Make These Chocolate Guinness Cupcakes for St. Patrick’s Day!
Home » COOK » Recipes » Holiday Recipes » St. Patrick's Day »
These Chocolate Guinness Cupcakes complete with Bailey’s Irish Cream frosting are the only cupcakes you need for St. Patrick’s Day! These easy cupcakes are made using a box of chocolate cake mix and of course Guinness. A perfectly boozy dessert for St. Patty’s!
Affiliate Disclosure
We have included affiliate links to products and services related to the topic of this post.
This post contains affiliate links, and we will be compensated if you purchase after clicking on those links.
As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Read Our Full Disclosure and Privacy Policy
Chocolate Guinness Cupcakes
The full ingredients list and instructions are found in the printable recipe card at the end of this post. I highly recommend reading the blog post all the way through so that you don’t miss any tips or substitution suggestions and to ensure that you have all the ingredients and equipment required as well as understand the steps and timings involved. Photos are for illustrative purposes only.
These fun cupcakes are simple to make and will be the perfect addition to your St. Patrick’s Day Dessert table!
The chocolate and Guinness cupcakes are made by using a box of Devil’s Food Cake mix and the famous dark Irish stout.
They’re then topped with a swirl Bailey’s Irish Cream frosting that has been tinted ever so lightly green.
The finishing touch on these St. Patrick’s Day cupcakes are shamrock sprinkles and a little touch of gold leaf.
Think of these cupcakes as the gold at the end of a rainbow!
Ingredients & Equipment Used In This Recipe
You may have some baking ingredients in your kitchen already – the full list with measurements is found in the recipe card.
For your convenience, any specialized or notable ingredients and equipment needed to make these cupcakes have been listed below and linked to Amazon or other stores if available online.
Cupcakes & Frosting Ingredients
- Box of Devil’s Food Cake Mix – but we’re switching the usual water that is used in the mix, with Guinness!
- Guinness – or another brand of dark Irish stout.
- Powdered Sugar – known as Icing Sugar in the UK.
- Pure Vanilla Extract – always buy the best you can afford, it really does make a difference.
- Bailey’s Irish Cream Liqueur – this is added to the frosting instead of regular cream.
Decorating Ingredients
- Shamrock Sprinkles – or you could use a St. Patrick’s Day/Irish sprinkles mix if you prefer.
- Gold Leaf – an optional extra to add to the cupcakes.
Cupcake Decorating Equipment
- Cupcake Pans – you will need two regular size 12-cup pans.
- Wire Cooling Rack – always cool your cupcakes completely before decorating.
- Large Piping Bag – you can use disposable or reuseable, your choice.
- Large Star Tip – for example, Wilton 1M
Recipes on The Purple Pumpkin Blog use both cup measurements and/or weighted measurements. American cups and kitchen food scales are handy pieces of equipment to have in your kitchen as it means you’ll be able to make all of the different recipes on my blog! I try to give American, imperial, and metric measurements in my recipes. You can mix cup measurements with weighted measurements, but never imperial (pounds, ounces, pints, etc.,) with metric (kilograms, grams, litres, etc.,).
Cupcake Recipe Tips
- These cupcakes are made using a box of cake mix – but we’re replacing the water with Guinness!
- You can use green or gold or St. Patricks’ Day-themed cupcake liners to bake your cupcakes in if you like or stick to regular white ones.
- Use an ice cream scoop to equally divide the cupcake mixture between the cupcake liners. Fill them about three-quarters full.
- The cupcakes should be ready in around 20 minutes – test their doneness by inserting a toothpick into the cakes. It should come out clean when the cupcakes are cooked through. Bake for an extra 2 minutes and check again.
- Cool the cupcakes in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.
Cupcake Frosting Tips
- When making the frosting you want the end result to be creamy, smooth, and for it to hold a stiff peak. You may have to adjust the amount of powdered sugar and cream (in this recipe it is Bailey’s Irish Cream Liqueur!) slightly to achieve the consistency you need.
- The frosting is colored using food coloring. Remember that you can always add more color, but not take it away. Add a little to start with and add more to get the shade required.
- Food coloring is available in various forms. You’re most likely to find liquid coloring in your grocery store, and other types of coloring like gels, pastes, and powders in more specialised cake decorating shops. The cheapest option is liquids, but they can alter the consistency of your frosting and cake batter, so I prefer to use pastes or gels which don’t. A little goes a long way with food coloring gels and you can usually get a much deeper shade than you would with liquids.
- You will need a large piping bag fitted with an open star tip such as a Wilton #1M
- If you feel like you are going to be making a lot of cakes and cupcakes in your future, I think it is worth investing in a set of piping tips so that you know you always have the right ones on hand for a recipe.
- Do not overfill the piping bag with frosting, and make sure you squeeze the frosting down the bag to expel any air bubbles.
- If you are not confident with your piping skills you can practice on some parchment paper first and scoop the frosting back into the bag to use on the cupcakes.
- To transfer gold leaf to your cupcakes, use a clean, unused paintbrush, to pick up the gold leaf from the backing paper and kind of drape it on. Gold leaf can be tricky to work with, so peel the paper back a little at a time and work patiently!
More St. Patrick’s Day Cupcake Recipes
Looking for more St. Patrick’s Day cupcakes to make? Check these recipes out next:
How Do I Make Chocolate Guinness Cupcakes Cupcakes?
Just check out the printable recipe card below with full ingredients and instructions. Any demonstration photos do not print out to save your ink.
Chocolate Guinness Cupcakes
These Chocolate Guinness Cupcakes complete with Bailey's Irish Cream frosting are the only cupcakes you need for St. Patrick’s Day!
Ingredients
For the Cupcakes
- 1 box of Devil’s Food Cake mix
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 1¼ cups Guinness
- 3 eggs
- 1 cup chocolate chips
For the Frosting
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 3 to 4 tablespoons Bailey's Irish Cream Liqueur
- Green food coloring gel
For Decoration
- Shamrock or clover sprinkles
- Gold leaf (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4. Place 24 cupcake liners in cupcake pans and set aside.
- Using an electric handheld or standing mixer, place all of the cupcake ingredients into the mixing bowl and beat for 2-3 minutes until well combined.
- Use an ice cream scoop to divide the mixture between the prepared cupcake liners.
- Bake for 18-23 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
- Leave the cupcakes to cool in the pan for about 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely before decorating.
- To make the frosting, use an electric stand or handheld mixer and add the butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and Bailey's to the bowl and beat on low to start with, progressing to a medium-high speed until combined.
- To tint the frosting green, add a small amount of food coloring gel to the bowl and beat to mix together. TIP: You can always add more coloring, but not take it away!
- When you have reached the desired color, make sure the frosting holds a stiff peak for piping and transfer to a large piping bag fitted with a large star tip.
- Pipe swirls on top of each of the cooled cupcakes.
- Sprinkle over some shamrock sprinkles.
- If using, transfer a little gold leaf onto each cupcake using a clean paintbrush.
- Enjoy and Happy St. Patrick's Day!
Recommended Products
As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 24 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 325Total Fat: 16gSaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 44mgSodium: 171mgCarbohydrates: 43gFiber: 1gSugar: 33gProtein: 2g
This site uses Nutritionix to provide estimated nutrition. Nutritional information is always approximate and will depend on the quality of ingredients used and serving sizes. If you need exact calories and macros, please do your own calculations.
Make It A Meal!
You’ve made the dessert, but what about the rest of the courses?
Here are additional recipes to make a full meal!
- Soup: Beer Cheese Soup Recipe
- Main Dish: Delicious Instant Pot Corned Beef and Cabbage for St. Patrick’s Day
- Side Dish: Quick Soda Bread
- Beverage: Luck of The Irish Cocktail – A Grand Green Cocktail for St. Patrick’s Day!
There are 500+ Recipes on The Purple Pumpkin Blog for you to enjoy – please feel free to check them out too!