Chocolate Guinness Cake

A dramatic, dark and moist single-layer chocolate cake made with stout and topped with a pale cream-cheese frosting that mimics a pint of Guinness.

Ingredients

• 250ml Guinness (or other stout)
• 250g unsalted butter, cut into chunks
• 75g cocoa powder
• 400g caster sugar
• 142ml sour cream (1 small pot)
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 275g plain flour
• 2.5 teaspoons bicarbonate of soda

For the topping: 300g cream cheese

• 150g icing sugar, sifted
• 125ml double cream

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas mark 4 and butter and line a 23cm springform tin.
2. Pour the Guinness into a large wide saucepan, add the butter in chunks and heat gently until the butter melts.
3. Whisk in the cocoa and caster sugar until smooth, then remove from the heat.
4. Beat the sour cream with the eggs and vanilla, then pour into the warm Guinness mixture and whisk together.
5. Whisk in the flour and bicarbonate of soda until you have a smooth, dark batter.
6. Pour into the tin and bake for about 45-50 minutes until risen and firm; cool completely in the tin on a rack.
7. For the topping, beat the cream cheese until smooth, sift in the icing sugar and beat in, then add the double cream and beat to a spreadable, frosting consistency.
8. Sit the cooled cake on a plate or stand and ice the top only, so it resembles the frothy head on a pint of stout.

Notes

Adapted from Nigella Lawson’s iconic Chocolate Guinness Cake (Feast / nigella.com).