Irish Cream Cupcakes
These decadent Irish cream cupcakes are a perfect festive treat! With a super moist chocolate base and topped with a silky Irish cream buttercream, they are hard to resist. Vegetarian.
Note: This recipe is NOT dairy free. It was published before Cook Nourish Bliss transitioned to dairy free recipes and remains popular with long time readers. You can try using substitutions to make it dairy free, however I have not tested this myself and can’t say how it will turn out.
Want to know one of the things I love about having a food blog?
Getting to make cupcakes for absolutely no reason at all.
Well, technically I made these because St. Patrick’s Day is right around the corner, but really I just wanted them for myself.
And then I can use this blog as an excuse for doing so. It’s pretty awesome.
So let’s talk about these cupcakes, shall we?
The cupcake base uses both irish cream and coffee – making it oh so very moist. The coffee taste is not really prominent, it more just brings out the deep chocolate flavor.
And the frosting? As always, probably my favorite part. It has that wonderful silky buttercream texture and is full of irish cream. Which pairs perfectly with the chocolate base.
I intended to decorate these with chocolate covered espresso beans… but that plan didn’t go so well when I realized that I somehow bought chocolate covered raisins instead. Whoopsie.
Additional Cupcake Recipes You Might Enjoy:
- Football Cupcakes
- Lemon Poppy Seed Cupcakes
- Cranberry Cupcakes
- Vanilla Bean Cupcakes
- Hot Chocolate Almond Flour Cupcakes
- Almond Flour Cupcakes
Did you make this recipe? Rate and review it down below! I’d love to hear from you.

Irish Cream Cupcakes
These decadent Irish cream cupcakes are a perfect festive treat! With a super moist chocolate base and topped with a silky Irish cream buttercream, they are hard to resist. Vegetarian.
Ingredients
For the cupcakes:
- 1 ½ cups cake flour
- ½ cup dutch process cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ cup (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¾ cup strongly brewed coffee, cooled slightly
- ¼ cup irish cream liqueur
For the frosting:
- 1 cup (16 tablespoons) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 3 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons irish cream liqueur
- 1 tablespoon strongly brewed coffee, cooled
For garnish:
- chocolate covered espresso beans, optional
- mini chocolate chips, optional
Instructions
To make the cupcakes:
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line a 12 cup muffin pan with baking cups and set aside.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, salt, baking soda and baking powder. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the butter and sugar. Cream on medium speed for 1 minute. Add in the eggs and vanilla and beat until combined. Add in the flour mixture and mix on low until just incorporated.
- In a small bowl or liquid measuring cup, combine the coffee and liqueur. Add half of this mixture to the batter. Beat on medium speed for 1 minute (start on low then increase to medium so it doesn’t splatter everywhere). Scrape down the sides of the bowl if needed. Add in the remaining half of the coffee mixture and then beat again on medium speed for 1 minute.
- Scoop the batter into the prepared cupcake tins, filling them about ⅔ of the way full (I probably had enough for 1 more cupcake - so a total of 13 - but didn’t bother).
- Bake for 17 to 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Let the cupcakes cool in the pan for about 5 minutes, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.
To make the frosting:
- Add the butter to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed for about 2 minutes, until light and fluffy.
- With the mixer on low, slowly add in the confectioners’ sugar. Once incorporated, increase the speed to medium and beat until well combined.
- Add in the salt, vanilla, liqueur and coffee. Beat on low speed until incorporated and then increase the speed to high and beat for about 3 minutes, until fluffy.
- Transfer the frosting to a pastry bag fitted with a decorative tip. Pipe frosting on the cupcakes as desired. Garnish with chocolate covered espresso beans or mini chocolate chips.
Notes
Cupcakes adapted from King Arthur Flour. Frosting adapted from my favorite maple buttercream.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 518Total Fat: 24gSaturated Fat: 15gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 92mgSodium: 212mgCarbohydrates: 65gFiber: 1gSugar: 49gProtein: 3g
Nutrition data shown is an estimate provided by an online calculator and is for informational purposes only. It should not be considered a substitute for a medical professional’s advice.
this looks sooooooooo good.
love irish cream, i made irish cream brownies recently and they were so tasty.
🙂
Irish cream cupcakes? Are you torturing me? I am pinning them to my ever-growing list of things I’d love to make.
haha my list is ridiculously long too
I just made these in mini cupcake form, delicious! Can’t wait to eat more tomorrow.
Nice! I bet they look cute that way! So happy you like them : )
These are the kind of cupcakes I might be tempted to sneak and eat a few extra, but its probably not possible to hide because they give you a frosting mustache. 🙂
haha I love it
I love making desserts “for the blog” too! But really, who needs a reason for cupcakes?! These look insanely delicious!
haha very true … never really need a reason for cupcakes : )
Your cupcakes look gorgeous and they sound so good too!
I just recently ( very recently) started my food blog also and I love having an excuse to bake now. It has been so much fun already! These cupcakes are super adorable and look really yummy!
Thanks Bobbie! So fun … although I have to make sure I give away a lot of the baked goods so I don’t eat too many : )
These look so delightful. Yum.
Oooo Ashley these are gorgeous! and I know what you mean; I love being able to whip up adorably cute and tasty treats with the excuse “oh it’s for blogging” 🙂 Have a Happy St. Patty’s Day!
Happy St. Patty’s Day to you too!
Irish Cream Buttercream is the best kind of buttercream there is! And yours looks piped to perfection! Drooool
Thanks Elizabeth! Tell me about it … I didn’t expect to like it as much as I did!
Your cupcakes are gorgeous! I agree, that is the fun part of having a food blog…making things you normally wouldn’t. I probably bake a lot more goodies than I used to, but family and friends end up getting them, which makes everyone happy. These cupcakes are perfect for St.Patty’s Day!
Exactly – both my husband and I always bring in the extra for coworkers. Win win!