Baking With Booze

We’ve known for a while now that booze makes a great addition to your meals, but how about dessert? It turns out that it can add a little extra something to your baking & pastry dishes as well. According to a Buzzfeed feature on Faith Alice Sleeper, the owner of a Washington, DC booze-infused cupcake line called Crunkcakes, there are a few things to keep in mind when baking with booze.

• When adding liquor to an already-existing recipe, choose a booze that’s similar in flavor to an ingredient in the original recipe.
• Start a with little bit at first and then work your way up. It’s easy to accidentally make alcohol overpower your recipe.
• Rich desserts can handle more liquor than fruity or light desserts.

Beer
Use your favorite stout to make this chocolate pudding. The recipe itself only calls for nine ingredients – ten if you want to serve it alongside ice cream. Made in individual ramekins, this is the perfect dessert to serve when you have people over.

If stouts aren’t your thing, try these Belgian white beer cookies. They’re made with honey, orange and coriander, to perfectly complement the flavor of the beer.

Bourbon
Bourbon bread pudding is the perfect way to use up that bread that’s just a little bit too stale to make a sandwich. Add some bourbon-soaked dried fruit if you want the dessert to have a boozier flavor.

For something a little bit lighter, try this peach-bourbon cheesecake. Every time we think we’ve seen all of the cheesecake possibilities, someone comes up with a new one!

Rum
You might wonder why you’d mess with a perfectly good pecan pie recipe, but you’ll understand when you try a rum-spiked pecan pie. A spiced rum will enhance the flavor of the pecans, and you’ll wonder how you used to make this pie without it.

Instead of using spiced rum, you can bake with coconut rum as well. Try this coconut rum frosting on your next batch of cupcakes for a tropical-tasting dessert.

Tequila
Tequila and lime come together for a perfect margarita, so why wouldn’t they combine for a dessert? This tequila lime tart is like an edible margarita and it’s great for the summertime.

Do you prefer flavored margaritas when you have the option? This margarita chiffon cake is topped with a strawberry compote with tequila and lime for people who like to mix it up.