This weekend we celebrated Anjelica’s upcoming wedding with the age-old traditional bachelorette party (You may not think you know Anjelica, but you actually do…she’s the one that always calls first dibs on Cupcake Monday).
We weren't tipsy...yet. But, the camera was. That's why it's blurry. Sorry for partying 😉
It had everything one would expect out of a quality bachelorette party…
Fun games.
Pin the tail on the WHAT?
Good food.
Anjelica's Brownie Pizza: Brownies topped with cream cheese and fruit. Delish.
“Classy” party favors.
3 guesses about the shape of everything on this table...
A little bit of “serious” advice-giving.
I write like a 5-year-old. But it's okay, I give good advice.
And, of course, lots o’ drinks…
Pineapple angel foodcake shots. Dangerous.
After the fun pre-party, we hit up a CLUB. Yes, a club. As you may recall, I’m not really the biggest fan of the whole club scene. What can I say? I’ve always fit in better with the beer and football crowd.
But, for Anjelica, we had to do it right, and we had to do it big. So, a club night was in order. The night was a bit of a blur, but I do recall dancing on a platform with Anjelica and a saxophone player…
The bride-to-be and the saxophone player - wiiiiild night.
Good times.
By the end of the night, I think all of us had stated the following at one point: “All I want is a good beer and a dive bar.” But as much as we were craving it, we were tired and we are old. So, we went to bed like good little grown-ups.
Beer Inspiration
Sunday morning, I woke up a bit woozy, but all-in-all, in relatively good spirits.
But, although I was certainly not in the mood to drink one, I just couldn’t get the thought of an ice cold beer out of my head.
So, I decided to pour some beer in my cupcakes…
Candy toppings optional...but recommended. Get in the Halloween spirit, people.
3 Step Pumpkin Beer Cupcakes
Beer, cupcakes and pumpkin? When you combine these three things, together, you can’t lose. Because everything tastes better with a little bit of booze. Perfect for Monday Night Football, Sunday Funday or because you’re bored and what a valid excuse to drink beer.
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
If this is all you need, there is no excuse for NOT baking.
Ingredients (makes 12 Cupcakes):
- 1 box yellow cake mix (I used low-sugar to healthify it a bit more)
- 1 cup pumpkin beer
- 1 cup pumpkin
Instructions:
- Pour cake mix into large mixing bowl and plop in 1 cup of pumpkin.
- Pour in 1 cup of beer of your choice (there will be a little beer leftover so you can have a drink on the side while you bake.) and mix thoroughly. Evenly disperse into 12 cupcake liners.
- Bake for 25 minutes in oven at 350 degrees while you finish off that six pack of beer (You know you’re from Nebraska when you bake with beer and finish off the six pack as you wait for your beer cupcakes to bake – not that I did that, but I’m just sayin’…)
In my opinion, when you’re baking with beer, the recipe just has to be simple – reflective of the simple, yet fulfilling joy that one experiences when he/she takes a swig of ice cold beer on a hot summer’s day. And it doesn’t get any easier than this 3 step recipe.
I poured.
Measurement is key when you're booze baking. You should also wipe off the measuring cup in between ingredients but whatever, break the rules when you bake with booze.
I mixed.
Mix and drink. Mix and drink. Mix and drink.
I baked.
Light fluffy and booze-infused.
When all was said and done, I was very pleased with the light and fluffy texture of the cake. They smelled pretty good too.
The taste…was interesting. There was a bit of a kick to it at the end. It almost tasted like a “shot” of pumpkin cupcake chased with a bit of beer. The aftertaste was a bit “beer-flavored,” but I like the taste of beer. So I was one happy girl. Beer craving satisfied!
A Frosting – Beer Pairing
I was a little unsure about how my coworkers would react to the strong taste of beer in my innocent little cupcakes this Cupcake Monday.
So, I did what I always do when I’m concerned about the taste of my cupcakes.
I covered them in frosting.
Frosting and chatting. Just another manic Monday!
I was relatively busy at work on Monday and didn’t get done with a client meeting until 4:00. Therefore, I had no time for the normal 9 AM weekly “what did you do this weekend?” chat.
So we caught up while frosting cupcakes (and eating the candy corn and Hershey kisses that were supposed to go on top of the cupcakes).
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- The setup. I cleaned my desk off for this picture. Just kidding.
First in line for the boozy cupcakes was that dashing bride-to-be.
I am adorable. And so are these cupcakes.
She brought her tiara into the office. She wasn’t ready to give up on being queen for the day.
Then, there was Lindsay, who decided to add a bit of extra candy corn flare to her own cupcake.
I run on candy corn and cupcakes. That is why I'm so fast :-b
And finally, the usual suspects that pretend to want to talk, but probably really just want a cupcake, came over for a nibble.
Oh we're just passing through...just wanted to say HI!
Overall, the feedback on these cupcakes was surprisingly good. As one person said, “I like cupcakes. I like beer. Therefore, I like this cupcake.” If you want your cupcakes to taste less boozy, you can either use a lighter ale OR boil the beer to reduce the alcohol taste. I think the pumpkin beer was a bit too bitter for my liking, so I’d use a more mild beer next time.
However, if you like a good beer as much as the next country girl, then crack open a 6 pack, pour liberally into your cupcake batter, kick-up your feet, put on some football and enjoy your beer cupcake with a side of…beer.
We like cupcakes, football and beer. And thumbs up. And awkward pictures.
I dare you to bring these to Monday Night Football…
And in case you’re looking for some entertainment to close out your Tuesday, enjoy some videos from the only person who REALLY knows how to combine cooking and booze: My Drunk Kitchen.
Question:
Booze and baking? Yay or nay? What’s your fave alcohol-infused treat?
I would love to try pumpkin beer cupcakes. I am obsessed with cupcakes (who isn’t) and I am now addicted to pumpkin beer (again, who isn’t these days?). You are brilliant!
I’ve never cooked with beer, but I’ve always wanted to make beer sweet potato fries. A coworker once made a rum cake that I’m pretty sure we all got drunk off of. It was deeeelicious (and fun).
Do you taste the beer in it? And where’d you get the idea for that?!?
I loooove bachelorette parties..so much fun!! That Pin the tale on the guy game looks hilarious..I haven’t seen that one yet..def will put that one on the list for a next party! haha
I’ve always wanted to cook with beer..especially beer mac & cheese. I’ve tried it once and it was quite heavenly!
Girl, you are clever! I am so totally intrigued by these…
Want to come over and bake pumpkin beer cupcakes with me and drink pumpkin beer straight up? 😉
Sounds interesting… not a huge fan of pumpkin, but I do like beer. You should open up a cupcake shop 🙂
Kahlua in tiramisu is a must!
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