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.

Pumpkin Alfredo Sauce

I saw this recipe for pumpkin alfredo sauce in an issue of Food Network Magazine and put it away to make another day. I completely forgot about it until I found a can of pumpkin hiding in the back of my cupboard. I couldn't stand the thought of making another pumpkin dessert, so I decided to incorporate it into something savory instead. I love pumpkin in veggie lasagna, but I wasn't in the mood for lasagna. I remembered the pumpkin alfredo recipe and decided it was time to try it. I really enjoyed this sauce. It was a little on the heavy side, but what alfredo sauce isn't! The pumpkin flavor was very subtle and the shallot added a great flavor to the sauce. If you're looking for a simple, out-of-the-ordinary sauce to top your pasta, then this recipe is for you.

Pumpkin Alfredo Sauce
Source: Food Network Magazine, October 2012

1 tablespoon butter
1 small shallot, finely chopped (I only used half.)
1/2 cup pure pumpkin puree
pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
1 and 1/4 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese (Plus more for topping.)
salt and pepper to taste

Melt butter over medium heat in a medium saucepan. 
Add the shallot and cook for about 3 to 4 minutes until soft. 
Stir in the pumpkin and nutmeg and cook for a few more minutes. 
Whisk in heavy cream and bring the mixture to a low boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sauce has thickened.
Whisk in cheese until melted.
Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Top your favorite pasta with the sauce and sprinkle with additional parmesan cheese. 

Tip: If the sauce is too thick, you can thin it with either a small amount of warm milk or reserved cooking water from your pasta.

Cheese Steak Sloppy Joes

After I saw this recipe on Pinterest, I knew I had to make it right away. And then I made it again and again. It fast became one of our favorite, go-to dinners. Don't be fooled by this recipe. It looks very simple and unassuming, however, I was blown away at how much these tasted like a real cheese steak, minus all the grease. Don't get my wrong, I love cheese steaks, but these are a nice alternative. If you're looking for an easy, flavorful dinner, then this recipe is for you.

Cheese Steak Sloppy Joes

Source: adapted from Rachael Ray

1 pound ground beef
1 medium green bell pepper (chopped)

1/4 cup steak sauce 
1/2 cup cup beef broth

3 tablespoons worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper (to taste)

4 to 5 slices provolone cheese

Brown ground beef in a cast iron skillet with the green pepper.

Drain well and return meat to the skillet and add steak sauce, beef broth, worcestershire sauce, salt, and pepper. 

Simmer over a medium-high heat for about 10 minutes until the liquid is absorbed.

Layer the provolone cheese on top of the meat mixture and either cover with a lid, place under broiler, or in a hot oven to melt the cheese. Serve on hardy rolls.

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.

Mini Pink Velvet Cupcakes

I love red velvet cupcakes. I love the tangy cake paired with the sweet cream cheese icing. I have experimented with blue velvet cupcakes, but they were awful and bitter. You were able to taste the blue food coloring. I stayed away from all other colors of velvet until recently when I decided to make pink velvet cupcakes for my coworker's baby shower. She loves red velvet, but since she is having a girl, I wanted to make them pink. I was going to use my old standby, use pink food coloring, and omit cocoa, but I didn't want to mess with the recipe since it's perfect. I did a quick search online and found a recipe for pink velvet. It doesn't use cocoa, vinegar, or oil like my favorite recipe, but it does use buttermilk and butter. I was skeptical that these would be dry because of the butter, but boy was I glad that I was wrong. They were perfectly tender and tangy—just like red velvet cupcakes should be.

Mini Pink Velvet Cupcakes
Source: Taste of Home via Pinterest

1 cup butter (room temperature)
1 and 1/4 cups white sugar
a few drops pink food coloring
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 and 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and line four mini cupcake tins with 48 paper cupcake liners.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt, and set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter, sugar and food coloring until light and fluffy. 

Add eggs and vanilla and beat well.

Alternately add flour mixture and buttermilk to butter mixture in three additions, ending with the flour mixture.

Fill the cupcake liners 3/4 full, and bake for 10–14 minutes.

Remove cupcakes to a wire rack and cool completely.

Cream Cheese Icing
1 (8 oz.) block cream cheese (room temperature)
1 stick butter (room temperature)
4–6 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Cream together cream cheese, butter, and vanilla. Add powdered sugar one cup at a time. Beat well until spreading consistency.

Lightened Up Carrot Cake Cupcakes

As I embark on 2013, I am continuing the journey that I began in 2012. Last January, I decided to get healthy. I joined a gym. I stopped eating fast food and opted for healthier choices when I ate out. I started cooking healthier meals, and I stopped baking every Sunday. A year later, I'm still at it and very proud of myself. I only bake once in a while now, and I try to lighten up recipes, so I can still enjoy treats without the guilt. This month's What's Baking theme fit perfectly with my healthy lifestyle: Baking Healthier. I decided to modify my grandma's carrot cake cupcake recipe to lighten it up. And honestly, I couldn't even tell the difference. They were still light, fluffy, and flavorful. I topped them with a tangy cream cheese icing made with low-fat cream cheese.

Carrot Cake Cupcakes
Source: adapted from my Grandma

2 cups flour
1 and 2/3 cups sugar
1 and 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
dash of salt
2 (3.5 oz.) containers carrot baby food 
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
2 whole eggs
2 egg whites
1 teaspoon vanilla 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and line cupcake tins with 24 cupcake liners.

Whisk together flour, baking soda, spices, and salt in a medium bowl, and set aside.

In another bowl, beat together sugar, applesauce, whole eggs, egg whites, and vanilla.

Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients, and mix well. Stir in carrot baby food.

Fill cupcake liners about 2/3 full and bake for 17–20 minutes.

Cool completely on a wire rack. 

"Light" Cream Cheese Frosting
1 (8 oz.) block neufchatel cream cheese (room temperature)
1 stick butter (room temperature)
4–6 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Cream together cream cheese, butter, and vanilla. Add powdered sugar one cup at a time. Beat well until spreading consistency.