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Chocolate Stout Cake with Ganache…Birthday Celebration Part 2!

September 28, 2014

Let me start by saying that this cake is way easier than it sounds. There’s something about “ganache” that sounds so fancy and unattainable.

Chocolate Stout Cake with Chocolate Ganache | finding time for cooking

This was the birthday cake I picked out this year, something kind of fancy but also quite simple—just good chocolate and good beer. (Although I’m sensing a theme of chocolate + alcohol birthday cakes…).

This is a Smitten Kitchen recipe and it’s basically perfect. The cake itself has a dense richness, a little bittersweet from the combination of the stout and the darker Dutch-process cocoa.

I also went a little scant on the sugar so the sweetness wasn’t overwhelming. I went ahead and frosted mine right away, which made the inside moist and fudgy, which is how I prefer my cake.

Chocolate Stout Cake finished

I’d never made a ganache before and thought it was going to be complicated and temperamental, but it was really quite simple and very fast. You want to use good quality chocolate to get the smoothest, creamiest texture and rich flavor.  (I now have a more detailed post on how to make ganache, including two different easy methods.)

Overall, I would make this cake again in a heartbeat!

chocolate stout cake jamie bottle

And then there was this gloriousness. That’s right, my co-worker wrapped my birthday wine bottles with the one and only James Alexander Malcolm Mackenzie Fraser. They get me. They really get me.

*sigh*

Chocolate Stout Cake w Chocolate Ganache

Okay, back to this chocolate stout cake…

chocolate stout cake chocolate stout beer

chocolate stout cake cocoa

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter or spray your pan well, and use parchment paper if that’s what you usually do.

Bring the stout and butter to a simmer in a large saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in the cocoa powder until the mixture is smooth. Cool slightly.

In your electric mixer, beat the eggs and sour cream together. Add the slightly-cooled chocolate mixture to the mixer and beat just enough to combine. Whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in large bowl. Add the flour mixture and beat briefly on slow speed in pulses until it’s combined.

chocolate stout cake batter pan

Pour the batter into the prepared pan.

chocolate stout cake baked

Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. That should be about 50-60 minutes for the springform pan, though more like 35 for a bundt cake pan.

chocolate stout cake cooking

Let the cake cool for about 15 minutes, then you can go ahead and flip it out onto your tray or cake stand and immediately drizzle the ganache over it. Or you can cool it all the way. If you used a bundt cake, definitely cool it entirely before flipping out of the pan or you’ll probably have lots of sticking problems.

chocolate stout cake chocolate chips cream

chocolate stout cake ganache

To make the ganache, heat water in a double boiler. I don’t have one, so I heated water in a saucepan and then put a metal mixing bowl on top—you want it to fit snugly.

Melt the chocolate, heavy cream, and coffee in the top of the double boiler over simmering water until it’s smooth and warm, whisking constantly. It will only take a couple minutes.

Chocolate Stout Cake with Chocolate Ganache | finding time for cooking blog

Immediately drizzle the ganache over the top of the cooled cake and spread, then let it set for a few hours if you have the time.

Chocolate Stout Cake with Chocolate Ganache | finding time for cooking blog

Om nom nom!

Other birthday cake successes:

  • Lemon Elderflower Cake with Strawberry Jam
  • Vanilla Almond Cupcakes with Peach Jam Filling
  • Smitten Kitchen’s Whole Lemon Tart
  • Chocolate Red Wine Cake
  • Dark Chocolate Stout Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting
  • Vanilla Spice Coke Cake with Salted Peanut Frosting
  • Coffee Cardamom Cake with Bulletproof Frosting

Chocolate Stout Cake with Ganache

This recipe was halved from one that makes a layer cake of 3 8-inch rounds. This is intended for a bundt cake pan, but I used a 9-inch springform.

  • 1 cup of stout (such as Guinness)
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) of unsalted butter
  • 3/4 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder (preferably Dutch-process)
  • 2 cups of all-purpose flour
  • 2 cups of sugar (I went a little short on this, cut almost 1/4 cup)
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking soda
  • 3/4 teaspoon of salt
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2/3 cup of sour cream
  • 6 ounces of good semisweet chocolate chips
  • 6 tablespoons of heavy cream
  • 3/4 teaspoon of instant coffee granules or instant espresso

Cake prep:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter or spray your pan well, and use parchment paper if that’s what you usually do. Bring the stout and butter to a simmer in a large saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in the cocoa powder until the mixture is smooth. Cool slightly. Whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in large bowl. In your electric mixer, beat the eggs and sour cream together. Add the slightly-cooled chocolate mixture to the mixer and beat just enough to combine. Add the flour mixture and beat briefly on slow speed in pulses until it’s combined. Pour batter into your prepared pan.

Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 50-60 minutes (more like 35 for a bundt cake pan). Let it cool for about 15 minutes, then you can go ahead and flip it out onto your tray or cake stand and immediately drizzle the ganache over it. If you used a bundt cake, cool entirely before flipping out of the pan.

Ganache:
For the ganache, melt the chocolate, heavy cream, and coffee in the top of a double boiler over simmering water until smooth and warm, whisking constantly. Immediately drizzle over the top of the cooled cake and spread, then let set.

Original recipe from Smitten Kitchen

1 Comment CATEGORIES // Desserts, Family Secret Recipes, Foods I'm Obsessed With

« Heirloom Tomato & Mozzarella Salad
Smitten Kitchen’s Whole Lemon Tart…Birthday Celebration Part 1 »

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  1. Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Ganache – finding time for cooking says:
    October 26, 2014 at 7:14 pm

    […] month ago I was crowing about the glorious chocolate stout cake with chocolate ganache I made for my birthday. It was fudgy and rich but not too sweet, with a depth from the stout. […]

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Welcome to my little corner of the internet! I created this blog for people who love cooking & baking but are challenged to find the time and energy to do it. Recipes run the gamut from super healthy to indulgent, but the focus is on using REAL food no matter what.

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