Dark Chocolate Guinness Cake with Bailey's Buttercream

Some days you just need cake. A deep, dark chocolate cake spiked with beer and topped with boozey icing. The combination of Guinness and Bailey's is popular near St. Patrick's Day, but I think it's a perfect flavor combo any time of the year. The bittersweet cake is a perfect complement to the sweet icing. You need to make this cake!

Dark Chocolate Guinness Cake
Source: Global Table Adventure

1 and 1/2 sticks butter

3/4 cup cocoa powder
1 cup Guinness Stout beer
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 and 1/2 cups sugar
1 and 1/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 eggs

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Grease and line two eight-inch cake pans with parchment paper and set aside.

In a small saucepan, melt the butter and whisk in the Guinness, vanilla extract, and cocoa. Remove mixture from heat to cool.
Whisk together the sugar, flour, and baking soda.

Add the Guinness mixture to the dry ingredients and whisk in the eggs.

When the batter is shiny and smooth, pour evenly into two prepared cake pans.
Bake for 30 to 35 minutes.

Removed the cakes from the pans and cool on two cooling racks.

When cooled, spread Bailey's buttercream between layers and ice top and sides.

Bailey's Buttercream

2 sticks butter, room temperature
4 cups powdered sugar
2–4 tablespoons Irish cream

Cream the butter. With the mixer on low, add powdered sugar one cup at a time and Irish cream one tablespoon at a time until desired consistency is reached. Continue beating until smooth and creamy.

Coffee Stout Cupcakes

If I had one word to describe these cupcakes, it would be phenomenal. These coffee stout cupcakes were damn near perfect in every way. They were not too sweet, nor too bitter. The flavors did not compete; they complimented each other perfectly. I baked these cupcakes for me. It's very rare I bake for myself these days, but when I do, I try to come up with a flavor that encompasses all my likes. This cupcake really hit the spot because it had my three favorite flavors: chocolate, coffee, and beer. I topped them with a chocolate-covered espresso bean.

Stout Cupcakes
Source: adapted from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes

1 and 1/2 cups cake flour
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup cocoa (unsweetened)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
12 oz. stout beer (I used Terrapin Wake-n-Bake Coffee Oatmeal Stout.)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a cupcake tin with 12 paper cupcake liners. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt, and set aside. In another bowl, beat together oil, vinegar, vanilla, and beer with a hand mixer on medium-high speed. Add flour mixture and beat until smooth on low speed, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Fill cupcake liners about 3/4 full and bake about 18–22 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking. Cool completely on a wire rack.

Coffee Icing

1 stick butter (room temperature)
2–3 cups powdered sugar
3–4 tablespoons very strong coffee

Beat butter until smooth and fluffy with a mixer on medium speed. With mixer on low speed, add powdered sugar one cup at a time and coffee one tablespoon at a time until desired consistency is reached. Add more coffee or powdered sugar if needed. Beat until smooth and fluffy.

Sweet Baby Jesus! Cupcakes

We're big craft beer lovers. I feel like we're always on the hunt for a special brew. I love IPAs, but my favorite will always be a dark, heavy porter or stout (black IPAs also hold a special place in my heart!) Most of my friends are winos, but my friend Becca appreciates beer almost as much as I do. So when her birthday came around, I had the perfect idea for her cupcakes: chocolate peanut butter with beer incorporated into the cake. I used a chocolate peanut butter porter called Sweet Baby Jesus! by Duclaw. The brewery boasts that the beer is so good that you will exclaim it's name!

Sweet Baby Jesus! Cupcakes

Source: adapted from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes

1 and 1/2 cups cake flour
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup cocoa (unsweetened)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
12 oz. Sweet Baby Jesus! chocolate peanut butter porter

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a cupcake tin with 12 paper cupcake liners. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt, and set aside. In another bowl, beat together oil, vinegar, vanilla, and beer with a hand mixer on medium-high speed. Add flour mixture and beat until smooth on low speed, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Fill cupcake liners about 3/4 full and bake about 18–22 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking. Cool completely on a wire rack.

Salted Peanut Butter Icing
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 stick butter (room temperature)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt (or 1/4 teaspoon regular salt)

2–3 cups powdered sugar

2–3 tablespoons milk

Beat together peanut butter, butter, vanilla, and salt until smooth with a mixer on medium speed. With mixer on low speed, add powdered sugar one cup at a time and milk one tablespoon at a time until desired consistency is reached. Add more milk or powdered sugar if needed. Beat until smooth and fluffy.

Beer-Simmered Beef Roast

My husband and I love beer. Not just any old domestic, however, but specialty, craft beers. We especially enjoy local beers and have been blessed with a handful of small craft breweries in our area. One of our favorites is Nimble Hill Brewing Company, which offers tastings at its wine/beer tasting room in Tunkhannock. Did I mention they started as a winery? They have great wine as well. If you're ever in the area, you should check them out! 

We always bring home a growler when we visit the tasting room (in addition to a few bottles of wine). Growlers of beer only are fresh for several hours. I've been told they can last longer, but I have yet to find one that lasts more than a day. This time, we took home a growlette (a half-sized growler) of their lager (Flinke Hugel) and their porter (Midnight Fuggle). If you mix them, you get black and tan (Midnight Flinke). Their porter is my favorite. It's smooth with hints of coffee and chocolate. It's the best porter I have tasted.We were unable to finish our growlettes this particular day, so instead of dumping the almost-flat beer down the drain (I know it's a sin to waste beer!), we used it to make beer-simmered beef roast. Along with the beer, I added onion soup mix, garlic, black pepper, and mushrooms. The results were heavenly. The beer complemented the other flavors to yield a perfectly tender roast with a slight beer flavor.

Beer-Simmered Beef Roast

4-pound beef roast (any cut)
1 package dry onion soup mix
1.5 cups dark beer such as a lager, stout, or porter (I used Nimble Hill Midnight Flinke, a black and tan.)
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1–2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 cup mushrooms (chopped)

Sear beef roast on all sides.
Whisk together onion soup mix, beer, pepper, and garlic.
Transfer roast to a slow cooker and dump beer mixture over roast.
Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours.
Add mushrooms during the last 2 hours of cook time.
Optional: Strain the beef drippings to make gravy.

2013 Pumpkin Beer Round-Up

My husband and I are huge fans of pumpkin beer. We try a bunch of new brews every year in search of our favorites. This year we originally set out to test 20 pumpkin brews, but that list ballooned into 29 beers. It was a tough job, but somebody had to do it! We drank three to four seasonal beers each weekend for the past few weeks to find what we think is the best. A few beers really surprised us—especially some of the more popular ones. In the end, a local brew was declared the winner, and a very popular one finished in last place.

#1: Stegmaier Pumpkin Ale - Lion Brewery, Inc. (Wilkes-Barre, PA)
Stegmaier Pumpkin Ale, the winner of the bunch, is a local brew. We are fortunate to have several decent breweries in our little valley. Stegmaier brewed this beer for the first time two years ago, but they didn't make it available to the public. We first tried it at an Oktoberfest celebration and were hooked. We couldn't wait until they bottled it. This is the perfect pumpkin ale. It tastes strongly of pumpkin and spices—especially cinnamon—that perfectly complement each other. It makes an awesome dessert when served in a cinnamon-sugar rimmed glass. This is the ultimate pumpkin pie in a glass and hands down our favorite. 

#2: Pumpkin Ale - Williamsburg AleWerks (Williamsburg, VA)
Ever since we had Williamsburg AleWerks Pumpkin Ale for the first time about two years ago, we've been on the hunt for it. We drank the last two bottles at a small local eatery and were in love. But we were out of luck. It was mid-October (which you beer lovers should know is winter brew time), and the beer was nowhere to be found in Northeast Pennsylvania. So we waited until the following year and hunted this beer to no avail. Finally two years later, we procured a case. (The only case in the whole Valley, I'll have you know!) This beer is very spicy with a slight sweetness and a mellow pumpkin flavor. It has a high alcohol content, which makes you feel warm and fuzzy. The two-year wait was worth this beer, and I'm savoring every bottle. 

#3: UFO Pumpkin - Harpoon Brewery (Boston, MA)
UFO Pumpkin has a clean, yet strong pumpkin flavor with mild spices. It smells strongly of pumpkin and light spices. We really enjoyed this one. We had a chance to try this on draft and was again wowed by the flavor of this pumpkin beer. 

#4: Whole Hog Pumpkin Ale - Stevens Point Brewery (Stevens Point, WI)

Whole Hog Pumpkin Ale smells like pumpkin pie and tastes spicy and sweet. It has a strong pumpkin flavor and was heavy on the spices, especially the cinnamon. It easily won us over. 

#5: Pumpkin Ale - Old Forge Brewing Company (Danville, PA)

Old Forge Pumpkin Ale was recommended to us by our beer guy. We bother him all the time to put beers aside for us and send him on wild goose chases for certain beers. This beer was the only pumpkin we tested in a can. It has a light pumpkin scent that was followed by notes of vanilla. It tastes similar to its smell. It is sweet and has a noticeable pumpkin flavor that is accented by vanilla and spices. It was unlike most of the other pumpkin ales we sampled. 

#6: Jack Be Nimble Pumpkin Ale - Nimble Hill Brewing Company (Mehoopany, PA)
Nimble Hill Brewing Company is another local brewery. They are only a few years old and also make some pretty decent wines at Nimble Hill Winery. We were lucky enough to try Jack Be Nimble two years in a row, and this year, we got to take home a growlette to enjoy. It has a strong pumpkin and caramel flavor that starts and finishes sweet. The spices are very light. It remains one of our favorites. 

#7: The Fear Pumpkin Ale - Flying Dog Brewery (Frederick, MD)
The Fear is very dark for an ale. It has a strong scent of spices, but it is very faint on the pumpkin. Although it was hard to detect any pumpkin flavor at all, we liked the very spicy flavor and almost creamy texture. It also has a high alcohol content. 

#8: Terrapin Pumpkinfest - Terrapin Beer Company (Athens, GA)

Terrapin Pumpkinfest was also recommended to us by our beer guy. Aside from the cute turtle on the bottle, this beer was really good. It has a mellow pumpkin flavor complemented by light spices. It also has a slight bitter finish, but is easy to drink. 

#9: Night Owl Pumpkin Ale - Elysian Brewing Company (Seattle, WA)
The label sold me on Night Owl Pumpkin Ale. Who could resist a huge owl face? This pumpkin ale is very interesting! It tastes like pumpkin seeds and spices. It is heavy on allspice and cloves and smells fantastic. While I loved this beer, however, my other half did not enjoy it at all. We agree to disagree.

#10: Shipyard Pumpkinhead Ale - Shipyard Brewing Co. (Portland, ME)

Shipyard Pumpkinhead Ale was one of the first pumpkin beers we tasted a few years ago when we began drinking pumpkin beers. And it used to be one of our favorites. The smell of this beer is unbelievable. It smells like pumpkin pie and is heavy on the spices. Sadly the taste has changed. We found the flavor very light, almost watered-down. We wondered what happened to this great brew. 

#11: Fegley's Devious Imperial Pumpkin - Bethlehem Brew Works (Bethlehem, PA)

We first tried Fegley's Devious Imperial Pumpkin at a beer sampling. It has a great pumpkin flavor and is heavy on the spices. It finishes slightly sweet and smells like pumpkin pie. An all-around decent pumpkin brew. 

#12: Imperial Pumpkin Ale - Weyerbacher Brewing Co. (Easton, PA)

Weyerbacher Imperial Pumpkin Ale is another beer with a high alcohol content. We tend to gravitate toward and enjoy high-alcohol beers. This beer didn't disappoint. It smells awesome and tastes like a spicy pumpkin pie with lots of cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg. 

#13: Shock Top Pumpkin Wheat - Anheuser-Busch (St. Louis, MO)

We are huge fans of wheat beers, so Shock Top Pumpkin Wheat intrigued us. Even though it is light, we were able to detect both pumpkin and wheat flavors. It is a little light on the spices for our tastes.

#14: Pumpkin Ale - Susquehanna Brewing Company (SBC) (Pittston, PA) 

SBC is another newer local brewery. I'm sad to say their beers have not been our favorites. Last year they made a peach pumpkin berry beer that was gag-worthy. It was very bitter, and we couldn't taste any pumpkin or fruit flavors. This year, they kept it simple and brewed a normal pumpkin ale. I must say we were pleasantly surprised. The beer has a deep pumpkin flavor and is slightly sweet. It is not as bitter as their other beers. Our only complaint is the lack of spices.

#15: Saranac Pumpkin Ale - Matt Brewing Company (Utica, NY)

Saranac Pumpkin Ale has a light pumpkin flavor, mild spices, and a hint of vanilla. We enjoyed the pumpkin flavor and sweetness of this beer. Although it lacked spices, its sweet finish made up for it.

#16: Captain Pumpkin's Maple Mistress Ale - Saucony Creek Brewing Company (Kutztown, PA)

Maple Mistress was another beer that we were very excited to try, but we were quickly disappointed. It is very dark when poured and smells like pancakes. We didn't taste any pumpkin or spices. The beer tastes sickly sweet, like drinking maple syrup. It also has a high alcohol content, which makes it feel hot going down. 

#17: Ubu Pumpkin Ale - Lake Placid Craft Brewing Company (Lake Placid, NY)

I really wanted to enjoy Lake Placid Ubu Pumpkin Ale since it had received rave reviews. It is very dark like a porter with flavors of coffee and spices. We didn't detect any pumpkin at all. It tasted more like an Oktoberfest porter and has a slight bitter finish. 

#18: Country Pumpkin - Ithaca Beer Company (Ithaca, NY)

Ithaca Country Pumpkin has no wow factor whatsoever. It is very light and does not taste like pumpkin or spices. It is nothing special. 

#19: Harvest Pumpkin Ale - Samuel Adams (Boston, MA)

While Sam Adams Harvest Pumpkin Ale isn't a bad beer, it isn't very flavorful or memorable. We didn't taste or smell any pumpkin or spices. 

#20: Boxcar Pumpkin Porter - Starr Hill Brewery (Crozet, VA)

We love porters, so we were excited to try Boxcar Pumpkin Porter. It has a dark, rich color but sadly this beer tastes flat. We did not detect any pumpkin, and the spices are very faint. 

#21: Potbelly Pumpkin Ale - Breaker Brewing Company (Wilkes-Barre, PA)
Potbelly is from another local brewery. We love these guys, and their tasting room is always a lot of fun. I really wish I liked their beers more, though. Like many of their offerings, this pumpkin ale is a tad bitter. While the pumpkin flavor and spice factor are pretty decent, we didn't enjoy the bitter aftertaste.

#22: Pumpkin Lager - Lakefront Brewery, Inc. (Milwaukee, WI)
Lakefront Pumpkin Lager smells like pumpkin pie, but then the scent fades. The pumpkin taste is pretty much nonexistent. The spices seemed to fade with each sip as did our interest in this beer.

#23: Johnny Rails Pumpkin Ale - Erie Brewing Company (Erie, PA)

At first we really liked the intense pumpkin flavor and smell of Johnny Rails. It also has a hint of spices. The more we drank it, however, the more it tasted like the smell of the inside of a pumpkin (pumpkin guts, gross!). 

#24: Pumpkin Ale - Long Trail Brewing Co. (Bridgewater Corners, VT)

Long Trail Pumpkin Ale is not very sweet and finishes with a slight bitterness. It is light and has more of a caramel flavor than pumpkin. The spices are also light. It is nothing special. 

#25: Smuttynose Pumpkin Ale - Smuttynose Brewing Company (Portsmouth, NH)

We loved the name of Smuttynose Pumpkin Ale and really wanted to love it. But we just didn't. We don't like bitter beers or IPAs. We try and try, but they just don't do it for us. This beer is light and bitter, and we did not detect any pumpkin. I think the bitterness really turned us off. 

#26: Jack-O Traveler Pumpkin Shandy - Traveler Beer Company (Burlington, VT)
Jack-O Traveler came highly recommended to us by one of our favorite waitresses at a local pizza place.The first sip tasted of pumpkin and cinnamon and something else that I could not quite put my finger on. After the next few sips, I figured out the taste: cola. The beer tasted less and less like pumpkin and more like terribly sweet cola by the end of the glass. It was very off-putting and made the beer very unenjoyable.

#27: Pumpkin Ale - Southampton Publick House (Southampton, NY)

Southampton Pumpkin Ale tastes of pumpkin and bitter cinnamon. It smells much better than it tastes. The beer is very thin, and its flavor is flat and odd. 

#28: Pumple Drumkin Spiced Ale - Cisco Brewers Inc. (Nantucket, ME)

Pumple Drumkin is another beer with a cute label. But don't let the cute little pumpkin man fool you. This beer is all-around bad. It is sour, bitter, and leaves a bad aftertaste. It reminds me more of a really awful Oktoberfest than a pumpkin ale. Where's the pumpkin Drumkin? 

#29: Pumking - Southern Tier Brewing Company (Lakewood, NY)
Pumking was the first pumpkin beer we sampled this year. We missed out last year on this popular brew. As soon as we opened it and got a whiff, our excitement dissipated. The smell is sickly sweet. It is way too sweet and hard to drink. It tastes like candy corn and pie crust mashed together. Out of all the beers we tried, we sadly dumped this beer down the drain. Sorry Southern Tier! 

Mancakes (Chocolate Stout Cupcakes with Salty Peanut Butter Frosting and Beer-Candied Bacon)

Bacon and beer seem to be all the rage right now. These ingredients are popping up in tons of recipes from main dishes to sweet desserts.Who loves bacon and beer? Men, and no one more than my husband. So I made these chocolate stout cupcakes topped with salty peanut butter frosting and beer-candied bacon for him and dubbed them Mancakes. How did they taste? Sweet, salty, decadent, and sinful. My husband declared them one of the best things he ever ate. And they fit this month's What's Baking theme: Sweet and Salty.

Chocolate Stout Cupcakes

adapted from Martha Stewart Cupcakes

1 and 1/2 cups cake flour
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup cocoa (unsweetened)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 and 1/4 cups stout beer (I used a bitter chocolate stout.)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a cupcake tin with 12 paper cupcake liners. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt and set aside. In another bowl, beat together oil, vinegar, vanilla, and beer with a hand mixer on medium-high speed. Add flour mixture and beat until smooth on low speed, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Fill cupcake liners about 3/4 full and bake about 20–25 minutes.

Salty Peanut Butter Frosting

1/2 cup peanut butter

1/2 stick butter (room temperature)
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 to 3 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 to 3 tablespoons milk

Beat together peanut butter, butter, salt, and vanilla until smooth. Add powdered sugar one cup at a time and milk one tablespoon at a time until desired consistency is reached. Beat until smooth and fluffy. 

Beer Candied Bacon

Source: Tide and Thyme

1 pound bacon 

1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons beer (I used Saranac Caramel Porter.)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil. Place a wire cooling rack on top and drape the slices of bacon over the rack, overlapping if necessary. Place in oven and bake for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, whisk together brown sugar and beer in a small bowl. After 10 minutes, carefully remove the bacon from the oven and brush one side with the beer syrup. Flip each slice of bacon and brush the other side with the syrup. Return to oven and bake for more 10 minutes. Repeat process two more times until bacon is crispy. Cool on wire rack for at least 1 hour.

Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes

As of part of our Irish Feast, I made Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes (Guinness cupcakes filled with Irish whiskey ganache and topped with Irish cream frosting). I have been wanting to make these since last year and was thrilled that I had the chance this year. I decided to top them with chocolate sprinkles and green sanding sugar for our What's Baking theme this month: Sprinkles! I adapted the original recipe for these quite a bit. I used a different cupcake, subbing my tried and true vegan chocolate cupcake recipe made with Guinness beer. I also halved the recipe for the whiskey-spiked ganache filling and added Irish cream to my simple buttercream frosting recipe (all changes are reflected below). These were incredible.

Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes
Idea from Smitten Kitchen

Guinness Cupcakes
adapted from Martha Stewart Cupcakes

1 and 1/2 cups cake flour
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup cocoa (unsweetened)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 and 1/4 cups Guinness beer 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a cupcake tin with 12 paper cupcake liners. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt and set aside. In another bowl, beat together oil, vinegar, vanilla, and beer with a hand mixer on medium-high speed. Add flour mixture and beat until smooth on low speed, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Fill cupcake liners about 3/4 full and bake about 20–25 minutes.

Whiskey Ganache Filling
adapted from Smitten Kitchen

4 oz. chopped chocolate or chocolate chips
1/3 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon butter (room temperature)
1 tablespoon Irish whiskey

Place chocolate in a heatproof bowl and set aside. Simmer the heavy cream in a small saucepan until hot and simmering. Pour hot cream over the chocolate and let sit for one minute. Stir until silky and smooth. Add butter and whiskey and stir until combined. Let cool for a few minutes.

Irish Cream Buttercream
2 sticks butter, room temperature
5–6 cups powdered sugar
2–4 tablespoons Irish cream

Cream the butter. With the mixer on low, add powdered sugar one cup at a time and Irish cream one tablespoon at a time until desired consistency is reached. Continue beating on low until smooth and creamy.

White Bean and Rosemary Dip with Dubliner Cheese

This year for St. Patrick's Day we planned an Irish Feast with some friends. They hosted, and we brought side dishes and dessert. Our host made an Irish Stout Cheese Fondue with homemade pretzels and fruit and Corned Beef-Stuffed Cabbage Rolls.

I made Beer Bread with White Bean & Rosemary Dip with Dubliner Cheese (see recipe below) and Irish Car Bomb cupcakes (recipe to come later) for dessert. The feast and company were wonderful. We had a great time.

The first dish I made was White Bean and Rosemary Dip with Dubliner Cheese. I had never heard of Dubliner Cheese, but it is an Irish cheese similar to an aged cheddar with the nutty flavor of Swiss and the bite of Parmesan. Not only did my local grocery story carry it, but also it was on sale! This recipe was quick and easy to make and is best prepared a day ahead to allow the ingredients to meld. The texture is similar to hummus, but it's creamier and much more flavorful. It's a perfect dip for crackers, veggies, beer bread, or pretzels. 

White Bean & Rosemary Dip with Dubliner Cheese
Source: adapted from Kerrygold

1 (15-oz.) can northern beans (rinsed and drained)
1 cup Dubliner Cheese (shredded)
3/4 cup Greek yogurt
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 to 2 tablespoons stout beer
2 teaspoons crushed, dried rosemary
salt and pepper to taste

Puree beans, cheese, yogurt, garlic, and beer in a food processor until very smooth. Stir in rosemary and season with salt and pepper.

Beer-Candied Bacon

Who doesn't love bacon? After all, it's all the rage. Bacon can be found just about everywhere these days—even in desserts and drinks. (Bacon martini, anyone?) I decided to to jump on the bacon bandwagon and make a sweet version to top a cupcake recipe that I've been developing. (The "mancake" recipe to come later.) Candying bacon is a sticky, lengthy process, but it's not hard. When you have a pound of crunchy, sticky, sweet, and salty pieces of pork when you're finished, however, it will make it all worth it. I promise! It was hard to save some of this glorious bacon for my cupcake recipe. It was that good! This bacon is perfect for breakfast (crumbled in pancakes or waffles), as a snack, or for topping cupcakes. Make this NOW!

Beer-Candied Bacon
Source: Tide and Thyme

1 pound bacon 

1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons beer (I used Saranac Caramel Porter.)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil. Place a wire cooling rack on top and drape the slices of bacon over the rack, overlapping if necessary. Place in oven and bake for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, whisk together brown sugar and beer in a small bowl.

After 10 minutes, carefully remove the bacon from the oven and brush one side with the beer syrup. Flip each slice of bacon and brush the other side with the syrup. Return to oven and bake for more 10 minutes. Repeat process two more times until bacon is crispy.

Cool on wire rack for at least 1 hour.

Pumpkin Ale Cupcakes with Salted Caramel Swiss Meringue Buttercream

This year my husband and I celebrated five years of marriage. It's been a wonderful five years, and I wouldn't change a thing. I always make us a cake to celebrate our anniversary, and since we love beer so much, I wanted to incorporate beer into a recipe this year. Pumpkin beer is one of our favorites, so we decided to sample more than a dozen different pumpkin ales, such as Saranac, Weyerbacher, Fegley's, Long Trail, Shipyard, and Blue Moon, in search of the best. While the ones I mentioned were all good in their own right, they were not the best. I'm pleased to announce that a local pumpkin ale topped the list this year: Stegmaier Pumpkin Ale. It's not too heavy and has a great pumpkin flavor that is accompanied by a nice blend of fall spices. It made us the perfect anniversary cupcakes: pumpkin ale cupcakes topped with salted caramel swiss meringue buttercream—which just so happened to fit this month's What's Baking theme of Baking with Pumpkin or Sweet Potatoes. The results were heavenly!   

Pumpkin Ale Cupcakes
Source: adapted from Snappy Gourmet

1 box spice cake mix
1 cup canned pumpkin puree
3/4 cup pumpkin ale plus more for brushing tops (I used Stegmaier Pumpkin Ale.)
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line two cupcake tins with 18–20 paper cupcake liners.

Whisk together cake mix and spices. Add pumpkin, beer, and eggs. Beat on medium speed for two minutes.

Fill cupcake liners about 2/3 full and bake for 19 to 23 minutes. 

Remove cupcakes to a wire rack and while warm, poke holes in the tops with toothpicks and brush with reserved beer. Cool on a wire rack completely before frosting.

Salted Caramel Swiss Meringue Buttercream
Source: adapted from Living Eventfully

6 teaspoons meringue powder
6 tablespoons warm water
3/4 cup sugar
2 sticks butter, cut into 16 pieces (room temperature)
1/4 cup salted caramel sauce

In a large heatproof bowl (or stand mixer bowl) combine meringue powder, water, and sugar. Place bowl over saucepan of simmering water and whisk constantly until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and transfer to stand mixer.

Using the whisk attachment, whip mixture on high until it holds stiff peaks (about 6 - 7 minutes). Continue beating and add the butter a few pieces at a time. Add salted caramel sauce. Continue beating until buttercream is thick, smooth, and glossy (about 3 - 5 minutes).*

*If mixture starts to look curdled, keep beating.

Blue Moon Cupcakes with Orange-Scented Cream Cheese Icing

I'm a huge fan of beer. Blue Moon is one of my favorites, but lately we've been branching out from our old standbys and trying some new craft beers. I've become a huge fan of seasonal beers such as pumpkin ales and Oktoberfest brews. But when I saw this recipe on Pinterest, I didn't care that it was a summer flavor. I knew I had to make it right away. If you don't like beer, you won't like these cupcakes. The beer flavor really comes through and it's enhanced by the orange zest added to the batter and the icing.

Blue Moon Cupcakes
Source: Sweet Tooth via Pinterest

1 and 1/2 sticks butter (room temperature)
1 and 3/4 cups sugar
2 and 1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 eggs (room temperature)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon orange zest
1 cup Blue Moon beer plus more for brushing tops
1/4 cup milk

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and line a cupcake tin with 24 cupcake liners.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.

In another bow, beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy on high speed.

Add eggs, vanilla, and orange zest and beat until combined.

Combine milk and beer. Turn mixer to low and alternately add flour mixture and milk to butter/sugar in three additions, ending with flour.

Fill the cupcake liners 2/3 full, and bake for 18 to 20 minutes.

Remove cupcakes to a wire rack and while warm, poke holes in the tops with toothpicks and brush with reserved beer.

Orange-Scented Cream Cheese Icing

1 stick salted butter (room temperature)
1 block cream cheese (room temperature)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon orange zest (or more)
3 - 4 cups powdered sugar
1 - 2 tablespoons water

Cream together butter, cream cheese, vanilla, and orange zest. Add powdered sugar one cup at a time, beating well and adding water one tablespoon at a time until the desired consistency is reached.