Stout Chocolate Cake with Irish Cream Frosting

Joe and I found our dream house last week. Seriously, it is beautiful. Hardwood floors, fireplace, a DREAM kitchen, 3 bedrooms, the perfect porch for sundowners and a wonderful little street with a lot of growth potential. We offered asking price and found out we were the first ones in. Three days later we were in a bidding war and we lost. I’m in, as Anne of Green Gables would say, the depths of despair. We went out and celebrated (because I think it’s important to commemorate the failures as well as the victories) with steak and chocolate cake. On the way home we stopped for ice cream too. And then I cried myself to sleep. It is very hard to be 9 months pregnant and in the depths of despair.

And since I woke up feeling only marginally better, and still in need of eating my feelings I decided I should make this cake. It’s great for using up leftover Guiness and Irish cream from St. Patrick’s day (although “using up” is not a phrase I would put in the same sentence as Guiness and Baileys). At any rate, next time you need a pick me up (or a dinner party finale) I recommend this option.

I adapted this recipe from one I saw on Love Swah:

Ingredients

Cake
1 cup of Stout Beer (I used Diesel Stout, I prefer a more intense flavor. But if you prefer something milder then I would recommend Guiness).
1/2 cup of butter cut into pieces
1 3/4 cups of sugar
3/4 cup of unsweetened natural cocoa
2 eggs
2/3 cup of sour cream
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
1 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda
2 cups of flour
5 ounces of chocolate chips (Ghiradelli is an easily accessible decent chocolate and if you purchase them from Amazon they are pretty reasonable).

Frosting
2 cups of powdered sugar
1/4 cup of Bailey’s Irish Cream
8 ounces of cream cheese
1 stick of butter

1. Grease springform pan and line with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In small saucepan heat beer and butter together on medium low heat until just melted and remove from heat. In separate bowl whisk together sugar and cocoa. In additional bowl whisk together sour cream, eggs and vanilla. Combine flour and baking soda in separate bowl.
3. Once butter is melted, whisk in sugar and cocoa mixture in two batches.
4. Then whisk in sour cream mixture.
5. Mix in four mixture and chocolate chips. Pour into prepared springform pan and put in oven for 45 minutes (or so). I typically start testing at 30 minutes because all oven temps vary. It’s done when you insert a knife and it comes out clean.
6. Remove from oven and cool for 10 minutes on rack before removing sides of pan and cooling completely.
7. Using a hand mixer blend cream cheese and butter until fluffy. Working in batches add in sugar and mix.
8. Lastly add Baileys and mix with spoon.
9. Once cake is completely cooled, frost with icing