‘Irish Car Bomb’ pie sells out at popular New York food market

Controversially-named drink continues in popularity

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LAURA BRYN SISSON,

IrishCentral Staff Writer

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‘Irish Car Bomb’ pie by Cutie Pies NYC

Photo by Alice Cronin

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Alice Cronin of Cutie Pies NYC had a surprise hit on her hands when she baked 20 ‘Irish Car Bomb’ pies, based on the alcoholic drink of the same name, to sell at Brooklyn’s Smorgasburg food market on Saturday.

The new flavor outsold her other daily pies, and was gone by 3pm, “which is early for us, because we’re dessert,” she told IrishCentral.com.

The drink named ‘Irish Car Bomb’ has been widely criticised as racist and offensive to victims of violence during the Troubles.

Cronin has Irish roots on both sides of her family, she said, probably from Co Cork.

But neither Cronin nor those purchasers of ‘Irish Car Bomb’ pies seemed seriously offended by its name—at least, not enough to change it or not purchase the baked goods.

Two Irish women who hadn’t heard of the drink version before balked a little at the name, Cronin said. They said it “probably wouldn’t be called that in Ireland,” Cronin told IrishCentral.

But the women bought the pie anyway.

Cronin said she “toyed with” naming the pie something else, but since the pie was based on the ingredients of the drink, she felt that calling it an ‘Irish Car Bomb’ pie would be the simplest way of explaining its flavor and ingredients.

Most of her customers in their 20s and 30s knew immediately what the pie would taste like, based on the name, while her older customers “who maybe don’t go to bars” didn’t know what to make of it.

The pies are based on a chocolate cookie crust, with a Guinness-infused ganache layered atop it. A Baileys-infused pastry cream (think éclair filling) forms the bulk of the pie. Cronin topped the creation with whipped cream and a whiskey-caramel drizzle.

What kind of whiskey? “Jameson,” she said, smiling.

Although she’d intended the ‘Irish Car Bomb’ as a one-off deal, the pie’s unparalleled success prompted Cronin to make more for Sunday’s Brooklyn Flea Market, held on the same Williamsburg grounds as weekly food market Smorgasburg.

IrishCentral.com nabbed the last slice. The bitterness of the Guinness worked especially well in the chocolate ganache, adding real sophistication. The Baileys pastry cream tasted exactly how you would expect: it’s Baileys in a silky, puddingy form. Although the caramel drizzle certainly added something to the pie, I couldn’t taste the Jameson at all, which was disappointing. Perhaps in the next batch it’ll be stronger—Cronin said she’s still perfecting her recipe.

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