Triple Chocolate Guinness Cupcakes

I’ve been wanting to bake with chocolate and Guinness for a while now, ever since seeing many a Guinness Chocolate Cake on offer in cafes and bakeries around the UK when I was studying abroad. (Still on the baking bucket list: chocolate and Bailey’s. Heaven.)

Adding beer to chocolate, I found, is a lot like adding black coffee. It gives the chocolate flavor a little edge of bitterness, that little extra depth that takes it from delicious to deliciously intriguing. An alluring air of mystery, if you will.

If you’re not a beer drinker and are skeptical about ruining perfectly good chocolate cupcakes with the bitter taste of beer, don’t be. It’s not that noticeable. If you are a seasoned beer drinker, you’ll be more likely to notice a beer-y taste, but it’s subtle. It’s like beer bread – yes, there’s beer in it, but it’s not the primary flavor. My roommate has never tasted beer in her life, and she a) couldn’t detect the beer flavor and b) loved the cupcakes. So there.

There’s beer in the cake and the frosting, giving these triple chocolate Guinness cupcakes an intense, nuanced chocolate flavor. I love how the depth the beer brings to the chocolate gives these cupcakes a no-nonsense sophistication. They’re not just your average chocolate cupcake, but there’s nothing pretentious about them, either.

I love these triple chocolate Guinness cupcakes. I kept saying that as I was eating them: “Oh my gosh, guys. These are so good. Seriously, these cupcakes are so good. I love these cupcakes. Guys, aren’t these cupcakes amazing? Wow.” With a triple threat chocolate flavor – moist chocolate cake, thick chocolate frosting, and packed with mini chocolate chips for extra chocolate punch – it’s no wonder I became a broken record of compliments for these triple chocolate Guinness cupcakes.

I’m pretty sure you’re going to love them, too.

Triple Chocolate Guinness Cupcakes

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Ingredients

For the cupcakes

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 4 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup coconut or vegetable oil
• 2/3 cup Guinness (or stout beer of choice)
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 cup mini chocolate chips

For the frosting

• 1 stick butter, softened
• 3–4 cups powdered sugar
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup stout
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• sprinkle of course salt

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Instructions

To make the cupcakes

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a cupcake pan with baking cups.
2. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. Add the vanilla extract, vinegar, oil, stout, and milk. Mix the batter until smooth, then fold in chocolate chips.
3. Pour batter into 12 baking cups. Bake for 18-22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove from baking pan and allow to cool to room temperature.

To make the frosting

1. Microwave chocolate chips and stout in a bowl for about 30 seconds. Story until chocolate chips are melted, and then let cool. It should result in a ganache-like mixture.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat butter until light and fluffy, about one minute. Add salt, powdered sugar, cocoa powder, and chocolate-stout ganache in increments and mix until fully incorporated.
3. Frost cooled cupcakes and sprinkle salt on top.