Boozy cupcakes

I think it's possible that my future bakery might need a liquor license. This way the boozy cupcakes and potent pastries can be served alongside their namesake. I'm kinda not kidding. My future business partner and I have discussed this concept somewhat thoroughly, and we think it could be a hit. Anyone interested in throwing in some start-up capital? Ok, ok, we'll put a little more thought into the business plan, test some more recipes, and think this thing through a little bit more.

Oh, the Irish car bomb. Classic St. Patrick's Day beverage when you've moved past straight Guinness. The thought of dropping a shot glass filled with Jameson and Baileys into a glass o' Guinness and chugging the whole thing down sounds less than appealing to me, but...the thought of a Baileys buttercream frosting is intriguing. As is adding some Guinness to a chocolate batter. Oooh, and maybe a splash of Jameson in a chocolate ganache filling would round the whole thing out. I'd love to take credit for the baking brilliance myself, but I hijacked the idea from Deb at Smitten Kitchen instead. This recipe is amazing. Caution: you may find yourself swiping excessive amounts of batter from the mixing bowl directly to your mouth instead of dropping it into the liners.

All in all, a fairly excellent way to celebrate St. Patrick's Day. They're even work appropriate. Maybe not for the teetotalers out there...but I just didn't tell them about the cupcakes. Everyone else was warned about the slight potency of the frosting and filling, and when their eyes lit up with glee, I figured it would be ok. Basically a big hit all the way around, plus I had entirely too much fun sprinkling green sugar on top to add that extra dash of festive.

I mean, what better way to celebrate St. Patrick's Day? Except, of course, for dumping some green dye into the fountains at the White House for the first time ever.

They were going to stay green until the dye ran out, so I went by on the 18th just to see if we were still in shamrock stage or if the waters had worked their way through the color. Slightly sad to report that the fountains showed no trace of green on the 18th.

May the luck o' the Irish watch over ye'...on March 20. Yes, I'm a wee bit late in posting this one, but I figure I can get by with it because of my name. Erin always works for the Irish, and for a short time in March I claim "O'Bryan" for yet another dash of festive.