Guinness Cake Irish Chocolate Cake
Before anything else, I can’t resist, I have to tell you right away: this is one of the best chocolate cakes I have ever eaten, it has a unique, rich, and full-bodied flavor…try it to believe it!!! The ideal cake for chocolate addicts.
The Guinness Cake is a moist and very soft Irish chocolate cake made with dark Irish beer, specifically Guinness. Guinness, like all stouts, is a beer with roasted aromas, especially cocoa, which perfectly complements the rustic and full-bodied flavor of barley malt, enhancing the chocolate flavor spectacularly. Not to mention the deliciousness and creaminess of the white frosting with Philadelphia and cream that covers the cake like beer foam.
The Irish usually prepare Guinness Cake every March 17th to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day (see Notes below), BUT I make it all year round, especially on important occasions and celebrations like Easter, Valentine’s Day, Father’s Day, Christmas, it’s always a hit.
You can find Guinness beer in well-stocked supermarkets or on Amazon by clicking here. #adv
Sour cream can be found in well-stocked supermarkets or at Natura Si, or you can easily make it at home the day before preparing the Guinness cake (see my recipe below in the Notes section).
The Recipe is on its own a guarantee of success because I was inspired by the recipe of the great Nigella Lawson (she, for example, uses simple granulated sugar, whereas I use muscovado sugar, which gives the cake a unique spicy flavor that I adore).
If you are looking for tried and tested recipes that are sure to succeed, click on the Special: “My TOP Recipes“.
If you love chocolate, I recommend clicking on my Special: “Chocolate Desserts (or with Nutella)“.
You might also be interested in:
- Soft Chocolate Bundt Cake with Guinness Beer. Easy and Quick Recipe with a Unique Flavor
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- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Rest time: 15 Minutes
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Portions: 10 people
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Irish
- Seasonality: All seasons, St. Joseph's
Ingredients for the Guinness Cake Irish Chocolate Cake
- 275 g all-purpose flour (I use Caputo 00)
- 250 ml Guinness beer
- 250 g butter (unsalted, I use Berna)
- 75 g unsweetened cocoa powder (of quality, I use Van Houten)
- 400 g muscovado sugar
- 2 eggs (whole)
- 15 g baking soda
- 1 g fine salt
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 150 ml sour cream (crème fraîche)
- 300 g spreadable cheese (I use Philadelphia)
- 150 g powdered sugar
- 125 ml fresh whipping cream (preferably with high fat content)
- 10 g cornstarch (cornflour)
- 1 pinch fine salt
Tools
- Pot
- Hand whisk
- Stand mixer Kenwood with 1400 W power, illuminated bowl
- Bowl
- Mixer electric
- Spatula
- Baking pan
Steps for the Guinness Cake Irish Chocolate Cake
Pour the Guinness beer into a large saucepan, add the butter in pieces and heat over low heat until the butter melts (BUT IT MUST NOT BOIL).
When the butter is melted, remove the pan from the heat and immediately add immediately (when the mixture is still warm, otherwise the sugar will not dissolve) the sugar and cocoa and mix well with a hand whisk, then set the container aside and let the mixture cool completely.
Meanwhile, pour into the stand mixer’s bowl (you can also use an electric mixer) the two whole eggs, sour cream, salt, vanilla extract, and beat for 5 minutes with the whisk attachment until frothy.
Add the beer mixture (cooled) to the egg mixture, stir with a hand whisk, and finally add the sifted flour and baking soda, mix well.
Pour the cake batter into a 9-inch diameter pan, greased (I use release spray) and floured, and bake in a preheated oven at 340°F for about 50/60 minutes (depending on your oven).
Allow the cake to cool completely in the pan on a wire rack, as it is a rather moist cake.
Pour the cold whipping cream into a cold bowl (even the electric whisks should be cold) and whip well. Take another container and pour in the spreadable cheese (Philadelphia) and smooth it out with the electric whisks, then add the powdered sugar, salt, and sifted cornstarch and beat for about 3 minutes, finally add, by hand, gently, little by little, from bottom to top, the previously whipped cream. You will get a wonderful white, creamy, and fluffy frosting.
Take the cooled cake and spread a generous amount of frosting on top, smoothing it out to create the effect of beer foam.
Place the Guinness cake in the fridge for at least 1 hour before serving.
The chocolate cake can be easily prepared the day before, but it should be frosted just before serving.
Notes and Tips
Homemade Sour Cream Recipe: In a bowl, whisk 250 g of fresh liquid cream with 70 g of plain whole yogurt (I use Total Fage at 5%) (optionally, a few drops of lemon can be added) and let the mixture sit at room temperature for 24 hours, covered with a tea towel. After this time, you can take the required amount for the Guinness Cake (150 ml). The sour cream can be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days.
For the frosting: if you don’t like spreadable cheese, you can also glaze the cake with just whipped cream, but I strongly recommend the original Philadelphia and cream frosting.
The already glazed cake can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 1-2 days. The cake without glaze, on the other hand, can be stored in an airtight container in a cool place for up to 5 days. The unglazed cake can also be frozen, wrapped in a double layer of cling film for up to 3 months, then thawed at room temperature for about 4 hours, and glazed with the frosting just before serving.
The already glazed cake can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 1-2 days. The cake without glaze, on the other hand, can be stored in an airtight container in a cool place for up to 5 days. The unglazed cake can also be frozen, wrapped in a double layer of cling film for up to 3 months, then thawed at room temperature for about 4 hours, and glazed with the frosting just before serving.
The already glazed cake can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 1-2 days. The cake without glaze, on the other hand, can be stored in an airtight container in a cool place for up to 5 days. The unglazed cake can also be frozen, wrapped in a double layer of cling film for up to 3 months, then thawed at room temperature for about 4 hours, and glazed with the frosting just before serving.
Shopping Tips!!!
To weigh the ingredients for my preparations, I use this handy Digital Kitchen Scale, with a large removable bowl, tare function, and built-in timer, available on Amazon at a great price.
To mix perfectly, I use my Kenwood stand mixer with illuminated bowl, 7L, integrated scale, and blender, 1400 W power, a faithful ally in the kitchen for: kneading, weighing, whipping, cooking, chopping, pasteurizing eggs.
If you’re looking for a more economical and smaller stand mixer model, you can safely choose to purchase the excellent Kenwood, 1200W power, dual bowl 5l and 3.5l, and integrated scale.
The Guinness beer can be found in well-stocked supermarkets or on Amazon.
To bake the cake perfectly, I used this excellent Agnelli cake tin with a 9-inch diameter, 3-inch high, cooks evenly and uniformly, available on Amazon.
To avoid greasing my hands when buttering pans, I use this practical odorless and tasteless food release spray, available on Amazon.
To avoid greasing my hands when buttering pans, I use this practical odorless and tasteless food release spray, available on Amazon.
FAQ (Questions and Answers)
Origins of the Guinness Cake?
Guinness, the dark beer, is one of Ireland’s symbols, making this nation famous worldwide. The Irish drink it on any occasion and do not hesitate to use it in traditional recipes, both savory and sweet. On St. Patrick’s Day, March 17th, every Irish person makes their Guinness cake with the famous stout (dark and full-bodied) beer, produced in Ireland since 1759 by Arthur Guinness Son & Co., at its Dublin factory.
The History of St. Patrick?
The St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated in Ireland on March 17th because it is said that the saint died on that day in 461, in Ireland. On this occasion, parades are organized in the streets of many cities, such as Dublin, but not only Irish, rather worldwide. People dress in green, which is the symbol color of Ireland, carrying shamrocks, dancing traditional Celtic dances to the sound of bagpipes, and, of course, drinking lots of Guinness beer.
Who was St. Patrick? St. Patrick was not Irish at all, as you might think, but was born in Cumbria, a region of Great Britain. He has a truly adventurous story and, at 16, was kidnapped, became a slave, and was taken to what is now Northern Ireland.
He learned the language and religion of the Celts, but converted to Catholicism and was tasked by Pope Celestine I to evangelize the land that had enslaved him. Legend tells that Patrick used a shamrock to explain the Holy Trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) to the Irish.
