Here’s the recipe:
I NEVER bake cakes so you know it's a special occasion (and an easy recipe!) when I bust out the baking tins. This recipe is as easy as they come and you'll get a moist, rich cake that's guaranteed to be a crowd pleaser on St. Paddy's Day (or any other day of the year!). A few people have been asking where those beautiful copper pots are from - they're made by the guys at Falk.
Guinness Cakes (makes around 18 individual cakes)
- 250ml (9fl oz) Guinness
- 400g (14oz) caster sugar
- 290g (10oz) plain flour
- 250g (9oz) unsalted butter
- 150ml (5fl oz) buttermilk
- 90g (3oz) cocoa powder
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
- ½ tsp baking powder
- 2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 140g (4½oz) cream cheese (e.g. Philadelphia)
- 60g (1¾oz) unsalted butter, softened
- 300g (10½oz) icing sugar
- Put your butter and Guinness into a saucepan on medium heat and once the butter melts take the pan off the heat. Stir in the sugar and cocoa powder.
- Put the eggs, buttermilk and vanilla bean paste (or essence if you can't find paste) in a bowl ad whisk them together. Pour in the chocolatey Guinness mixture and whisk it all together.
- Sift the flour, bicarb of soda and the baking powder into a bowl followed by the Guinness Mixture and use a spatula or a wooden spoon to gently bring everything together.
- Pre-heat your oven to 170°C (325°F)/gas mark 3
- Line some baking moulds completely with baking parchment. Make sure you cover the sides and the bottom (BTW, it's a lot easier if you wipe a little butter on the baking moulds first as the parchment will stick to it).
- Fill the cake moulds halfway with cake mixture and put them on the middle shelf of the oven for 30-40 mins. To test they are ready slide a knife into one and if it comes out clean/not covered in cake mixture you're good to go.
- Meanwhile make your cream cheese frosting. Put the icing sugar and slightly softened butter (i.e. take it out the fridge for an hour before) in a bowl and mix it until you get a fine crumb-like texture. Add in the cream cheese and whisk it really thoroughly until it's light and fluffy.
- Once the cakes have completely cooled down top with the frosting and get stuck in!
More on St. Patrick’s Day: “Saint Patrick's Day, or the Feast of Saint Patrick (Irish: Lá Fhéile Pádraig, "the Day of the Festival of Patrick"), is a cultural and religious celebration held on 17 March, the traditional death date of Saint Patrick (c. AD 385–461), the foremost patron saint of Ireland. Saint Patrick's Day was made an official Christian feast day in the early 17th century and is observed by the Catholic Church, the Anglican Communion (especially the Church of Ireland), the Eastern Orthodox Church and Lutheran Church. The day commemorates Saint Patrick and the arrival of Christianity in Ireland,[3] as well as celebrating the heritage and culture of the Irish in general. Celebrations generally involve public parades and festivals, céilithe, and the wearing of green attire or shamrocks. Christians also attend church services, and the Lenten restrictions on eating and drinking alcohol are lifted for the day, which has encouraged and propagated the holiday's tradition of alcohol consumption.
More on that lovely black stuff, Guinness: “Guinness (/ˈɡɪnɨs/ GIN-is) is an Irish dry stout that originated in the brewery of Arthur Guinness (1725–1803) at St. James's Gate, Dublin. Guinness is one of the most successful beer brands worldwide. It is brewed in almost 60 countries and is available in over 120. Annual sales total 850 million litres (1.5 billion Imperial or 1.8 billion US pints).
A feature of the product is the burnt flavour that is derived from roasted un malted barley, although this is a relatively modern development, not becoming part of the grist until the mid-20th century. For many years a portion of aged brew was blended with freshly brewed beer to give a sharp lactic flavour.
