Guinness Cupcakes with Bailey's Irish Buttercream Frosting

i was searching for a dessert that would challenge me, but for which i would also have the requisite tools. i kept running into elaborate tarts, or basic pies and cakes. then... voila. guiness cupcakes with irish buttercream frosting. the fact that there were two types of alcohol mentioned in just the name of the dessert had absolutely no impact on my decision to bake these. none... whatsoever... really. i swear ;) Here's the recipe (found at nibbledish.com).

ingredients

For the cupcakes:

• ½ cup Guinness
• 1 stick butter
• 3/8 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1 cup sugar
• ¾ tsp of baking soda
• 3/8 tsp of salt
• 1 egg
• 1/3 cup sour cream

For filling:

• 4 oz bittersweet chocolate (small shavings)
• 1/3 c heavy whipping cream
• 1 tbs butter (room temperature)

For buttercream:

• 1½ cups powdered sugar
• ½ stick unsalted butter (room temperature)
• 3 tbs Baileys Irish Cream

Making the cupcakes:
Take unsalted butter and Guinness and let simmer in a small sauce pan.  When mixture is simmering, add cocoa powder and whisk thoroughly.  Turn off heat and allow mixture to cool.  

I made the very amateur (but very "me") mistake of  accidentally turning my stove all the way to low instead of off, and was afraid that i may have slightly burned the mixture, but it all turned out ok. 

In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt, and sugar.  Whisk.

In a large mixing bowl, combine egg and sour cream.  Whisk until the consistency begins to look like cream.

Take Guinness mixture from fridge and combine into egg/sour cream mix bowl.  Whisk. It will look really chocolately and creamy once it's all mixed. 

When I let the guinness/chocolate mixture cool, it separated quite a bit. and repeatedly. every time i checked this mixture, it separated. i was slightly worried that it hadn't emulsified, but figured that this wasn't the finished product, so I should just keep going. Once I mixed it into the sour cream/egg mixture, everything was just fine.

Add your flour mix, and continue to whisk thoroughly.

Using a large spoon, scoop mix into lined muffin pan.  Place in oven and allow to bake. Mine took approximately 28 minutes at 350 degrees.
 

Filling:
Bring heavy cream to a simmer in a small sauce pan.

Pour over bittersweet chocolate.  Allow to sit for one minute, then whisk. Add in butter and continue to whisk until consistency becomes creamy.

Pipe filling into center of each cupcake.

i piped the filling into the cupcakes when they were not quite cool... i wanted to make sure that the cupcakes had a bit of give when i added the filling. i had never filled cupcakes before, so there were a few where i think i piped in too much, but hey, can you really complain about TOO MUCH chocolatey filling?

Baileys Butter Cream Frosting
Beat the butter with an electric mixer - it MUST be at room temperature.  Add in a few tablespoons of powdered sugar at a time and continue to whisk.  

Once all the sugar has been used up, add in Baileys and keep whisking.  If the frosting becomes too thin, add in a few more tablespoons of powdered sugar. 

Pipe or spread butter cream over cupcakes and serve.

The finished product :)

recipe feedback: my mom seemed really enthusiastic about this cupcake... she thought it was "perfect... wouldn't change a thing." my dad also enjoyed it, though he has more of a sweet tooth (like me), and was not as keen on it. my response? i thought that the combination of not very sweet cake with unsweetened filling was... a bit underwhelming. don't get me wrong! the bailey's buttercream was plenty sweet. PLENTY. but it will be something I remember if i make this recipe again.

changes: with the above feedback in mind, i think i would just change the bittersweet chocolate in the filling to semi-sweet. Just that bit more sweetness would make all the difference. that was my only change :)

lessons learned: clean as you go. seriously. clean as you go. and this is only half the kitchen :)

Edit: I just made these cupcakes again, and either I went hog-wild the first time or forgot to mention it - the yield is only 1 dozen. you do NOT need all 4 oz of bittersweet chocolate. In the future I'd make about half as much filling.