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Monday, March 16, 2009

St. Patrick's Day Chocolate

Lots of chocolate cakes for St. Patrick's Day. There's a recipe for Bailey's Irish Cream Cupcakes at RecipeZaar, originally from Woman's World. Yummy! I would probably use Scharffen Berger cocoa powder.

Epicurious offers this recipe for Chocolate Stout Cake. I would use Guinness, for sure. And, here's an easier Chocolate Guinness Cake recipe from the NY Times.
Bake at 350 degrees:

Butter for pan
1 cup Guinness stout
10 tablespoons (1 stick plus 2 tablespoons) unsalted butter
3/8 cup unsweetened cocoa
2 cups superfine sugar
3/8 cup sour cream
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

The NYT recipe uses a white cream cheese icing, but I would do a chocolate one. Well, I am a chocoholic, after all. Here's my recipe:
12 oz. chocolate chips or broken dark chocolate
8 oz cream cheese
1 box powdered sugar, 1 stick butter

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 one hour. Place pan on a wire rack and cool completely in pan.

4. Remove cake from pan and place on a platter or cake stand.

If you use the white creamcheese icing, you can ice the top of cake only, so that it resembles a frothy pint of Guinness. If you use chocolate, well.... you'll be eating more chocolate!

Don't have the time or inclination to make a cake from scratch? This Chocolate Guinness Cake is even easier and calls for more Guinness!!! This recipe is from Canela and Comino. (Their new website is: www.canelaycomino.com with lots of other fabulous recipes.) Don't worry about the taste or smell of the Guinness since you're using the whole bottle. You'll only have a tang from the Guinness and no yeasty smell, just great chocolate aroma!

1 box of dark chocolate cake mix (one with pudding in the mix)
1 bottle of Guinness Stout
1/2 cup of Canola oil
3 eggs
4 oz. Bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

1. Preheat oven to 350F.

2. Combine the cake mix, Stout, oil, and eggs in a mixing bowl. Mix on medium speed just until combined. Add bittersweet chocolate and gently stir in. Divide between the two 8” cake pans, coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350F for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean when stuck in the middle.

3. Remove from oven and cool in pans for about 15 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack. Once cooled, frost with a rich Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!


1 comment:

~~louise~~ said...

Oh my goodness. How I'm wishing I would have gathered all these wonderful recipes for St. Patrick's Day and listed them on my blog. I want to try them all. Even I could handle this Chocolate Guinness Cake!

Happy St. Pat's Janet:)
Bottoms Up!