Irish Coffee Cupcakes

/ Cupcake, Dessert, Recipe / 22 Comments

This week  I made homemade versions of two typically store-bought items: first chocolate syrup, then Irish cream. I’ve put those to use and made a perfect St. Patrick’s Day cupcake: Irish coffee cupcakes! This is a great treat to bring to work on St. Paddy’s day: it won’t get you buzzed, but you get a little taste of liquor. For those of you who don’t know, Irish coffee is coffee spiked with sugar, whiskey and sometimes Irish cream, then topped with thick cream.

The base is a simple coffee cupcake. I replaced the milk in the original recipe with Irish cream. You could try adding a little whiskey in place of some of the Irish cream for a stronger whiskey taste. The batter tasted strongly of coffee but once baked, it was a fairly subtle taste; I might try adding more coffee and Irish cream next time.

While I usually prefer a buttercream frosting on cupcakes, whipped cream is much more representative of Irish coffee. This whipped cream is lightly sweetened and spiked with whiskey or Irish cream. Topping the cupcakes with some chocolate syrup adds a nice sweetness to this barely sweet cupcake. Slàinte!

Recipe:

Irish Coffee Cupcakes

Adapted from Martha Stewart

Makes 12-15 cupcakes

For the cupcakes:

  • 1/2 C boiling water
  • 2 T instant coffee powder
  • 2 C all-purpose flour
  • 1 t baking powder
  • 1/4 t baking soda
  • 1/4 t salt
  • 1/4 C Irish cream
  • 1/2 C (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1/2 C granulated sugar
  • 1/2 C packed light-brown sugar
  • 2 large eggs

For the frosting:

  • 1 C heavy cream
  • 2 T powdered sugar
  • 1 T Irish cream or whiskey

Preheat oven to 350°F. Position a rack in the center of the oven and line a muffin tin with liners.

To make the cupcakes:

In a small bowl, pour boiling water over instant coffee and let cool. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

Once coffee is cooled, add Irish cream. Beat softened butter with both types of sugar until pale and fluffy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with espresso-milk mixture, beginning and ending with flour.

Fill cups of muffin tin 3/4 full. Bake around 15-20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the centers comes out clean.

To make the frosting:

Whisk the heavy cream and powdered sugar together until medium peaks form. Add Irish cream or whiskey and continue to mix until slightly stiff peaks form. Garnish with chocolate syrup if desired.

22 Comments on Irish Coffee Cupcakes

  3. Sandra
    March 10, 2011 at 5:47 pm (14 years ago)

    Aren’t these just the cutest little treats.I’d love to scoop up the frosting with my finger first, then dive into the cake. YUM!

    Reply
  5. Sarah Schiffman
    March 10, 2011 at 6:42 pm (14 years ago)

    Well these look just lovely! I am loving your posts and looking forward to reading more…even though it might force me to retire my skinny jeans 🙂
    Sarah Schiffman recently posted The Comfort Month

    Reply
  6. Medeja
    March 10, 2011 at 6:47 pm (14 years ago)

    You know I admire you for all those home made things.. 🙂 and them combining them..

    Reply
  8. Firefly
    March 11, 2011 at 12:19 am (14 years ago)

    I saw coffee and came running 😀 they look so yummy!

    Reply
  11. Liz
    March 11, 2011 at 10:27 am (14 years ago)

    Yum…I am just imagining the fabulous flavor and getting hungrier by the second! Beautiful cupcakes~
    Liz recently posted Beggars Linguine

    Reply
  12. Georgia @ The Comfort of Cooking
    March 11, 2011 at 11:11 am (14 years ago)

    Oh my, now this is my kind of St. Patrick’s Day celebration! These little cakes are to die for! Thanks for sharing.

    Reply
  16. kita
    March 12, 2011 at 5:58 pm (14 years ago)

    I am slacking with my love of St. Pattys day recipes but I love Irish cream and these look great. 🙂

    Reply
  17. C&C Cakery
    March 13, 2011 at 10:25 am (14 years ago)

    I’m totally with you on this one – there is no need to pump green food colouring into your St. Patty’s Day desserts. We get enough of that stuff in our green beer, eh? These cupcakes are simple, delicious, and very festive! Thanks for sharing! (and that’s the best Irish Cream recipe I’ve seen this year!0
    C&C Cakery recently posted The Green Thumb- Sweet Pea Cupcakes with Sour Cream Frosting and Candied Mint

    Reply
  19. Dani
    March 16, 2011 at 11:57 am (14 years ago)

    I still can\’t believe that you made your own chocolate syrup and THEN made your own irish cream out of it and THEN made cupcakes out of that!!! You are a superstar!!! *does jazz hands*

    Reply

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