We Interrupt Our Regularly Scheduled Vacation Posts for ... CUPCAKES!

I don't know why but I've been on a cupcake-making kick lately and not just regular size cupcakes but the jumbo ones - sometimes with filling to boot!  I even bought a king-size cupcake pan the other day when I saw it at A.C. Moore because it turns out ginormous cupcakes and I just couldn't resist.  I am so, so, so weak sometimes!

The other day I was perusing some recipes on-line and came across one for Chocolate Guinness Cupcakes with Bailey Irish Cream frosting and promptly decided that I just had to try it.  Not that I'm a major beer fan or anything but the recipe just sounded really good and I figured that if tomato soup cake doesn't taste anything like tomato soup then chances are good that Guinness cupcakes wouldn't really taste all that much like Guinness - though the touch of Bailey's in the frosting is most definitely right up my alley!

I asked my boss if he could spare some Guinness (he is a major beer fan and I knew he'd have a bottle or two around) so he brought me in two the other day and then I went to the store and got the rest of the ingredients I was going to need to make the house smell really, really good while these cupcakes are baking!

Cupcake Ingredients:

• 1 cup Guinness
• 1 stick + 1 tbsp butter
• 2 cups brown sugar
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup sour cream
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 2-1/2 teaspoons baking soda

To make the cupcakes:

• Combine the Guinness and the butter, chopped into 1-inch chunks, in a large sauce pan and heat to melt the butter.
• Remove from heat and whisk in the cocoa and sugar.
• In a bowl, whisk the sour cream with the eggs and vanilla then add to the beer mixture.
• Sift together the flour and baking soda and fold into the batter.
• Pour into cupcake tins and bake for 25 minutes at 350 degrees or until inserted cake tester comes out clean.
• Let stand 10 minutes, remove from tins, and cool completely on a rack.

Frosting ingredients:

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, room temperature
• 2 tablespoons Bailey's Irish Cream
• 2 cups confectioners' sugar

To make the frosting:

• Beat the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer until creamy and smooth.
• Add the Bailey's and half of the confectioner's sugar and beat until smooth.
• Add the second half of the sugar and beat until smooth.

I used my jumbo cupcake pans and ended up baking the cupcakes for 30-35 minutes roughly thereabouts - or whenever it was that the toothpick came out clean; because I doubled the recipe, in addition the dozen jumbo cupcakes I had enough batter to make six of the king-size cupcakes, too.  Those cooked a little bit longer but I can't really give you an accurate time as I basically just kept on eye on them and took them out of the oven after they passed the clean toothpick test.

I had Jamie hold one of each size so that you could see the difference and as you can see, that cupcake there on the left is most definitely man-size!  Just think how big it would be if I were to have filled it with even more batter  - cupcake heaven!!

As for the cupcakes themselves, they were absolutely yummy with a small taste of the Bailey's kicking in shortly after the first bite.  Jamie declared them to be delicious though I will give two words of warning:

1. Use caution should you decide to lick the beaters and the bowl! 
2. These are best eaten accompanied by a nice glass of cold milk! 

For my next cupcakes, I'm working on a zombiesque version that should be perfect for the Halloween season - muuaaahhaahhaahaa!