Seven Boozy Recipes for St. Patrick's Day Desserts

When it comes to celebrating St. Patrick's Day, there are certain must haves: shamrocks, the color green, the proverbial "kiss me I'm Irish" button and Irish food. And, if your St. Patrick's Day party is just for grown-ups, you'll of course need one more essential ingredient -- booze!

Leave the green beer to the college bars and upscale your St. Patrick's Day party by incorporating the adult libations into the menu itself. St. Patrick's Day desserts are already good. Boozy St. Patrick's Day desserts? Even better.

Even those who seldom drink enjoy the nuances of an alcohol infused dessert because it's more about the flavor than the actual alcohol content itself. When alcohol is boiled (173° F / 78.5° C), much of the alcohol evaporates, leaving the flavor behind. According to our friends at the USDA anywhere from 40 to 5 percent of the alcohol remains, depending on your cook time.

The bottom line? If you're concerned, you'll want to have a separate dessert table for the kiddos.

Here are seven sweet ways to use alcohol in your St. Patrick's Day dessert recipes.

Guinness Cake with Baileys Buttercream - We've combined Bailey's and beer for an Irish-themed dessert. Guinness®, one of the most successful beer brands in the world, is an Irish dry stout that originated in the brewery of Arthur Guinness at St. James's Gate, Dublin. Bailey's Irish Cream®, also born in Ireland, is the most popular liqueur in the world. So it stands to reason that this rich chocolate Guinness cake topped with Bailey's Irish Cream frosting would be St. Patrick approved.

Spiked Cake Pops - Here's another fabulous Irish dessert combining Guinness and Bailey's. This time dark chocolate Guinness cake takes the shape of a cake ball topped with Bailey's butter cream frosting. Just for fun, we also added a pipette of Bailey's for an extra shot of awesome.

Irish Cream Cheesecake - The addition of smooth, Irish Whiskey in this cheesecake might make you say "Slainte" (used as a drinking toast to wish somebody good health) before every decadent bite.

Homemade Irish Cream Liqueur - We've already established the popularity of Bailey's Irish Cream, but what happens when your liquor cabinet is bare? Simple, we show you how to make your own. Creamy, chocolate Irish Cream Liqueur can be served over ice or warm in an Irish Coffee.

Boozy Glazed Doughnut Holes with Chocolate Covered Potato Chips -- Yes, you read that right. Doughnut holes glazed in Irish Cream and topped with homemade chocolate covered potato chips just might make your guests think they've found the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

Milk Chocolate Irish Cream Pots de Creme - This cool and creamy individual serving dessert has Irish Cream in both the milk chocolate pudding AND the whipped cream.

Dark Chocolate Glazed Creme de Menthe Shortbread- It only takes one tablespoon of green Creme de Menthe Liqueur to make these shortbread cookies amazing. These minty sweet treats are a chocolate lovers dream.

And with that, we'll leave you with a traditional Irish toast for St. Patrick's Day:

Saint Patrick was a gentleman,

Who through strategy and stealth,

Drove all the snakes from Ireland,

Here's a toasting to his health.

But not too many toastings

Lest you lose yourself and then

Forget the good Saint Patrick

And see all those snakes again.

'Beannachtam na Feile Padraig!'

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

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