Ok, I’ll admit it. I’m not much of a cake decorator. Actually, I specifically avoid making special occasion cakes because my decorating skills are pretty pitiful. But here’s the thing…
I’ve discovered that if your cake has quality alcohol in the recipe, no one will care what it looks like. Matter of fact, if you have your guests drink a few bottles of Guinness or if you have them swig back a couple of shots of Bailey’s before they even see your cake, your guests will think that Martha Stewart decorated it along with a troop of helpful leprechauns. Truth.
After making my Guinness Battered Fish and Chips yesterday, I had leftover bottles of Guinness. And Guinness goes very nicely with chocolate. Odd, but true.
Add a little espresso powder and we are talking some seriously decadent cake here. I will even go out on a limb and use a word that makes me cringe because of its overuse. Epic. Food bloggers are constantly saying their recipes are epic. And of course most of us are pretty biased.
But I’m going to put my name on the line here and stand behind this cake. Because by God, it is indeed epic.
Oh, and I forgot the craziest part of this recipe. There’s Greek yogurt in it. Did you just tell me to shut up? I swear I heard you all the way over here in Beantown.
Yes, there’s Greek yogurt in this cake. And it’s not at all for health reasons. Nope, I’ve found that the Greek yogurt makes this cake incredibly moist and rich.
Mixed in with the Guinness, chocolate and espresso powder, it comes together to create something that’s downright amazing. And that alone would be just splendid, but today is Saint Patrick’s Day. A day of over indulgence.
So, I’ve frosted this bad boy with an Irish cream frosting that will have you spouting Irish limericks while you are step dancing around your mixer. Aye, Lassie. Tis true!
- 3 cups flour
- 1½ cups cocoa powder
- 2 Tbsp espresso powder
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 4 cups sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 1 cup Greek yogurt ( I used Chobani plain non-fat yogurt)
- 3 tsp vanilla
- 9 oz of Guinness beer
- 4 sticks butter, at room temperature
- 8 cups confectioners sugar, sifted
- ¼ cup plus 2 Tbsp Irish Cream (I used Bailey’s)
- Preheat oven to 350º. Grease three 8″ cake pans and dust with cocoa powder.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, cocoa powder, espresso powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Mix to combine. Set aside.
- In a stand mixer over medium-low speed, mix together the vegetable oil and sugar just until combined. Add eggs, yogurt and vanilla. Mix this too just until combined.
- Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet. Once it is all mixed together, add the beer. Mix for three minutes on medium-high speed.
- Divide batter between the three cake pans. Bake in a 350º oven for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
- Prepare the frosting. In a stand mixer, beat butter until light and fluffy. Add confectioners sugar and Irish cream. Beat until fluffy. This takes a few minutes.
- Once the cakes come out of the oven, let them cool on cooling racks for ten minutes. Flip them out and let them completely cool before frosting.
- Divide the frosting into three equal amounts. Spread between each layer and cover the top of the cake. Garnish with chocolate curls.
Oh my! What a fabulous looking dessert and original creation! We always have leftover Guiness after a St. Patrick’s Day party, can’t run out during the party of course. If someone asks about dessert the next day, I can now say, give me an hour and I think I can whip something extraordinary up for all of us. I guarantee they will find this cake amazing and delicious. I am drooling!
Thank you! We thought it was pretty stellar.
That’s a pretty well done decorating job on your cake!! I wouldn’t complain about that! And the cake looks fabulous. Happy belated St. Patrick’s Day to you!!!
Thanks Mimi! As long as I don’t have to ice the sides, I can fake it pretty good.
Happy St. Patty’s Day to you too!
Melanie, I have two questions. First, what is espresso powder and where is it available? Could I just substitute an equal amount of freshly ground coffee?
Second, reading the ingredients has me thinking it must be super sweet with that amount of sugar. 4 cups in the cake and 8 cups in the icing has my teeth hurting just thinking about it. Is it very sweet, in your opinion?
Espresso powder can be found at Williams Sonoma, King Arthur Flour and probably Sur La Table. It is nothing like fresh ground coffee. So, I wouldn’t suggest that substitution. You don’t have to put it in the cake. I just think it’s a very nice flavor. As far as the sugar goes, no it’s not a typo. Also, it’s not a very sweet cake. Quite the contrary. Keep this in mind, the cake is huge. Each layer is an entire 8″ cake pan. It really could feed more like up to 18-20. It’s that big. And the Irish buttercream icing ration of sugar to butter is standard. Hope that helps.
Oh Lordy Lordy. This is seriously making my mouth water girl and I don’t like Guinness or Espresso (or any kind of coffee type flavor which is guess is bad since I’m a mom lol). You have a crazy gift
I don’t even wanna think though what the calories are for a slice 
I don’t like beer or espresso either but they are awesome together in this cake. Honestly, you’ll love it. And yes. Try not to think about the calories.
I think that I’m going to start icing my cakes like this! It looks so pretty!
Thank you Angie! I love love this frosting. So delicious.
I am mesmerized by the beauty of the cake and the photo you took of it. Can I come over and have some; I’m only a couple of miles away. Hahaha.
Lol, it was gone faster than it would’ve taken for you to get here.
Can’t wait to try it. One question – what is the measurement of 3/4 bottle Guiness? Does Guiness come in only one size bottle? It looks scrumptious!!!
A 12oz bottle Theresa. Great question!!
It’s a good thing I read the comments because my bottle was a pint and 6 ounces! Made this for my cousins 21st birthday today! I did two 6inch pans and 12 cupcakes turned out gorgeous AND delish. I love how beer in baked goods gives it a hard shell yet keeps the insides moist! Thank you for this recipe!
I’ve baked the cakes today and did a small taste-test . Very, very rich and not for the weak at heart! I loved it personally. Tomorrow I will frost & decorate, can’t wait to taste it when it all comes together!! Thanks for posting, hope my chocolate curls come out as pretty as yours!
I was wondering did you use natural cocoa or Dutch process in this recipe since you have both baking powder and baking soda in it?