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One of the deepest, darkest, and most decadent chocolate cakes I have ever tasted was a Guinness® chocolate cake at a restaurant in Great Falls, Montana. Ever since that day, I have wanted to recreate a chocolate cake that has Guinness®stout in it, and this was finally the year I got around to making one before St. Patrick’s Day! Of course, I used my buttercream frosting recipe which is a reader favorite, and turned it into an Irish Cream Buttercream – and I don’t have the words to describe how good the icing is.
Guinness® Chocolate Cake
Using a normal beer in a chocolate cake isn’t something that is done regularly, however, Guinness®in a chocolate cake makes complete sense. Guinness® is so foamy and dark, and has such a depth of flavor to it that it pairs perfectly with the bitterness of cocoa and the rich tang of the buttermilk in this recipe.
Guinness® Beer
Guinness® is a dark, dry Irish stout originating in Dublin, Ireland, thus its place in many Irish recipes – even a chocolate cake! This beer has a coffee and dark wheat taste to it with a slight sweetness and is excellent in a beef-based Irish stew and lamb stew.
I also amp up the flavor of the stout in this recipe by adding in some instant coffee granules, which always pair well with chocolate.
Bailey’s Buttercream Frosting
This cake is perfectly delicious on its own, but using an Irish cream liqueur in the frosting makes this so incredibly decadent – I was eating the icing from a spoon. I could skip the cake and just eat the icing. This was served to a bunch of people at a Saturday night get-together and it was given a resounding 5/5 stars from everyone there.
Try Other Liqueur Flavors
You can try other flavors of liqueurs in this basic buttercream frosting recipe that is in the recipe card below, feel free to play around with different ones! You can also make our homemade Amaretto as well and try it in this recipe, then use it in a Godfather cocktail, win-win!
Storing the Cake
Keep this cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. Yes, the frosting has butter in it, but butter can be safely kept out at room temperature for up to 2 days according to the FDA. The Irish cream is a room-temperature stable liqueur, so there is no need to refrigerate that. You should always try to not refrigerate any baked goods like a cake as they harden and dry out. Cakes are fine at room temperature for 2 days.
More Chocolate Cake Recipes
I am glad that I finally got around to making this cake, and it was everything I wanted it to be and more! If you don’t want to use the Guinness, you can use a cup of coffee in the batter instead for a dark chocolate flavor, just skip adding the instant coffee to it. The coffee will work instead of the stout for taste and moisture, but I do think this cake as-is should be tried at least once!
Happy baking!
Love,
Karlynn
Guinness® Chocolate Cake with Irish Cream Buttercream
- Prep Time
- 30 minutes
- Cook Time
- 52 minutes
- Course
- Dessert
- Cuisine
- Irish
- Servings
- 14
- Calories
- 586
- Author
- Karlynn Johnston
Ingredients
- 2½ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup Guinness®
- 1 teaspoon instant coffee
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1/2 cup melted butter
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Irish Cream Buttercream Frosting
- 1 cup salted butter softened
- 4 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1/2 cup Irish cream
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 °F. Grease a bundt cake pan and lightly dust it with cocoa inside.
- In a large bowl sift together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
- In another large bowl with an electric mixer beat the eggs until they are light lemon colored.
- Mix the coffee granules into the Guinness®. Slowly add the Guinness®, buttermilk, melted butter, and vanilla to the eggs, beating until combined well. Add the dry mixture to the bowl and beat on medium speed until just combined.
- Pour into the prepared bundt pan. Bake in the preheated oven for 55-65 minutes or until a cake tester or toothpick inserted comes out clean.
- Remove from the oven and let sit for 5 minutes, then invert the cake onto a baking rack. Let cool completely.
- To prepare the frosting, place the butter in a large bowl. Beat until light and fluffy. Add 2 cups of powdered sugar. Beat into the butter until incorporated.
- Beat in the Irish cream until mixed in completely.
- Add in the remaining powdered sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, until you have reached the desired consistency of icing that you prefer. You can make it light and fluffy or thick frosting if wanted.
- Frost the cooled cake. Slice and serve.
- Store in a closed container at room temperature for up to 2 days.
Recipe Notes
- You can omit the coffee in the cake if you don’t have it, but it really amps up the chocolate flavor.
Nutrition Information
All calories and info are based on a third party calculator and are only an estimate. Actual nutritional info will vary with brands used, your measuring methods, portion sizes and more.
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