Drink-a-Pint

I know this is a primarily a blog about drinking beer, but I ran across this and thought it was close enough: BEER CUPCAKES!

Haven’t made them yet, but Jessica Armbruster of the Minneapolis/St. Paul City Pages blog dove in headfirst and has some great pictures you should definitely check out. Unlike most baking uses for beer, this recipe uses the beer as an ingredient in the icing, so it doesn’t cook off. Wonder what the ABV of these cupcakes is? Hmm… of course, it’s still not as efficient as cracking open a beer, but not a bad bonus.

What you’ll need:

A stick and a tablespoon of unsalted butter
A bottle or can of Guinness (though I bet other non-hoppy dark stout beers would work well in a jiffy)
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
2 cups dark brown sugar
3/4 cup sour cream
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 cups flour
2 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
8 oz cream cheese
1 1/4 cups confectioners’ sugar
1/3 cup milk (optional)
Muffin tin
Bowls
An oven

What you’ll need to do:

1. Preheat the oven to 350. In a saucepan melt the butter (cutting the stick into chunks works best).
2. Add a cup of Guinness or your beer product of choice.
3. Turn off the heat and add the cocoa and brown sugar. You can use a whisk to mix things together.
4. Whisk (or fork) the sour cream, eggs, and vanilla together. Make sure you mix it until it’s smooth.
5. Dump the cocoa and beer mixture into the sour cream mix.
6. Sift in the flour and baking soda.
7. Pour the batter into the muffin tins and bake for about 25 minutes, or until you can stick a knife in an have things come out clean.
8. Now let’s make the frosting. I n a mixing bowl, whip the cream cheese and confectioner’s sugar together, then add Guinness in place of milk. (You can also make the icing thinner or thicker by playing with the amount of milk/beer you use.)
9. Ice the cupcakes and let them cool for ten minutes or so.
10. Eat.

My wife made a face when I mentioned making these, so I might have to do this as a black-ops baking mission sometime in the next week or two. Will definitely let you guys know how they turn out…