Any time of the year, and especially special days or holidays, is a perfect time for a rich, decadent chocolate cupcake made from scratch.

St. Patrick’s Day is no exception to that rule. What better way to have fun baking and then serving a holiday dessert than with these dark chocolate cupcakes with a creamy Bailey’s-featured buttercream.

Using a good quality chocolate is the foundation and start to the perfect chocolate cupcake.

A standard chocolate cupcake recipe is wonderful to have in your recipe catalog. The complete pair of a classic vanilla bean cupcake and a standard but extra delicious dark chocolate cupcake in your recipe database is what every home baker should want.

You can dress this cupcake up with mint or orange buttercream for the winter holidays. In the summer, a nice raspberry Swiss meringue or a fresh strawberry compote to stuff these cupcakes with is a great addition served at a picnic as a dessert treat.

Classic Dark Chocolate Cupcake

Makes approximately 2 dozen cupcakes or three 9-inch cake rounds (if you prefer to make a cake out of this recipe)

3 cups of all-purpose flour

1¼ cups of a good cocoa powder

2 teaspoons of baking powder

1½ teaspoons of baking soda

½ teaspoon of salt

1½ cups of buttermilk

1¼ cups of brewed black coffee, hot

¾ cup of a neutral oil such as sunflower or canola oil

3 large eggs at room temperature

3¾ cups of granulated sugar

2 teaspoons of pure vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Sift all of the dry ingredients together in a bowl. Mix in the sugar. Next, set this dry mix aside.

In another bowl, combine together all of your wet ingredients except for the hot coffee. Set aside.

Place all of your dry ingredients into the bowl of your stand-up mixer. On low speed, gradually add all of the wet ingredients to the dry. Once all ingredients are in the bowl, beat all ingredients on medium speed. Still on medium speed, gradually pour in your hot coffee. Scrape down the mixer and beat for a minute or two.

Portion the batter into your lined cupcake pans. Bake for about 18-20 minutes or until your cupcakes are tested done. Allow the cupcake trays to cool on racks for a few minutes. Carefully, remove the cupcakes and allow to finish cooling on the racks.

Once cool, you can cover your cupcakes with plastic wrap on plates or set your cupcakes into the plastic cupcake holders until you are ready to garnish.

Bailey’s Buttercream

3 sticks of unsalted butter, at room temperature

A scant 3 cups of powdered sugar, sifted

¼-½ cup of Bailey’s Irish Cream

1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract

A pinch of salt

Edible gold dust, green sugar sprinkles, chocolate-covered coffee beans, optional garnishes

Using your stand-up mixer, cream the butter until light and smooth. Add in the powdered sugar, a little at a time, mixing as you go on low speed.

Once all of the sugar is added, pour in the pure vanilla extract, your Bailey’s and the pinch of salt. Mix on high speed for 5-7 minutes. Taste test to see if you want to add more Bailey’s, salt.

Using a piping bag, garnish your cupcakes with your homemade Bailey’s buttercream and sprinkle toppings on, as desired.

Sarah Schweitzer is dual-certified in Culinary Arts and Baking & Pastry from the Escoffier School of Culinary Arts. Sarah is currently working as a Sous-Chef at Ateira’s on First and has her own blog simplysarah.online. She can be reached at sarah.schweitzer18@gmail.com.