It was my birthday last weekend and I started out my day by baking a birthday cake, because I was wide awake early in the morning and I had a bit of time just for myself … because it was my birthday and I really wanted chocolate … because I wanted something extra special. Birthdays are really important to me. I think part of it is simply the celebration that you are still alive … that in itself is such an incredible gift … but the other part is a birthday is a special day just for you. I think so many of us spend so much of our lives for other people that we really need a day just to stop, sit back and honor ourselves.
Anyway, I was baking my cake and the recipe doesn’t use all of the bottle of stout … which means I have a bit left. I mentioned this to my sweet man who was messaging me to wish me a happy birthday … and just before I am about to drink the last bit of stout, he says to me, “Do you have any grapefruit?” Yes, I said … why? … “I’ve heard dark beer poured over grapefruit is really good in the morning … You’ll have to tell me if it’s true … I think it’s something about the citrus and the beer counteracting each other and the final taste being sweet.”
So it is 8:04 a.m. and not only am I baking a chocolate stout cake and drinking Imperial stout, I just poured beer all over my grapefruit. And, strangely, it was good. I don’t think I would purposely open one of my good dark beers to pour over a grapefruit, but it was good.
This stout is special, by the way. I didn’t use Guinness in my cake. Guinness is the beer everyone seems to use in these kinds of recipes, but I am not all that crazy about Guinness and I think it’s partly because Guinness considers itself a “man’s” beer–hey, I’m a woman and I drink dark beer too! I stumbled across an Imperial stout that honors ancient women brewsters: Black Cauldron Imperial Stout from the Grand Teton Brewing Company. You have to read the story behind this beer. It is heartwrenching and a beautiful tribute.
So while this cake might appeal to men, it is a tribute to women. If you make it for your sweetie on Valentine’s Day, take a moment to remember those women brewsters and to honor yourself (whether you’re male or female … we all need to honor ourselves).
Black Cauldron Chocolate Imperial Stout Cake
from Recipe Girl
Chocolate Stout Cake:
- 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/3 cup Imperial stout beer
- 1 cup white whole wheat flour
- 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup butter, softened
- 3/4 cup granulated white sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup nonfat plain yogurt
- About 3/4 cup of dark chocolate chips, chopped
Chocolate Imperial Stout Sauce:
- 1/4 cup Imperial stout beer
- 3 Tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350°F. and place rack in middle of oven. Grease and lightly flour 9-inch cake pan (or use 8-inch pan if you’d like a slightly taller cake.)
- Prepare cake: In a small saucepan, combine cocoa powder and stout. Heat over low-moderate heat until smooth and warmed. Set aside to cool.
- In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl with an electric mixer on low- medium speed, beat butter until creamy. Gradually add sugar and beat until pale yellow in color. Beat in eggs, one at a time, and vanilla. Add the yogurt and the cocoa /stout mixture and beat on low until fully mixed.
- Add the flour mixture in three parts, beating well after each addition. Beat the batter for a minute or so after everything is added, till the batter is good and fluffy.
- Pour batter into prepared cake pan and bake 35 – 55 minutes or until cake pulls away from the sides of the pan and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
- While cake is baking, prepare the sauce: Mix sauce ingredients in a small saucepan and heat over low heat until smooth. Allow to cool.
- When the cake is done, poke holes in it, and spoon 3/4 of the sauce over bottom of cake, allowing sauce to seep into cake. Slide a knife around the edges and invert the cake right side up onto your serving platter.
- Poke holes in the top of cake and spoon the remainder of sauce on top of cake. Try not to waste any of that precious sauce like I did … poke LOTS of holes so it all seeps into the cake because it is SO good.
- I topped it with whipped cream and berries and a drizzle of chocolate sauce. I think I went a little overboard with the whipped cream, but oh it was amazing like that.
This recipe was shared at Totally Tasty Tuesdays, Wonka Wednesdays, Newlyweds Recipe Linky, Wednesday Eats, Foodie Friday Trick or Treat Tuesdays and Gooseberry Patch Pies & Cakes.
16 comments
looks fabulous! i made a Guinness Stout cake last year for St. Pat’s. Nigella’s recipe. It was so good! didn’t taste like beer at all. Just dark chocolate and moist 🙂 Thanks for sharing your version.
~M
Mmmm! That cake looks delicious!!!
Beer and Chocolate… Sounds really moist! Happy Birthday to you!!!
Happy Birthday!!!
Happy Birthday! I agree that a day for yourself is needed here and there…and a birthday is the perfect time. I had to giggle a little at the thought of a beer cake in the oven and a beer drenched grapefruit by 8 am. That last shot of the cake looks divine…I just want to dig right in. Thank you for sharing with Trick or Treat Tuesday!!
Oh YUM! What a great recipe. I love learning new and interesting recipes and you just can’t go wrong with chocolate cake AND beer! I would love to blog this in my V-Day Recipe Roundup~ what do you say?
thehomeheart: thank you! Yes, that would be fine to include it in your Valentine’s Day roundup … as long as you link back to here for the recipe, I’m okay with that.
Definitely! I will let you know when I post 🙂 Thanks!
[…] Black Cauldron Chocolate Imperial Stout Cake […]
[…] (No, there’s no beer in this dish … I just wanted to TELL someone about this awesome beer and the great time we had at the brewery … if you want an awesome recipe for dark beer, check out the Black Cauldron Imperial Chocolate Stout Cake) […]
Happy, happy birthday; I wish I had found this earlier as my husband would have loved this cake for his birthday! Oh well, maybe I’ll make it as a “Just because you rock cake”!! Thanks!
Ann, this would make the perfect birthday cake! Love that your found a female brewery to use for this, I’ll have to see if I can find myself some Black Cauldron. Pinned.
It’s apparently only made in the fall and winter … should be coming out soon! I’m looking for it myself 🙂
[…] (No, there’s no beer in this dish … I just wanted to TELL someone about this awesome beer and the great time we had at the brewery … if you want an awesome recipe for dark beer, check out the Black Cauldron Imperial Chocolate Stout Cake) […]
What a gorgeous birthday cake, Ann! Thank you for sharing at our party! Pinned!
[…] Black Cauldron Chocolate Imperial Stout Cake […]