Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes

Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes are made of Guinness cake, Jameson Whiskey chocolate ganache and Bailey’s buttercream frosting—the perfect St. Patrick’s Day dessert!

Note: The name of this cupcake is named after the cocktail containing Guinness, Jameson and Bailey’s.

What a lovely day for a Guinness, wouldn’t you say? Or perhaps Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes instead! Tomorrow is St. Patrick’s Day and everyone has already begun celebrating.

It seems like people will take any excuse to drink, even in the form of a cupcake!

Of all the cocktail cupcakes I’ve made, these are probably the most alcoholic. I mean, they are inspired by Irish Car Bombs. Last year I made these bad boys and people loved them.

From the Guinness infused chocolate cake, and Jameson Whiskey ganache filling, to the creamy Bailey’s frosting, these tasty little suckers are sure to pack a punch.

And, yes, some of the alcohol does bake off in the oven, but a fair amount remains. The buttercream frosting requires no heat so all the alcohol in the Irish cream is there to get you tipsy 😉

I have to say, the frosting is absolute perfection. I sometimes make this frosting just because my cake needs an extra kick of flavor. Bailey’s is a flavor in itself!

Each cupcake is filled with chocolate ganache spiked with Jameson Irish whiskey. The ganache floods your taste buds as soon as you bite into these cupcakes.

To create a small hole in the center of each cupcake, I used the end of a large, round frosting tip and discarded a bit of the cake. I filled the hole with the Jameson ganache and let it overflow onto the top of the cupcake for show.

And what would St. Patrick’s Day be without a Guinness? The stout beer adds some aroma to the chocolate cupcakes. I like serve the dessert with a Guinness to so I have something to wash down dessert!

These cupcakes have the perfect blend of spirited flavors. The Bailey’s buttercream frosting is also featured in my chocolate Bailey’s whoopie pies and Bailey’s brownies.

Irish car bomb cupcakes are the best way to start off your St. Patrick’s Day shenanigans. Don’t forget… Everyone is Irish on St. Patrick’s Day. Enjoy!

Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes

Yield: 24 cupcakes

Prep Time: 30 mins

Cook Time: 15 mins

Total Time: 40 mins

Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes are made of Guinness cake, Jameson Whiskey chocolate ganache and Bailey’s buttercream frosting—the perfect St. Patrick’s Day dessert!

5 (4 ratings)

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Ingredients

Stout Cupcakes

• 1 cup (240 ml) stout beer, such as Guinness
• 2 sticks butter
• ½ cup cocoa powder
• ½ cup chocolate chips
• 2 cups (250 g) all purpose flour
• 1 ½ cups (300 g) granulated sugar
• 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• ⅔ cup plain Greek yogurt, room temperature

Whiskey Ganache

• 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
• ⅔ cup cream
• 2 tbsp butter
• 4 tsp Irish Whiskey, such as Jameson

Baileys Buttercream Frosting

• ¾ cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 4 cups powdered sugar
• 6 tbsp Irish Cream Liqueur, such as Bailey’s

Instructions 

Stout Cupcakes

• Preheat oven to 350° F.  Line two muffin tins with cupcake liners and set aside.
• In a pot or large saucepan, simmer the beer and butter on medium until butter is completely melted. Add cocoa powder and chocolate chips and stir until your mixture is smooth. Take off heat and set aside to cool.
• In a separate medium bowl, whisk together, sugar, flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer, stir eggs and yogurt together until smooth. Slowly add the cooled chocolate mixture. Next, add flour mixture and stir until well combined.¹
• Scoop batter into prepared cupcake tin until cups are about 2/3 full. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool on racks.

Whiskey Ganache

• In a large sauce pan, melt chocolate chips, cream, and butter on medium-low. Stir until smooth. Add your whiskey, stir, then remove from heat and set aside to let mixture cool/thicken.
• While your ganache is cooling, scoop a hole into the center of each cooled cupcake with a cupcake corer or spoon.² Fill holes to the brim with thickened ganache.

Baileys Buttercream Frosting

• In a bowl with a mixer, cream together butter, 4 tablespoons cream, and powdered sugar. If consistency is too thick, add more Irish cream one tablespoon at a time until piped consistency is reached.
• Spoon frosting into a pastry bag fitted with desired tip³ and pipe it generously on top of each filled cupcake. Pour yourself a Guinness and enjoy!

Notes

1. Before filling the cupcake tin, I like to give the batter a good stir with a rubber spatula. This is to get the bottom of the bowl, just to be sure all the ingredients got mixed together!
2. Alternatively, you can skip coring the cupcakes and just spoon some ganache on top of the cupcake, then top with the frosting, up to you!
3. I used a large star tip (Ateco 823 or Wilton 1M)

Calories: 512kcal, Carbohydrates: 87g, Protein: 4g, Fat: 17g, Saturated Fat: 10g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 4g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 41mg, Sodium: 372mg, Potassium: 147mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 74g, Vitamin A: 343IU, Vitamin C: 1mg, Calcium: 38mg, Iron: 2mg

Author: Haley D Williams

Course: Cake, Dessert

Cuisine: American, Irish

Guinness for the Cupcakes

Jameson for the Chocolate Ganache

Bailey’s Irish Cream for the Buttercream Frosting

Double egg yolk?! Must be the luck of the Irish…

Voila! Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes

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