The secret to my recipe for Guinness Chocolate Cake with Bailey’s Buttercream is to reduce the stout first to give you a deeply malted and moist crumb. The frosting adds just enough excitement without stealing the show and the end result is a cake you can’t resist eating… even for breakfast!
It’s 9 a.m. on a Saturday and I’m eating the last little bits of this cake. It’s a few days old and maybe it’s just me, but it seems as if the flavors have become bolder – the stout deeper, the chocolate richer, and the frosting sweeter.
The subject of this post is extremely timely since St. Patrick’s Day is right around the corner. However, this is not a St. Patrick’s Day inspired cake. This is actually a Valentine’s Day inspired cake. And let me tell you why.
Valentine’s Day came and went with very little fanfare. I did get a 5:35 a.m. Happy Valentine’s Day text message with an invitation to have a nice dinner, but at a later date. And that was really simple and really sweet and all I needed. It was a Friday and I’m sure that I worked late and came home to a can of wine, my dog, my cat, my couch, and likely some treat-myself Valentine’s Day chocolates.
Mr. Casanova returned from vacation and we met friends for drinks mid-week. At the end of the night he casually and bashfully handed me a heavy shopping bag with more shopping bags inside with a marble cake stand in the very center. I pray this wasn’t an attempt at “wrapping,” but if that’s the biggest problem he has, he’s doing okay.
Although, I think NOW the biggest problem he has is that he probably didn’t know I was going to WRITE about him. Thank goodness no one reads this. 
Obviously, after receiving a gorgeous cake stand, I was inspired to bake an equally gorgeous cake and that was probably part of Mr. Casanova’s plan all along. He prefers chocolate, so I had to think of a clever way to improve upon that poor choice. (I’m Team Funfetti.) I thought briefly of remaking my Guinness Chocolate Cheesecake, but I really envisioned a proper two-tier cake to show off my new cake stand.
So on my ride home that night, I thought up recipes and I watched videos about frosting techniques and I looked for inspiring ways to decorate. And, for a chocolate cake — truthfully, for any cake — this is pretty dang good. I make a lot of boozy desserts, so I can tell you from lots of experience that booze evaporates during the cooking process. The final pie, blondies, cake, or cupcakes sometimes have only a whisper of the flavor you wanted to create. For this cake, I used a new technique. I reduced the Guinness before adding it to the batter and the result is a moist and malted crumb. My chocolate cake tastes like Guinness Stout!
This is also my first “naked cake.” And let me me tell you — I was skeptical. I’m a frosting person. I have the biggest sweet tooth of anyone I know and no amount of frosting is too much frosting. But for the sake of being “on trend” and since Guinness Chocolate Cake with Bailey’s Buttercream is not really for me, I cut my usual frosting recipe in half. And ya know what? It was a good decision. Buttercream is always fantastic. (Butter + (Bailey’s Irish) cream, where can you go wrong?) But cutting back on all that sugar lets the stouty cake shine. As. It. Should.
I was chatting with Mr. Casanova this afternoon and he admitted to also finishing his cake for breakfast and that made me smile. So, cheers to a cake you can eat for Valentine’s Day or for St. Patrick’s Day. A cake you can eat with your friends, your S.O., or all by your dang self. And cheers to a cake you can eat for dessert or for breakfast.
Guinness Chocolate Cake with Bailey’s Buttercream
The secret to my recipe for Guinness Chocolate Cake with Bailey’s Buttercream is to reduce the stout first to give you a deeply malted and moist crumb. The frosting adds just enough excitement without stealing the show and the end result is a cake you can’t resist eating… even for breakfast!
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 1 12-ounce bottle Guinness Stout
- 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1/2 cup oil
- 2 eggs
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
For the buttercream:
- 2 sticks unsalted butter room temperature
- 3 cups powdered sugar sifted
- 3 tablespoons Bailey’s Irish Cream
Instructions
For the cake:
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Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line the bottom of two 9-inch cake pans with parchment paper, coat with cooking spray, and flour the sides.
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Pour the Guinness into a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Simmer 10-15 minutes or until reduced to 1 cup. Remove from heat and whisk in the cocoa powder until smooth. Set aside to cool.
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In a large mixing bowl, whisk sugar, flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add sour cream, oil, eggs, vanilla, and the cocoa mixture and mix on low speed 30 seconds until the dry ingredients are moist. Increase speed to medium and beat 2 more minutes.
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Pour the batter into the prepared pans, using a kitchen scale to ensure they are even. Place on the center rack of the oven and bake 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
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Let the cakes cool in the pans on a wire rack 5-10 minutes. Remove the cakes from their pans and continue to cool on wire rack until room temperature.
For the buttercream:
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In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the butter until light and fluffy. Gradually add the powdered sugar then the Irish cream. Beat the mixture on high speed until fluffy and smooth, about 3 minutes. If the frosting is too thick, add a splash more Irish cream. If it’s too thin, add more powdered sugar.
To assemble:
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Dap some frosting on the bottom of your cake stand or serving plate. This will help keep the cake in place while you decorate. If needed, use a sharp serrated knife to horizontally slice the top off the bottom later to flatten in. Place the bottom layer on the cake stand.
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Use a piping bag to pipe 1/3 of the frosting on top of the bottom layer. Make sure it is in an even layer. Place the second layer on top. Pipe 1/3 of the frosting on top of the cake and the remaining 1/3 around the side of the cake. Use an offset spatula to spread the frosting into a thin and even layer, focusing more on the top of the cake to create that "naked" look, if desired. Top with chocolate curls, chocolate sprinkles, or other decor.
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Cover and store at room temperature 1-2 days or in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
