Boozy Peppermint Mocha Cupcakes

So I somehow convinced a friend to take me as her date to her work holiday party (free alcohol! yay, but no...) As a thank you, I made her these cupcakes, which were "christmas-y," as requested and as much as I hate to admit it, were inspired by the Starbucks holiday menu.

Total time: 2 hours --- 30 minutes to make the cakes and ganache, 30 minutes to let them cool, and an hour to let the ganache set/put on make up and blow out hair.

VERDICT: The friend/date really liked them or was nice enough to eat 3 for my benefit. Added bonus, the hardened ganache glaze keeps the cakes fresh for an extra couple of days.

Peppermint Mocha Cupcakes 

adapted from Mark Bittman's chocolate cake recipe in How to Cook Everything, yields 12 cupcakes.

1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened (or melted if you're lazy like I am)
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
9 tablespoons coccoa powder
1 cup sugar
2 eggs, separated
1 teaspoon vanilla
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1 shot kahlua
1 shot creme de menthe


1. Preheat oven to 350F and line a cupcake tin with paper liners.
2. Cream the butter until smooth gradually add the sugar and continue beating until light and fluffy. Beat in the yolks one at a time, followed by the coccoa powder and vanilla.
3. Whisk together flour, baking powder, soda and salt in a separate bowl. Add dry ingredients to mixture a bit at a time and stir in by hand alternating with the milk and liqueurs. Don’t overmix.
4. Beat egg whites until they are soft peaks and gently fold into the rest of mixture.
5. Fill cupcake liners ~3/4 the way full. Bake 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of a cupcakes comes out clean.
6. Cool on a wire rack before frosting.

Peppermint Ganache Glaze

12 oz dark/semisweet chocolate, chopped or in chips

1 cup heavy cream

3 tablespoons creme de menthe, or more if you like

1. Heat cream on medium-high heat, take off stove JUST BEFORE cream boils.

2. Pour heated cream over chocolate and stir until smooth and glossy.

3. Add creme de menthe and let cool before topping cupcakes. To top cupcakes, dip cooled cakes into ganache and let set at room temperature for ~1 hour. 

Confession: the ganache glaze was really me being too lazy
to cream butter and sift sugar to make frosting.

Red cupcake liners make the cupcakes really festive AND
compliment the crushed candy topping.

Easiest topping ever. 

Add crushed peppermint candy before ganache
sets for that extra Martha Stewart touch.

Pumpkin Pie Cupcakes

As a result of my pumpkin puree hoarding, I had a lot of pumpkin to experiment with. I thought about making a boozy pumpkin pie, but who has time on a Friday night to wait for dough to chill and then roll it out? Not me, I got happy hours to pre-game (kidding, kind of). I decided to compromise and make a pumpkin pie cupcake, with a graham cracker "crust" cake and a pumpkin pie "filling" frosting. This was originally a sober recipe, but I'm adding a boozy suggestion in parenthesis.

Total time: 45 minutes, includes letting cakes cool before frosting and drinking 2 glasses of sauvignon blanc.

VERDICT: The roommate liked it and has had multiple helpings. Flavor-wise, it captures the end of fall pretty well and pairs surprisingly well with red wine.

Pie "crust" cupcakes 

(adapted from s'mores cake, yields 12 cupcakes)

1 cup flour
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 stick unsalted butter
1 cup of sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (or whiskey vanilla extract)
1/2 cup milk (or cinnamon liqueur, I recommend Fireball)


1. Preheat oven to 400F. Take out butter, cream cheese, and eggs so that they come to room temperature.
2. Graham cracker crumbs: take out a bunch and blend into a fine powder by pulsing in a blender/food processor OR put in a ziploc bag and crush by hand.
3. Combine flour, cracker crumbs, baking powder, and salt. Make sure there are no clumps and set aside.
4. In a separate bowl, mix the butter and sugar together. Add eggs and vanilla extract, then add the flour mixture and milk in alternate batches starting with the flour mixture.
5. Fill cupcake tin to about 2/3 full. Bake for 15-20 minutes at 400F.
6. Prepare the frosting: combine powdered sugar and spices, set aside. Mix the butter, cream cheese, and pumpkin puree, then add the sugar mixture and liqueur (if using). Make sure everything is evenly incorporated.
7. Let the cupcakes cool for 10-20 minutes before frosting.

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Frosting 

adapted from chow.com

1 stick unsalted butter
1 (8oz) package cream cheese
4 cups powdered sugar (plus extra if adding liqueur)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/3 can pumpkin puree
1 oz Fireball liqueur (optional)