These cupcakes are packed with chocolate stout flavor and Irish cream. Chocolate Raspberry Stout Cupcakes with Irish Cream Buttercream are super chocolaty and topped with feather light and creamy Irish cream buttercream.

True story! I am so excited about St. Patrick’s Day this year that I scheduled corned beef and cabbage a whole week before it was actually St. Patrick’s Day. That’s how excited I am at the thought of having corned beef and cabbage. Honestly. I could eat.my.weight in that stuff.

But this post isn’t about corned beef and cabbage. It’s about some delicious stout cupcakes. And it’s also about this amazing group of bloggers that love to celebrate holidays, food holidays, and just promoting each other. Which I love. It’s like another family that I “married” in to by participating in another group.

Okay. I’m going off on a bit of a tangent here that will have NOTHING to do with St. Patrick’s Day and these cupcakes. Bear with me while I get this off my mind…

Many years ago, I started posting in an online newsgroup. Sadly, I chose the wrong userID that reminded them of someone else and got chewed a new one. But that also lead to some sage advice; think of a it like a group of friends talking. You wouldn’t just walk up to them assume they would accept you as a friend. You have to earn your way into the fold.

I tried too hard when I started blogging and thought I would easily be accepted. I tried to get into a group that was already established and weren’t really receptive to me. So, I joined another group and just kind of sat back, took my time, pitched in where I could. I just did me.

Being me leads me up to where I am today. I’m a hard-working contributor of a couple of groups that are always trying to help promote each other. We are always trying to find ways to get our SEO up and make our blogs relevant to the blogosphere. We’re sharing and promoting each other. These groups are planning events and working towards growing each other and our audience.

It’s one of these groups that leads me to this post I’m sharing today. I am a member of the Holiday Fun With Our Blog Friends. We have events planned through the end of May right now. There’s this St. Patrick’s Day. Then there’s a Pi day, grilled cheese, Easter week, Mexican week, and grill week scheduled so far. I’m sure there will be a summer theme in June, Fourth of July, summer in August, and maybe something back to school in September.

Doesn’t that sound like fun? I love when I have events to participate in. It’s motivation for blogging in this period when I have little. Work is just too exhausting and I honestly don’t have energy to even make a salad some night. It’s that bad. So, to have this motivation behind blogging, is just awesome.

You know what else is awesome? These CUPCAKES! Just look at it! You can’t resist and want to dive right in. I can see it on your face. That delicate frosting is screaming at you, “EAT ME!!”

Now, just so you can get the full picture, here’s how these cupcakes stack up. The frosting is an airy and light Swiss (cooked meringue) buttercream that has the most feather light consistency you’ve ever tried. It has a hint of Irish cream flavor making it completely decadent.

Now, the cake. Those little chocolate gems of amazing. You don’t have to use raspberry chocolate stout, but I do highly recommend a chocolate stout. It will enhance the chocolate flavor. And these babies pack AMAZING chocolate flavor.

One bite and your mouth is flooded with rich, chocolate flavor with a hint of raspberry. The rich flavor of the cupcake combined with the light and airy buttercream make for a most incredible cupcake experience. I had totally planned to bake and take, but even the hubs ate a few. I will be making another batch soon, that’s how good they are!!

Have you ever had chocolate stout?

Chocolate Raspberry Stout Cupcakes Yield: 16 cupcakes Prep Time: 5 minutes Cook Time: 20 minutes Total Time: 25 minutes These cupcakes are packed with chocolate stout flavor and Irish cream. Chocolate Raspberry Stout Cupcakes with Irish Cream Buttercream are super chocolaty and topped with feather light and creamy Irish cream buttercream. Print Ingredients For cupcakes: 2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup cocoa powder

1 1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1 1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

8 ounces raspberry stout

1/2 cup butter, softened

2 large eggs

1/2 cup sour cream

2 teaspoons vanilla

2 large egg whites For Buttercream: 2 large egg whites, room temperature

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 cup butter, room temperature, diced

2 tablespoons Irish cream Instructions For cupcakes: Preheat oven to 350 F. Combine the flour, cocoa powder, and baking powder in a mixing bowl and stir well with a whisk. Set aside. Place the 1 1/4 cup sugar, 1/4 cup brown sugar, and 1/2 cup softened butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment (or a large bowl with a handheld mixer) and beat until light and creamy. Change to the paddle attachment and stir in the stout and then add the two large eggs one at a time. Finally, stir in the sour cream and the vanilla until combined. Slowly add the dry ingredients into the stout mixture; stirring until just combined. In a small mixing bowl, beat the 2 large egg whites to stiff peaks. Fold in one third of the egg whites into the batter until combined. Fold remaining egg whites into the batter. Line 2 muffin tins with liners and lightly spray with cooking spray. Fill the cups 2/3 full (I use an ice cream scoop or a small measuring cup). Bake at 350 for 18 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and cool in the pan 5 minutes before removing from the pan to a wire rack to cool completely. Pipe the buttercream on top and enjoy! For Buttercream: Bring a saucepan with about 2 inches of water in it to a boil. Place the egg whites and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer (or heat proof, metal bowl). Place the bowl over the saucepan and, stirring constantly with a whisk, cook to 160 F. Return the bowl to your stand mixer and whip until stiff peaks form. Allow the mixture to cool before adding the butter 1 tablespoon at a time until the buttercream is smooth and glossy. Stir in the Irish cream and salt to taste. Place in a piping bag and top your cupcakes. Nutrition Information Yield 16 Serving Size 1

Amount Per Serving Calories 376 Total Fat 20g Saturated Fat 12g Trans Fat 1g Unsaturated Fat 6g Cholesterol 73mg Sodium 202mg Carbohydrates 42g Fiber 2g Sugar 26g Protein 5g