Irish coffee muffins

Autumn has come to Dublin and I love it! The weather changes constantly, the trees are turning yellow, red and orange, the sky is blue and the air is crisp and clear. For me autumn is the time you start enjoying cosy evenings in with hearty stews, warm freshly baked bread with home made jam for breakfast and hot drinks in front of the open fire.
After living 4 years in Ireland, in several cold and damp apartments and houses, you might think I have learnt to drink whiskey. Unfortunately I still have a lot to learn when it comes to appreciating strong alcoholic drinks for their flavour and not effect, but I have come so far that one year ago I learnt to like Irish Coffee. Strange for someone who does not drink either coffee or whiskey, but it sure is something special with sipping hot coffee with a kick of whiskey through a layer of cold, thick cream that just makes me crave for more. Yesterday it was premier for our first Irish coffee for this season but I have taken the concept a little further; a very traditional Swedish cake recipe has been transformed in to muffins with flavours inspired by the Irish coffee. Here is the recipe for 12 delicious muffins that has to be tried.

130 grams butter, room temperature
170 grams caster sugar
2 eggs
280 grams plain flour
2tsp baking powder
150ml milk
2tsp cocoa powder
2tbsp coffee liquor (tia maria or kahlua)
2tbsp Irish whiskey

Beat butter and sugar until pale and fluffy, add one egg at the time while still beating the mixture. Add flour and baking through a fine sieve and stir in the milk into a smooth, thick batter. Divide into to bowls. Flavour one part of the batter with the whiskey, flavour the other part with cocoa powder and coffee liqour. Add the white mix to the brown and give a little stir to create a marbled effect. Divide into 12 muffin cups and bake on 175C for 15 min .