St. Paddy’s Day Cake Special

There’s nothing better for celebrating St. Patrick’s Day than food and beer. And what’s better than chocolate cake? Add those two ideas together and we have Guinness chocolate cake (or cupcakes).
There are tons of recipes and variations out there but here is one I’ve been making successfully for about five years. The first time I made it was for a work St. Paddy’s Day pot-luck and I baked the recipe in a large bunt pan. It worked out just fine, though was heavy and very rich. Since then I’ve taken to making cupcakes and mini cupcakes with the same recipe. And really, bite-sized Guinness chocolate cakes are just an awesome idea, right?
The cake itself comes out like any chocolate cake except the stout makes it richer and fudgy, like a brownie. There’s an optional cream cheese icing which is supposed to help the dark cake, or cupcakes, look like it has a frothy white collar just like a real Guinness pint. I tend to not use this, though, and sometimes top my cake(s) with a simple ganache. And warning: I make no apologies about the richness of this recipe. This is a decadent cake that’s not exactly diet material!
The cake-making process seems a little much at first but it’s quite easy if you prepare buy setting out all your ingredients and tools before you start. It’s a basic two-step process and will yield one heavy cake, about 1 ½ dozen cupcakes, or a heck of a lot of mini cupcakes.
The ingredients:
* butter for greasing pan
* 1 cup Guinness Stout (there’s more than 1 cup in a can/bottle so to the chef go the spoils!)
* 10 tbsp unsalted butter
* 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
* 2 cups sugar
* 3/4 cup sour cream
* 2 large eggs
* 1 tbsp vanilla extract
* 2 cups all-purpose flour
* 2 1/2 tsp baking soda
Topping Ingredients:
* 1 1/4 cups icing sugar
* 8 oz cream cheese at room temperature
* 1/2 cup heavy cream
Preparation:
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-inch spring form or bunt pan and line with parchment paper. If you’re making cupcakes or mini cupcakes, you may use liners or grease the pans
2. In a large saucepan, combine Guinness and butter. Place over medium-low heat until butter melts, then remove from heat. Add cocoa and sugar, and whisk to blend. Set aside to cool completely.
3. 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 prepared pan, and bake until risen and firm, 45 minutes to one hour. Again, if making cupcakes, your baking time may be reduced. After about 30 minutes make sure you regularly check them by inserting a toothpick into the centre of one. The toothpick should come out of the cake(s) with a few wet crumbs. Place pan on a wire rack and cool completely in pan before removing cake or cupcakes.
4. Topping: Using a food processor or by hand, mix icing sugar to break up lumps. Add cream cheese and blend until smooth. Add heavy cream, and mix until smooth and spreadable.
5. Remove cake(s) from pan and place on a platter or cake stand. Ice the top of cake(s) once cooled to resemble a frothy pint of Guinness. Enjoy & sláinte!














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