Irish Cream Cupcakes

I know, I know, I am a day late for St. Patrick's Day, but honestly do you need an occasion to eat cupcakes? Especially cupcakes infused with booze?

I was up baking these late last night, which might explain the off-kilter frosting, but they taste so good that I'm sure you'll forgive me. As you might have guessed from the name, the liquid in these cupcakes is Irish Cream. But Irish Cream of course isn't vegan so I made my own by mixing Desi's single-malt Scotch, soy creamer, coffee granules, maple syrup, chocolate and vanilla. It was so mindblowingly delicious that I wanted to drink it all up.

I'm glad I didn't, though, because it tasted just as fabulous baked into these cupcakes. I also added a teaspoon of Scotch to the frosting, which gave them that extra kick.

I've been under the weather today, so I'm going to run off to crawl under the sheets and leave you with the recipe. Hope everyone had a great St. Patty's Day, and here's looking forward to a great weekend!

Irish Cream Cupcakes

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

Sift all the ingredients into a bowl and set aside.

For Irish Cream, heat in a microwave-safe bowl until boiling:

2/3 cup soy creamer (I used Silk)

Stir in until dissolved completely:

2 tbsp vegan chocolate chips

1 tbsp maple syrup (use agave or corn syrup as a substitute)

1/3 cup whiskey (use your favorite)

1 tsp instant coffee granules

2 tsp vanilla

Set aside.

In a bowl, beat together:

1/3 cup canola oil

2/3 cup granulated sugar

Add the Irish Cream and mix well.

Now add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir together with a whisk just until you have a smooth batter. Do not overmix or overbeat.

Divide the batter equally among 12 cups of a standard-sized muffin pan lined with cupcake liners.

Bake in a preheated 350-degree oven about 26 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Frosting

Ingredients:

8 tbsp (1 stick) vegan butter like Earth Balance at room temperature

4 tbsp vegetable shortening

1 tsp whiskey (optional, but really great)

2 cups confectioners' sugar (use more or less depending on how thick you want your frosting, and how sweet).

1 tsp vanilla extract

Cream together the butter and shortening until they are fluffy, about 1 minute.

Now add the remaining ingredients and half the sugar. Beat until mixed, then add the remaining sugar and beat until mixed. This should take no more than 2 minutes altogether.

Frost the cupcakes after they've cooled completely.

Enjoy!
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Hungry for more?

Whole-wheat Irish Soda Bread

Carrot Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

Golden Vanilla Cupcakes with Chocolate Ganache Frosting