Guinness Chocolate Cupcakes

The Anapra bakery signed a lease on additional equipment — a larger oven, a second mixer — funded by the bakery's own profits, not the Juárez fund, because the Juárez fund is spent and the bakery is self-sustaining now, generating its own capital, its own growth, its own future. Lupita manages it with the competence of a woman who was trained by Sofia and me and who has absorbed the Gutierrez bakery DNA: 4 AM mornings, no shortcuts, the recipes are sacred. The Anapra bakery's revenue: sixty-two thousand annually, up from forty in the first year. The growth is the neighborhood's growth — the maquiladora women are regulars, the school orders monthly, the churches order for events. Rosa's name is becoming the neighborhood's name for bread.

I made chile colorado — the September 15 annual, Rosa's sixteenth death anniversary. Sixteen years without her. The candles in three locations. The ritual that is older than some of my grandchildren. The same recipe. The same prayer. The same rising from the stone floor. Sixteen and counting.

Chile colorado anchors September 15 — that recipe belongs to Rosa and to the stone floor and to the counting of years — but after the candles and the prayer, there is always something sweet, something dark and unhurried, something that asks you to stand at a stove a little longer than you need to. These Guinness chocolate cupcakes have become that thing for me: the bitter-sweet close to a heavy day, made with the same seriousness I bring to every recipe I consider sacred. The stout deepens the chocolate the way grief deepens memory — slowly, and in a way you can’t fully explain, until you taste it and you know.

Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 18 min | Total Time: 38 min | Servings: 24 cupcakes

Ingredients

1 cup Guinness stout
1/2 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp fine salt
2 large eggs, room temperature
2/3 cup sour cream, room temperature
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
For the frosting:
8 oz cream cheese, softened
2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
Pinch of salt

Instructions

Heat the oven. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two standard 12-cup muffin tins with cupcake liners and set aside.
Make the stout base. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the Guinness and butter. Stir until butter is fully melted and mixture is just beginning to simmer. Remove from heat and whisk in the cocoa powder until smooth. Let cool for 10 minutes.
Combine the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt until evenly distributed.
Finish the batter. Whisk the eggs, sour cream, and vanilla into the cooled stout mixture until smooth. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir gently with a rubber spatula until just combined — do not overmix. A few streaks of flour are fine.
Fill and bake. Divide the batter evenly among the prepared liners, filling each about 2/3 full. Bake 17–19 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with just a few moist crumbs. Cool in the pan 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.
Make the frosting. Beat the softened cream cheese on medium speed until smooth and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the powdered sugar, vanilla, and pinch of salt; beat on low until incorporated, then increase to medium-high and beat 1 minute more. With the mixer running, slowly drizzle in the heavy cream and beat until the frosting is light and spreadable, about 2 minutes.
Frost the cupcakes. Once cupcakes are fully cooled, frost generously with the cream cheese frosting using a piping bag or an offset spatula. Dust lightly with cocoa powder if desired. Serve the same day or refrigerate up to 3 days; bring to room temperature before serving.

Nutrition (per serving)

Guinness Chocolate Cupcakes — Dark and Ceremonial, Like the Prayers We Never Skip