Happy St Patty’s Day. . . almost.  How are you celebrating this year?

When I was a kid, I really enjoyed St Patty’s Day.  At my elementary school, the unofficial “rules of St Patty’s Day” stated that if someone pinched you and you were wearing green, you could pinch them back.  I got super creative about hiding my green so I could pinch back the people who thought pinching was fun.  I think I imagined myself as some sort of Robin Hood, righting the playground wrongs for one glorious day a year.

This year, I think my celebration will center around these Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes.  Guinness chocolate cake, Bailey’s frosting, and an Irish Whiskey caramel center.  They are fairly intensely boozy but really. . . what else do you want in a St Patty’s Day cupcake?  I also really like that the caramel center mirror’s the action of dropping the shot of Bailey’s and Whiskey into the bottom of the Guinness glass.

Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes

Amended from Smitten Kitchen and Cooking with Caitlin 

1 cup stout (such as Guinness)
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (preferably Dutch-process)
2 cups all purpose flour
2 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
2/3 cup sour cream

Caramel Filling

2 Cups Sugar
1/2 Cup Heavy Whipping Cream
1/2 Cup Whiskey
1 Tb Vanilla
1 Tsp Kosher Salt

Baileys Frosting
1.5 cups confections sugar
2 stick (1/2 cup or 4 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperatue
3 to 4 tablespoons Baileys (or milk, or heavy cream, or a combination thereof)

Cupcakes: Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 24 cupcake cups with liners. Bring 1 cup stout and 1 cup butter to simmer in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add cocoa powder and whisk until mixture is smooth. Cool slightly. - Seriously, use the cupcake liners.  I didn’t and I regretted it.

Whisk flour, sugar, baking soda, and 3/4 teaspoon salt in large bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat eggs and sour cream in another large bowl to blend. Add stout-chocolate mixture to egg mixture and beat just to combine. Add flour mixture and beat briefly on slow speed. Using rubber spatula, fold batter until completely combined. Divide batter among cupcake liners, filling them 2/3 to 3/4 of the way. Bake cake until tester inserted into center comes out clean, rotating them once front to back if your oven bakes unevenly, about 17 minutes. Cool cupcakes on a rack completely.  

Caramel filling

In large saute pan add your sugar. Turn to high heat.  Once your sugar starts to melt, stir with a heat resistant spatula. Continue until completely melted. After your sugar is melted add your cream, vanilla, and salt. It will begin to bubble up and the sugar will clump up in the middle but leave it on high heat and whisk it all together until it is a uniform consistency.  When everything is smooth in texture remove the pan from the heat and add the whiskey. **Make sure you remove the pan from the heat because it’ll flame up! PLEASE BE CAREFUL!**

Fill the cupcakes: I use the filling adjustment of my pastry bag but you could also hollow out the cupcake and fill it by hand.

Make the frosting: Whip the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, for several minutes. You want to get it very light and fluffy. Slowly add the powdered sugar, a few tablespoons at a time.

When the frosting looks thick enough to spread, drizzle in the Baileys (or milk) and whip it until combined. If this has made the frosting too thin (it shouldn’t, but just in case) beat in another spoonful or two of powdered sugar.

Frost the cupcakes.

Early in our relationship, Brett and I discovered that he is a fan of Valentine’s Day (I think it is over-commercialized) and I am a fan of anniversaries (he can never remember when ours is).  We resolved this one gracefully, if I do say so myself.  He plans and gifts for Valentine’s.  I plan and gift for our anniversary.

This year, I am going to cheat just a little bit.  Brett loves Reuben sandwiches.  We have traveled far and wide for a good Reuben.  When I saw this recipe, I knew I had to make it for him.  And look at that, Valentine’s Day just happens to be coming up soon.  A teeny, tiny, corned beef filled expression of love for the man who is so supportive, makes me think, and always encourages me to strive for better.

Hot Rueban Dip

Slightly adapted from A Slice of Willamette

16 oz can of sauerkraut, well drained

1 1/2 shredded cheddar

1 1/2 shredded Swiss cheese

6 oz corned beef chopped with the fat removed

1 cup mayonnaise

Crackers, bread toasts, or a spoon.

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2) Combine all ingredients except about 1/2 cup Swiss and 1/2 cup cheddar.

3) Spread into a 1 1/2 quart casserole dish.  Sprinkle cheese on top.

4) Bake about 25 minutes and broil for the last 2 to brown the top.

Cheers and Happy Friday!  What have the highlights of your week been?

We have had a pretty eventful few weeks here.

- We found a realtor!  She is familiar with our corner of the suburbs, has experience flipping houses, and just generally seems lovely.

- I got offered a new position at work.  It isn’t a change in pay but it is an affirmation of the work I have done so far as well as the opportunity to build a new type of coaching for our team.

-We hosted a Lion King movie day.  I was absolutely tickled to serve this coconut based cocktail because of the scene with Zazu singing about having a lovely bunch of coconuts.

I was turned on to a version of this cocktail at The Observatory in the Montavilla neighborhood.  Tasty food but Oh! SO LOUD.  Go for happy hour, it might be quieter.  . . maybe.  Or try my version of cocktail at home for this week’s toast to the end of another week.  I did make this recipe without someone else’s recipe to work from so do tweak as needed.

I really, really want to play with Bombay Sapphire East.  Does anyone know where I can find it in the greater Portland area?

Tom Kha Gai

1 part vodka, gin, or Bombay Sapphire East

1 part coconut cream

1 part orange juice

1/2 part Jalapeno Thai Basil Simple Syrup

1/2 part lime juice

Mix with ice.  Taste and tweak to taste.

Jalapeno Thai Basil Simple Syrup

Bring 1 half cup water and 1 half cup sugar to a simmer.

Add 1 minced Jalapenos and 1 cup Thai Basil.  Allow to cool.  Strain.  Refrigerate if not using immediately.

5 Spice Cracker Jacks and Tom Kha Gai Cocktail

I love movie days!  They are a super simple party and so cozy too.  The first party I ever threw was a Wizard of Oz movie day.  We blew bubbles when Glenda arrived, broke out lollipops along with the Munchkins, and ate themed snacks like “witch nails” (curled carrot sticks).  I was about 10.  Years later, it is still a great party format although I don’t know if I could get my friends these days to synchronize with the movie in the same way my childhood classmates did.

Movie Day Anatomy

-Pick a movie that people can talk though because they will.  Classics and silly movies work well.

- Plan for more time than the movie itself for getting settled and chatting.  4 hours worked well for us.

- Serve snacks that people don’t have to get up to eat.

We watched Lion King, drank coconut cocktails, and ate Chinese 5 Spice Cracker Jacks.  I love the Cracker Jack recipe!  It comes out warm and bit gooey.  The popcorn fits the movie theme but different enough to amuse my foodie self.  Also, super tasty – sweet, spicy with just a bit of salt.

Cracker Jack Recipe here.

Thank goodness for three day weekends, yes?  The third day is just such I lovely surprise.  Brett and I have already hosted our young couples group, recovered from hosting the young couples group, and finished all the cleaning.  Tomorrow is totally unscheduled and full of possibility.  One of the things that I am most looking forward to is curling up with a book, a big mug of tea, and these Blackcurrant Tea Cakes.

Have you gotten your hands on Joy the Baker’s new cookbook?  It is lovely.  She brings the same warmth and love of butter, sugar, and pancakes to the book that make her blog such a pleasure to read.  And I will read her cookbook, cover to cover.  However, her chamomile tea cakes with honey frosting popped out at me right away so I had to put down the book and make them as soon as possible.

Have we had a chance to talk about how very blonde I am?  Yes, some argue that I am a brunette.  I say, nonsense!  For example – I love tea, honey, cake, and have come to really trust the Joy the Baker recipes.  So, I dove into her recipe without taking even a moment to think about the fact that I hate chamomile.  Nothing reminds me of being sick and miserable like the taste of chamomile.  Blech!  No fault of the recipe, I hated my first attempt at these cakes.  I made them again with a Blackcurrent Tea and I am very pleased with the result.

One note I will make about subbing Blackcurrent Tea is that Peet’s Blackcurrent Tea has much larger leaves than chamomile.  I would recommend breaking down larger leaves to a smaller size by rolling them under a rolling pin or crush them with a mortar and pestle if you are blessed enough to own one.