Cupcakes for Brunch?

My good friend Nikki is an awesome DC blogger over at i eat cupcakes for breakfast. When she learned that I was cooking dinner earlier this week for 26 people, and was whipping up a batch of chocolate Guinness cupcakes with peanut butter frosting for dessert, she put in a request that I send her the recipe ASAP. This blog post is for Nikki 🙂

I stumbled on this Epicurious recipe about a year ago, and have made it multiple times since then–with positive feedback each time. Besides tasting great, this recipe is always a hit because people like the idea that there is beer in their cupcake! The other great thing about the cupcake is that it’s not too sweet, which makes it the perfect finale to a big brunch once you’re already stuffed but still craving some sort of dessert.

I say, why not enjoy a good cupcake with brunch every now and then!

The original recipe calls for a chocolate whipped cream frosting, but I usually stick with the tried and true combo of chocolate and peanut butter.

If you’re daring, you can use the original amounts to make a three-layer cake, but I halve the quantities for 24 cupcakes. The amounts below are for 24 cupcakes:

Cupcakes:

• 1 cup Guinness
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
• 3/4 cups unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 2 cups sugar
• 3 teaspoons baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoons salt
• 2 large eggs
• 2/3 cups sour cream

Frosting (via Barefoot Contessa):

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 cup creamy peanut butter
• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/3 cup heavy cream

Preheat oven to 350.

Combine dry ingredients in one bowl and the sour cream and egg in another large bowl.

Meanwhile, bring the Guinness and butter to a simmer over medium heat. Add the cocoa powder and whisk until smooth.

Remove from heat and add chocolate-Guinness mixture to the sour cream and egg mixture. Beat to combine.

Slowly add the flour/dry ingredients to your chocolate/Guinness/egg/sour cream mixture and beat on low speed.

Fill cupcake liners 1/2 to 2/3 full and bake for 18-20 minutes

Frosting:

Add first five ingredients to mixing bowl (sugar through salt) and beat until smooth and creamy. Add cream and beat on high until your frosting is light and smooth.

ENJOY!

The perfect complement to any brunch or dinner!

NOTE to anyone who cares: The 26 person dinner went perfectly! We created a menu with lots of items we could serve cold or prepare beforehand. When it came dinnertime, all we had to do was pop the potatoes in the oven and stick the steaks on the grill.

The final menu was baked brie, buffalo chicken dip, roasted beets with dill, pasta salad with homemade pesto and tomatoes & feta, mixed greens salad, twice baked potatoes, strip steak, and chocolate Guinness cupcakes for dessert. Add in wine and beer and you have yourself a great night!