BEER CUPCAKE TOWER RECIPES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F; butter a muffin tin.
• Combine the Guinness and the butter, chopped into 1-inch chunks, in a large sauce pan, and heat to melt the butter. Remove from heat, and whisk in the cocoa and sugar. In a bowl, whisk the sour cream with the eggs and vanilla, then add to the beer mixture. Sift together the flour and baking soda, and fold into the batter. Pour into muffin molds and bake for 25 minutes, or until inserted cake tester comes out clean. Let stand 10 minutes, remove from muffin tin, and cool completely on a rack.
• Using a mixer, whip cream cheese until smooth, sift in sugar, and beat. Add milk, and beat until smooth. Spread glaze over cooled cupcakes.
• Note: make the glaze thicker or thinner by adding or subtracting milk.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Line 24 muffin cups with paper liners.
• Bring Irish stout beer and 1 cup butter to a boil in a saucepan and set aside until butter has melted, stirring occasionally. Mix in cocoa powder until smooth.
• Whisk together flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in a bowl until thoroughly combined.
• Beat eggs with sour cream in a large bowl with an electric mixer on low until well combined. Slowly beat in the beer mixture, then the flour mixture; beat until the batter is smooth.
• Divide batter between the prepared cupcake cups, filling each cup about 2/3 full.
• Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean, about 17 minutes.
• Cool the cupcakes completely. Cut cores out of the center of each cupcake with a sharp paring knife. Discard cores.
• Bring cream to a simmer in a saucepan over low heat; stir in bittersweet chocolate until melted.
• Mix in 2 tablespoons butter and Irish whiskey until butter is melted; let mixture cool to room temperature. Filling will thicken as it cools.
• Spoon the filling into the cored cupcakes.
• For frosting, whip 1/2 cup butter in a bowl with an electric mixer until fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes.
• Set mixer to low speed and slowly beat in confectioners' sugar, 1 cup at a time, until frosting is smooth and spreadable. Beat in the Irish cream liqueur; adjust thickness of frosting with more confectioners' sugar if needed.
• Spread frosting on filled cupcakes.