St. Paddy's Desserts

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You've been invited to a St. Paddy's Day party -- what to bring? Of course, booze is a no-brainer, but what about sustenance to fuel the party? Here are seven spiked desserts to liven up your St. Patrick's Day.

1. Guinness Cupcakes
The booze in these cupcakes adds a wonderfully deep flavor that enhances and sweetens the cocoa powder. The cake is moist, and the lightness of the vanilla bean buttercream helps balance out the decadent cake below.

2. Bailey's Pudding Shots
These are way better than boring, old green Jello shots. Smooth and creamy, these shots get a double hit from Bailey's and vodka. The recipe says to use chocolate vodka, but if even the idea of chocolate vodka nauseates you like it does me, regular vodka works just fine.

3. Guinness Brownies
If the Guinness cupcakes weren't rich enough for you, then this is the recipe you are looking for. I love the balance of the different chocolates that work with the flavors in the Guinness to create a dense, fudgy brownie. The Godiva-brand chocolate isn't necessary; I've used other kids and produced perfectly tasty results.

4. Car Bomb Cake Balls
Cake balls and cake pops are, apparently, the new cupcakes, and that is quite all right with me. These cake balls are incredibly moist and manage to taste somewhat like the real thing, only better. They are utterly delicious. Pop a few of these yummy treats, and you'll be ready for more Car Bombs.

5. Irish Bread and Butter Pudding
This complicated recipe is not for the faint of heart. If you are up for the challenge, follow this video recipe for Irish bread and butter pudding. It's made with raisins drunk on whiskey and a unique Irish tea and whiskey sauce that is unlike any sauce I've had.

If you're not the baking type these tasty dessert drinks are impossible to fail at:

6. Black Velvet
This is as easy as combining beer and champagne. I would never think that these two went together, but the effervescence of the champagne combined with the depth of the stout complement each other surprisingly well.

7. Stout Ice Cream Float
Take your favorite stout and plop a scoop of vanilla ice cream in it for an instant dessert that supports your St. Paddy's Day drinking schedule. If you really want to take it to the next level, use one of Amy's Ice Cream's Irish cream flavors instead.

Still too much for your culinary skills to handle? Forget the homemade stuff and head to Sprinkles Cupcakes for their Irish chocolate cupcake made with Belgian dark chocolate cake and Baileys cream cheese frosting. If you're against feeding the corporate cupcake "man," head to Sugarbaby's instead for their tasty Saint Arnold Stout chocolate cupcakes.

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