Hear, hear for beer
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Chocolate Stout Cupcakes
Makes 24 cupcakes
Ingredients
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa, plus more for dusting finished cupcakes2 cups sugar2 cups all-purpose flour1 teaspoon baking sodaPinch fine salt1 bottle stout beer (I used 11.2 ounces Samuel Smith)1 stick butter, melted1 tablespoon vanilla extract3 large eggs3/4 cup sour creamPreheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the cocoa, sugar, flour, baking soda and salt.
In another medium mixing bowl, combine the stout, melted butter and vanilla. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time. Mix in sour cream until thoroughly combined and smooth. Gradually mix the dry ingredients into the wet mixture.
Lightly grease 24 muffin tins. Divide the batter equally between muffin tins, filling each 3/4 full. Bake for about 12 minutes and then rotate the pans. Bake another 12 to 13 minutes until risen, nicely domed, and set in the middle but still soft and tender. Cool before turning out.
By Liz Rogers
Editor
lrogers@observer-reporter.com
With a few hours to spare last weekend, I found myself surfing the Internet and stumbled upon a recipe for Chocolate Stout Cupcakes.
Colleague Scott Beveridge mentioned he’d recently baked beer cupcakes to rave reviews simply by using a boxed mix and substituting Samuel Smith Imperial Stout for the water. Best cupcakes ever, he said.
I decided to try it for myself, but used Samuel Adams Imperial Stout instead. After achieving similar results, I set out to see how stout would perform in a scratch recipe.
I adapted Food Network chef Dave Lieberman’s recipe (I swapped Samuel Smith Imperial Stout for the Guinness), and ended up with amazingly moist results.
If you like beer, you’ll love these: The flavor of the beer comes shining through but isn’t too overwhelming. I skipped his frosting recipe and made my own from butter, cream cheese, confectioners’ sugar and vanilla, which complemented the cake quite nicely. A garnish of miniature pretzels provided a nice sweet and salty touch to this beer lovers’ dream.
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