Guinness Cupcakes with Chocolate Ganache and Salted Caramel Popcorn

For the cupcakes:
Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease a 12-count standard size muffin tin or line with muffin liners. Set aside.

In a large bowl, mix together sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt.Crack in the egg, spoon in the sour cream, and pour in the oil and the vanilla. Mix with a wooden spoon until just combined. Pour in Guinness, and slowly mix until smooth.

Divide batter evenly among prepared muffin cups, filling each about halfway full. Transfer muffin tin to oven and bake for 15 to 18 minutes. Transfer muffin tin to a wire rack and let cupcakes cool completely.

For the ganache:
Place the chocolate, heavy cream and corn syrup in a medium heatproof bowl over a pot of simmering water. Stir the mixture using a wooden spoon until melted and smooth, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

For the salted caramel:
In a heavy saucepan set over low heat, combine sugar and water and heat just until the sugar is dissolved. Add the butter. Let it come to a boil and cook until it reaches a golden caramel color. Remove from the heat and add the cream slowly. Be careful as it will splatter. Whisk to combine and put pan back on the stove. Let it come to a boil again over low heat and cook 10 to 15 minutes until you reach a nice creamy consistency. Remove from heat. Mix in sea salt and let cool slightly.

Put the popcorn in a bowl (make sure to remove un-popped kernels). Mix caramel with the popcorn and stir to make sure all popcorn is coated with caramel. Set aside.

To assemble the cupcakes, spoon and smear a tablespoon of ganache on top of each cupcake. Place a handful of caramel popcorn on top of the ganache. Drizzle remaining ganache on top of the popcorn.