Jameson Cupcakes

I was out one night and we started talking about the Gin and Tonic Cake I had made and how everyone loved it.  My sisters friend turned to me and asked what I could do with Jameson - which is his favorite.  I had a couple of ideas pop into my head, but I told him I would work on it and I would have something for him to try out in 2 weeks.  I searched the internet for anything good - I came up with a lot of misses....nothing that I wanted to try at all.  So when all else fails, I made my own recipe.  And like the Gin and Tonic Cake, it has 3 layers of Jameson in it - in the cake, in the filling and in the frosting. 

hello old friend

I mean it is called Jameson Cupcakes after all, so you need a lot of Jameson.  I have enough left over to make these a couple more times - and I'm sure I will be asked to.  I've already gotten requests for another Gin and Tonic Cake.  

delicious

I will give you this warning, when you take the cupcakes out of the oven, the smell of Jameson baking off hits you when  you open the oven door.  And if it's really humid out, put your ganache in the fridge to set up, otherwise it wont set for a very long time. 

Jameson Cupcakes

makes 24-30 cupcakes

your favorite box mix or from scratch recipe - replace water with Jameson

Make cupcakes according to instructions and let cool.  Once cooled, cut a slit in the middle of each cupcake. 

Ganache:

 8 oz. semi sweet chocolate chips

2/3 cup heavy cream

2 tbsp butter, room temperature

3 tsp Jameson

Place chocolate in a medium heat-proof bowl.  In a small saucepan heat heavy cream until bubbling.  Pour it over chocolate and let sit for up to 1 minute.  Stir until smooth.  Add butter and Jameson and stir until smooth.  Let set on counter top or in fridge, stirring every 10 minutes, until you get a thick, pipe-able consistency.  Fill a pastry bag fitted with a plain tip and fill each cupcake with the ganache.  Save what you have left over, if any.

Frosting:

2 sticks butter, room temperature

2 lbs confectioners sugar

6-8 tbsp Jameson

While ganache is setting up, make frosting.  In a large bowl, beat butter until smooth and creamy, at least 3 minutes.  Slowly add confectioners sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, until it's thick and smooth.  Add Jameson - start with 6 tbsp and add more until you get your desired consistency.  Fill pastry bag with frosting (I used a star tip for mine) and pipe frosting onto each cupcake.  If you have remaining ganache, switch out tips for the small tip used for writing and drizzle remaining ganache over the tops of each frosted cupcake.