  I'm sure there's a chemistry lesson invovled but they didn't rise in the normal dome fashion--maybe something to do with the carbonation?

Then, I decided to top them with an Irish Cream icing.  I do have a recipe for Guiness frosting but I've had Irish Cream icing before and it's so yummy that I couldn't pass it up.  It's a super easy recipe.  One cup of powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon of Irish Cream, and 1/4 teaspon of vanilla.  For this, I quadrupled the recipe but I probably could have gotten by with tripling it.

It's such a thick/sticky icing that you can't pipe it on pretty so I just put a dollop on each cupcake and let the icing spread. 

Oh, and completely random but I used these adorable little measuring spoons for the green sprinkles. 

I love that they say 'dash, pinch, and smidgen'.  Thanks Mom!

So there you have your St. Patty's day treat.  Next year, I'll be more prepared and make gum paste clovers or something cute to top the cupcakes. For my first time going "off" recipe, I'm pleased with the results!  Enjoy!

~Karissa