Decadent Chocolate Guinness Cupcakes

These decadent Chocolate Guinness Cupcakes are infused with rich stout and topped with a luscious Irish cream frosting. They’re also easy to make in just about an hour. A must for St. Patrick’s Day, but truly delicious any time of year!

While the idea of easy to make Guinness cupcakes really speaks to me around St. Patrick’s Day, there’s candidly no reason not to bake these year-round. Even putting aside the plain fun of baking with Guinness, they are simply among the best chocolate cupcakes around.

These have a sweet and rich chocolate base, complemented perfectly by the slight bitterness of stout beer and a warm hint of cinnamon. Butter adds more flavor still, while sour cream in the batter ensures each cupcake is moist and light.

Now, let’s talk about the frosting. Truly, these would be a delicious chocolate cupcake paired with a classic chocolate, buttercream, cream cheese, caramel, or any everyday frosting you like. But, for a true St. Patrick’s-themed treat, nothing beats the taste of a sweet cream cheese frosting spiced up with a generous glug of Irish cream liqueur.

Ingredient & Substitution Notes

Here are a few notes and shopping tips about the ingredients you’ll need. Find full amounts in the print-friendly recipe card below.

For the cupcakes, you will need:

• Butter. Salted or unsalted is fine. This adds more flavor and depth than regular vegetable oil would.
• Eggs. Let the eggs come to room temperature before you bake if at all possible.
• Sour cream or creme fraiche. This keeps the cupcakes incredibly moist and tender. Greek yogurt works well, also.
• Guinness or another dark stout style of beer. I recommend the regular draught stout, which is bitter but not overly so.
• Vanilla extract.
• Dutch-process cocoa powder. This adds a wonderful depth of flavor and is great in lots of chocolate baked goods. This is slightly different than regular unsweetened cocoa powder; if you’re worried about using the rest of the package, here is a collection of recipes using Dutch cocoa powder.
• Regular granulated sugar.
• All-purpose flour.
• Baking soda.
• Cinnamon. 

You’ll only use six ounces of Guinness, probably about half of your bottle or can, so… bottom’s up! 🙂

For the frosting, be sure to have:

• Butter. One stick, at room temperature. I usually use unsalted and add a pinch of kosher salt, but if you keep salted on hand, simply use that and include more salt at your discretion.
• Cream cheese. I get the best results from mixing room temperature butter with cold cream cheese. This yields frosting that is soft enough to spread or pipe easily, but firm enough to hold its shape.
• Powdered or confectioner’s sugar.
• Pinch kosher salt.
• More vanilla extract.
• Irish cream liqueur. Of course Bailey’s is the most common brand.

How To Make Chocolate Guinness Cupcakes

This recipe yields 18 cupcakes, and can be ready to go in just about an hour, start to finish. Not too shabby!

Begin by preheating the oven to 350 degrees F and preparing a muffin tin with paper liners. Melt the butter, either in a small saucepan or carefully in the microwave, and set aside to cool a bit.

Next you will want to beat the liquid ingredients, beginning with the eggs and sour cream, then adding the Guinness and vanilla extract. It’s certainly easiest to do this using a stand mixer or other electric mixer, but you can do it with a large bowl, regular old whisk, and elbow grease if needed. Either way, keep mixing until the mixture is thoroughly combined.

Whisk the dry ingredients together in a separate bowl. Add the flour mixture slowly into the wet batter, mixing continuously to blend. Finally, add the melted and cooled butter and mix once more until the batter looks very smooth and even.

Fill the cupcake liners about 3/4 of the way full, and bake for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick or sharp knife inserted into the cupcake centers comes out clean or with just a loose crumb. Set on a wire rack to cool.

How To Make Bailey’s Frosting

The sweetness of Irish cream liqueur pairs perfectly with a cream cheese frosting, and together they make the dreamiest cloud to set off these rich chocolate cakes.

To make it, you’ll simply cream together room temperature butter and cold cream cheese, then whip in powdered sugar, followed by a pinch of salt, vanilla extract, and Irish cream to flavor the batch.

As written below, this icing recipe makes enough to cover a batch of 18 cupcakes with a medium amount of frosting as shown below. If you want more or less, it’s easy to scale!

I frosted these cupcakes using a Wilton 1M open star tip – my go-to for a frosting effect that looks very pretty but is super simple to do.

Related Recipes

In the market for more St. Patrick’s Day treats? Rosemary cheddar Irish soda bread, caraway Irish soda bread muffins, Irish cream Oreo truffles, and this vegetarian shepherd’s pie are some favorites we enjoy most every year!

Need something super quick and fun to whip up with your little ones? These St. Patrick’s-themed Rolo pretzel candies are tasty and adorable!

If you try these Guinness Chocolate Cupcakes, don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave a comment below. I love hearing how recipes turn out in your kitchen, and it helps other readers, too.

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4.89 from 9 votes

Chocolate Guinness Cupcakes with Irish Cream Frosting

Prep Time: 20 minutes mins

Cook Time: 20 minutes mins

Cooling and Frosting Time: 20 minutes mins

Total Time: 1 hour hr

Servings: 18 cupcakes

Decadent chocolate cupcakes infused with stout Guinness and topped off with a luscious Irish cream frosting. A must for St. Patrick’s Day, or any day for the beer lover in your life!

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Ingredients

For the cupcakes

• 6 Tablespoons butter
• 2 large eggs at room temperature
• 1/2 cup sour cream or creme fraiche
• 6 ounces Guinness or another stout beer
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup Dutch processed cocoa powder
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 and 1/4 cups all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

For the frosting

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter at room temperature
• 4 ounces cream cheese cold
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• pinch kosher salt 
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 Tablespoons Bailey’s Irish cream 

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 C). Line cupcake pans with paper liners and set aside. 
• Melt butter and set aside to cool slightly.
  6 Tablespoons butter
• Using an electric mixer, beat eggs and sour cream or creme fraiche together at medium-high speed until well-combined. Add beer and vanilla, and beat again until mixture is even. 
  2 large eggs, 1/2 cup sour cream or creme fraiche, 6 ounces Guinness, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• Combine cocoa powder, sugar, flour, baking soda, and cinnamon in a separate bowl. Whisk or stir briefly with a fork to blend.
  1/2 cup Dutch processed cocoa powder, 1 cup granulated sugar, 1 and 1/4 cups all purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• Slowly add the dry ingredients into the wet batter, mixing continuously to blend. After all the dry ingredients are incorporated, add the melted butter and mix again until batter is evenly combined.
• Pour batter into cupcake liners, filling each about 3/4 full. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow pans to cool on wire racks for about 10 minutes, then remove cupcakes and let cool completely. 
• To make the frosting, using an electric mixer, cream together the butter and cream cheese. Gradually add the powdered sugar, mixing until light and fluffy, then add the salt and vanilla. Beat well to combine, then add Irish cream, and beat again until frosting is a smooth consistency for piping. Frost cupcakes as desired.
  1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, 4 ounces cream cheese, 2 cups powdered sugar, pinch kosher salt , 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 2 Tablespoons Bailey’s Irish cream 

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Nutrition Estimate

Calories: 257 kcal, Carbohydrates: 33 g, Protein: 3 g, Fat: 13 g, Saturated Fat: 8 g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1 g, Monounsaturated Fat: 3 g, Trans Fat: 0.4 g, Cholesterol: 52 mg, Sodium: 121 mg, Potassium: 73 mg, Fiber: 1 g, Sugar: 25 g, Vitamin A: 425 IU, Vitamin C: 0.1 mg, Calcium: 23 mg, Iron: 1 mg

Author: Monica

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: chocolate guinness cupcakes, guinness cupcakes

This recipe was originally published on March 2, 2017, and has been updated in March 2019 and again in March 2024 with new photos, revised text, and adjustments to the volume of frosting. Cupcake recipe adapted from Pinch My Salt; frosting from My Name is Yeh.