Chocolate Guinness Cake

My better half had a birthday last week, so to celebrate, I made him a cake— a real cake, not gluten free. It was only fitting to try this Guinness chocolate cake recipe by Nigella Lawson. I followed it to a tee, except for the addition of a pinch of kosher salt, because chocolate needs salt. It was a huge hit. Highly recommended. Just remember to use room temp eggs, and let the chocolate cool a bit before adding them together, or you’ll get fluffy chocolate scrambled eggs…

INGREDIENTS

FOR THE CAKE

  • 1 cup Guinness stout

  • 10 tablespoons (1 stick plus 2 tablespoons) unsalted butter

  • ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa

  • 2 cups superfine sugar

  • ¾ cup sour cream

  • 2 large eggs

  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour

  • 2½ teaspoons baking soda

FOR THE TOPPING

  • 1 ¼cups confectioners' sugar

  • 8 ounces cream cheese at room temperature

  • ½ cup heavy cream

DIRECTIONS

  1. For the cake: Heat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-inch springform pan and line with parchment paper. In a large saucepan, combine Guinness and butter. Place over medium-low heat until butter melts, then remove from heat. Add cocoa and superfine sugar, and whisk to blend.

  2. In a small bowl, combine sour cream, eggs and vanilla; mix well. Add to Guinness mixture. Add flour and baking soda, and whisk again until smooth. Pour into buttered pan, and bake until risen and firm, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Place pan on a wire rack and cool completely in pan.

  3. For the topping: Using a food processor or by hand, mix confectioners' sugar to break up lumps. Add cream cheese and blend until smooth. Add heavy cream, and mix until smooth and spreadable.

  4. Remove cake from pan and place on a platter or cake stand. Ice top of cake only, so that it resembles a frothy pint of Guinness.

DessertsJ.T. EllisonComment