Guinness Chocolate Cake with Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

In my opinion, chocolate cake may be the cure for all that ails. There’s not much a slice of Chocolate Bundt Cake or fudgy Flourless Chocolate Almond can’t solve. This Guinness Chocolate Cake can make an ordinary day feel like a celebration. It’s the dark, decadent Yang to my Bailey’s Irish Cream Cake.

So why beer? While beer and cake may seem like an unlikely pairing post college when the days of pub crawls are distant memories, this just works. The Guinness stout behaves much like coffee by enhancing the natural properties of chocolate. It adds layers of mystery and depth, offering your tastebuds subtle notes of warm caramel and tasty malty undertones.

Guinness Chocolate Cake is also the ultimate St Patrick’s Day dessert recipe. Serve it to your favorite coffee aficionado or a stout drinker, no one can resist this delicious dessert.

Ingredients and Notes

The ingredient quantities are in the recipe card at the bottom of this post. Here is an explanation of the essential ingredients as well as any notes or known substitutions.

• Guinness Stout: The measurements for this are based on glass bottles (11.2 ounces) of beer. You could also measure out 11.2 ounces or 1-⅓ cups. I’ve only used Guinness specifically, so I can’t guarantee results, but a Chocolate stout or even buttermilk should contain enough acidity to substitue.
• All-purpose flour – If your flour is lumpy, I recommend sifting. This doesn’t call for cake flour.
• Baking Soda, Baking Powder - Make sure you have fresh ingredients for the best texture and rise.
• Unsweetened Cocoa Powder - I recommend Dutch-process for a darker, almost black hue. Note below.
• Espresso Powder - Coffee adds even more depth to the chocolate, complimenting the stout. It’s a technique I borrowed from my other chocolate cake recipes.
• Sour Cream - Another secret weapon to add moisture and a slight tang for balance like it does in my Blueberry Sour Cream Coffee Cake. Choose full fat or lite.
• Brown Sugar & Granulated Sugar - This combo creates depth and keeps the cake moist. Make sure your brown sugar is soft and smooth any lumps.
• Vegetable Oil - Keeps the cake extra soft and tender.

For the Frosting:

• Butter – Choose unsalted for better control.
• Confectioner’s Sugar – Also known as powdered sugar. Homemade frosting is more versatile than storebought. With a few minor adjustments, it’s easy to adjust the consistency or the sweetness level to your preference.
• Heavy Cream or Bailey’s Irish Cream – Choose your own adventure here. I’ve provided a recipe for a classic Vanilla Buttercream frosting. If you’re looking for a decadent twist, replace the vanilla extract with Bailey’s Irish Cream. Note that Bailey’s is a bit thinner than whipping cream.
• Vanilla Extract – Choose a high quality pure vanilla extract. Learn how to make homemade Vanilla Extract for future baking projects.

You will notice that the batter is quite bubbly from the addition of the beer and the baking soda. That’s completely fine, but you don’t want giant air pockets, so pour the batter in slowly.

Recipe Tips

• Room temperature beer works best. Cold beer may affect how it mixes in with the batter.
• Slowly pour in the Beer. Guinness is known to be temperamental when pouring a draft, so avoid excessive foam by pouring sloooooooowly. However, expect it to bubble.
• Measure all ingredients out first. This process is time sensitive. Taking too long to create the batter can affect the rise.
• Don't overmix! Once the wet and dry ingredients are added together, mix until just combined, scraping the sides. Overmixing, which is more common with a stand mixer, will create a dense cake.
• Check for doneness with a toothpick-it should come out with a few moist crumbs, not wet batter.
• Let the cake cool completely in the pan. This is a very moist cake. To prevent it from crumbling, it’s best not to disturb it.
• Warm the caramel just slightly. If your caramel or dulce de leche is a thick consistency, pop it in the microwave for about 10 seconds for easy drizzling.

I baked this in bundt cake form for photos because I imagined how the slices would mimic a little pint with the requisite white foamy top!