Bailey's Mocha Cupcakes

Awhile back Matt & I had been discussing ideas for cupcake flavors. We knew we wanted to try one with Bailey's in it but I never went out to buy a bottle just for cupcakes. Then while shopping for wine & such over the holidays Matt picked up a bottle so I knew the time had come to try these.

Matt likes his Bailey's on the rocks where I prefer it mixed into a little coffee or hot chocolate, you know a little something to ward off the winter chill. I decided to mix it with both espresso & chocolate for this cupcakes. This was a bit of an experiment since I used Bailey's instead of milk or yogurt. Luckily the experiment worked & these cupcakes came out beautifully moist with a wonderful flavor. The Bailey's flavor is what stands out the most with a hint of the espresso in the background.

Bailey's Mocha Cupcake

4 T unsalted butter
2 T unsweetened cocoa powder (I use Hershey's Special Dark)
3 T water
1 t instant espresso (if you don't like espresso just leave this out of the recipe)
1/2 c sugar
2 eggs
2 T Bailey's Irish Cream
1/2 c flour
1/8 t baking soda
1/4 t baking powder
pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 350 F. Prepare 6 muffin tins either with cupcake papers or by greasing & flouring them.

Melt the butter over low heat in a saucepan. Whisk in the cocoa. Add the water & instant espresso & whisk to combine. Remove from the heat & stir in the sugar, eggs & Bailey's. Then stir in the flour, baking soda, baking powder & salt. The batter will seem very watery. Divide evenly between the 6 muffin tins.

Bake for 18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool completely on a rack.

Bailey's Chocolate Buttercream

4 T unsalted butter, a room temp
2 t Bailey's Irish Cream
1/4 t vanilla
1/2 t unsweetened cocoa powder
1 c powdered sugar
pinch of salt

Beat the butter, Bailey's & vanilla until creamy. Beat in the sugar 1/4 cup at a time until combined, adding the cocoa powder with the first addition. Beat in the salt.

Frost cupcakes & sprinkle with instant espresso.

Makes 6 cupcakes

(Ok, I have to make a confession here. When I made these cupcakes I read my own writing wrong & put in two eggs instead of 2 T of egg. Matt really liked the way the texture of the cupcake turned out so I wrote it up here this way.  does create a very dense cupcake. You could easily just use one egg in this recipe., I think I will next time.)