Dark Chocolate Stout Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting + Happy Birthday to Me!

My tradition of ugly but delicious birthday cakes continues…

A cake decorator I will never be.

This cake, however, is suuuuuper delish.  I really wasn’t feelin’ it this year.  I was so tired and stressed that I didn’t even know if I wanted to bother making something.  My birthday was on a Tuesday (blah) in a super crazy week (among other things we were moving offices, had big deadlines, and I was getting ready to leave the country), and I knew it would be a super long day.

So looked for something simple but that really tugged at me.  And, man, peanut butter and a dark chocolate stout cake can get me every time.

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease and line two 9-inch cake pans with parchment paper and set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine cocoa powder, flour, both sugars, baking soda, and salt, whisking to combine.

In a separate bowl, combine the oil, eggs, stout, and vanilla extract.

Gently fold the dry ingredients into the wet, whisking until thoroughly combined and no lumps remain. Pour the batter evenly into your prepared pans.

Bake the cakes for around 30 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean (was a bit less for me). Remove from oven and allow to cool completely before frosting (or wrapping with plastic wrap and putting in the fridge).

Using a stand mixer, beat the peanut butter and unsalted butter together until fluffy, about 30 seconds. Add in the powdered sugar and 2 tablespoons of the milk, then beat for 30 more seconds. If the frosting is too thick, add in a bit more milk.

If you’re using the peanut butter chips in the middle, heat on 20-second intervals until they become soft and you can stir into a creamy mixture. Add a bit of cream or milk to make it more spreadable.

Place the first cake layer onto a cake stand and spread the peanut butter chip mixture (or about a cup of frosting) evenly over it.  Top with the remaining cake, then frost with the remaining icing (it may be too much, don’t feel like you have to use it all).  You can literally never go wrong if you choose a chocolate stout cake with peanut butter frosting.

Other birthday cake successes:

• Lemon Elderflower Cake with Strawberry Jam
• Russian Burnt Honey Cake
• Vanilla Almond Cupcakes with Peach Jam Filling
• Smitten Kitchen’s Whole Lemon Tart
• Chocolate Red Wine Cake
• Coffee Cardamom Cake with Bulletproof Frosting

Dark Chocolate Stout Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting

Notes:  I took a chance on an odd middle layer (melted peanut butter chips) and loved it BUT it does make a hard layer in the middle of your cake, so you can just use frosting if you prefer.  Also, I made the cakes the night before, let them cool, wrapped them in plastic wrap, and put in the fridge.  They were lovely and moist, so feel free to do this to help save time.

Cake

• 3/4 cup of dutch-processed cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
• 1 scant cup of granulated sugar
• 1 scant cup of light brown sugar (loose, not firm packed)
• 1 teaspoon of baking soda
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• ¾ cups of vegetable oil
• 3 large eggs
• ¾ cups of dark stout, such as Guinness
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

Optional – for middle layer (or just use more frosting)

• 3/4 cup of Reese’s peanut butter baking chips
• Potentially tiny amount of cream or milk (to make it a bit spreadable)

For the frosting

• 1 cup of creamy peanut butter
• 6 tablespoons of unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2 1/2 cups of powdered sugar
• 2-4 tablespoons of milk (this will depend on the consistency of your peanut butter; start with 2 and work up)

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease and line two 9-inch cake pans with parchment paper and set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, combine cocoa powder, flour, both sugars, baking soda, and salt, whisking to combine. In a separate bowl, combine the oil, eggs, stout, and vanilla extract.
3. Gently fold the dry ingredients into the wet, whisking until thoroughly combined and no lumps remain. Pour the batter evenly into your prepared pans.
4. Bake the cakes for around 30 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean (was a bit less for me). Remove from oven and allow to cool completely before frosting (or wrapping with plastic wrap and putting in the fridge).
5. Using a stand mixer, beat the peanut butter and unsalted butter together until fluffy, about 30 seconds. Add in the powdered sugar and 2 tablespoons of the milk, then beat for 30 more seconds. If the frosting is too thick, add in a bit more milk.
6. If you’re using the peanut butter chips in the middle, heat on 20-second intervals until they become soft and you can stir into a creamy mixture. Add a bit of cream or milk to make it more spreadable.
7. Place the first cake layer onto a cake stand and spread the peanut butter chip mixture (or about a cup of frosting) evenly over it.  Top with the remaining cake, then frost with the remaining icing (it may be too much, don’t feel like you have to use it all).

Original recipe from Broma Bakery