It’s my Dad’s birthday and this is his birthday cake! I’ve been planning it for a while and I’m so pleased with how delicious it turned out. It’s an intense chocolate-y and stout-y cake with an amazing “Baileys” buttercream frosting.
The frosting was inspired by my vegan Irish Cream Ice Cream which uses Irish whiskey, a little bit of cocoa powder and a little bit of coffee to recreate the flavour of Baileys. You wouldn’t know the difference! And the cake itself is slightly adapted from a recipe I found over at Fat Girl Trapped in a Skinny Body.
Apparently Guinness isn’t (generally) vegan but there is a vegan option; Foreign Extra Guinness. It’s a lot stronger and more bitter but I think it works better in this cake as the flavour comes through a lot more. I was able to find it in my local supermarket but you can also purchase it online or use another vegan-friendly stout.
Vegan Guinness Chocolate Cake with "Baileys" Buttercream Frosting
Ingredients
For the Chocolate Guinness cake (adapted from Fat Girl Trapped in a Skinny Body)
- 250 g / 2 cups plain flour
- 120 g / 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 220 g / 1 cup caster sugar
- 100 g / 1/2 cup light brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 480 ml / 2 cups Foreign Extra Guinness this is apparently the only vegan Guinness
- 120 ml / 1/2 cup vegetable oil I used mild olive oil
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
For the "Baileys" buttercream frosting
- 250 g / 1 cup vegan butter I used 'Pure' sunflower butter
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 600 g / 5 cups icing sugar
- 2-3 tbsp Irish Whiskey I used Jamesons
- 1/2 tsp cocoa powder
- 1/2 tsp very strongly brewed coffee
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 170c / 350f. Grease and line two 8 inch sandwich tins.
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In a bowl sift the flour, baking soda, cocoa powder, salt and sugars. Make a well in the centre, pour in the beer, oil and vanilla. Whisk until there are no lumps.
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Pour into the prepared tins and bake for 25-30 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean.
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Once baked, let them cool for 15-20 minutes in their tins before transferring them onto a cooling rack.
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To make the buttercream, cream the vegan butter and vanilla extract together in a stand mixer. Add the icing sugar in a large tbsp at a time until well mixed.
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Beat in the whiskey, cocoa powder and brewed coffee. Taste and adjust quantities if needed until it tastes just like Baileys!
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Once the cake has completely cooled, spread the frosting on top of one layer, sandwich the two layers together and then top the cake with the rest of the frosting.
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Serve and enjoy! It will keep in the fridge for up to 3 days, covered.
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