Guinness Chocolate Baileys Whiskey Salted Caramel Cake! How’s that for a mouthful title? In case you didn’t notice, this is a perfect St. Patrick’s Day cake. Especially if you are into all that Irish booze! We start with Guinness Stout in the chocolate cake. We add in a sweet buttercream made with Baileys Irish Cream. Finish with a salted caramel drizzle made with Irish whiskey. It’s the St. Patrick’s Day booze trifecta!
Just in time for St. Patrick’s Day, but good for any day of the year, this cake is well balanced. The Guinness Stout flavor just comes through in the layers of dark chocolate. This is balanced with the sweetness of the Baileys buttercream. The whiskey salted caramel sauce is the piece de resistance, and a sprinkling of sea salt on top brings it all together.
Here’s what you will need:
We have not one, but two pictures for ingredients. The first is the basic baking supplies and pantry staples you will need. The quantity is not reflected in the photo, so reference the recipe card for specifics. The second picture is the all important St. Patrick’s Day alcohol! This recipe uses a can of Guinness Stout (of which 1 1/2 cups will go into the cake batter, and what remains in the can is to be consumed by the baker), as well as some Baileys Irish Cream. In addition, you will need whiskey for the caramel sauce. Now, for authenticity, I used an Irish Whiskey, but feel free to use whatever whiskey you prefer. A Kentucky bourbon is usually my go to for recipes.
Pro Tips:
- Use room temperature ingredients for the best results
- Wait for the caramel to cool before topping the cake. If you rush it, you will melt your buttercream. I may know this from recent experience!
- Be creative with your design. I kept this cake very simple by piping buttercream for the middle and the top, but leaving the sides unfrosted. Feel free to frost the entire cake if you would like.
- The caramel recipe as prepared yields more caramel sauce than what I put on the cake. Extra can be served on the side, or enjoy it with some ice cream. I’ve never had anyone complain about having extra caramel sauce.
- Some notes on caramel: don’t let the sugar get too dark before adding butter and caramel as dark sugar is more bitter. Also, some schools of thought argue in favor of not touching the sugar as it caramelizes, but I’m not opposed to stirring if that works for you.
- This cake is baked in two 8″ round pans which yields thicker cake layers. This means the bake time is longer than what you find in most of my cake recipes. The recipe can be made as a 3 layer cake, but I opted for two layers to focus on the chocolate cake flavors. It seemed more balanced.
Guinness Chocolate Baileys Whiskey Salted Caramel Cake
Perfect for St. Patrick’s Day, this Guinness chocolate cake with Baileys buttercream and whiskey salted caramel sauce hits all the right notes.
Ingredients
For the Cake:
3 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1 cup cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1 1/2 cups Guinness Stout
For the Buttercream:
2 cups (4 sticks) salted butter at room temperature
4 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
pinch of kosher salt
1/2 cup Baileys Irish Cream
For the Caramel:
1 1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
2 Tablespoons butter
3/4 cup heavy cream
2 Tablespoons whiskey
flaky sea salt (optional)
Instructions
Preheat oven to 325
Prepare two 8″ round pans by spraying with cooking spray and lining the bottoms with parchment paper.
For the Cake: In a large bowl using a hand mixer, or in the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and kosher salt. Add the eggs, oil, and buttermilk and stir to combine. Blend in the Guinness. Divide the cake batter between the two pans and bake until done. Cake will start to pull away from the sides of the pan slightly, and a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake should come away with a few moist crumbs, but not liquid; about 30- 34 minutes for this recipe. After removing from oven, wait 5-10 minutes before turning cakes out onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
For the Buttercream: Again in a large bowl with a hand mixer, or in the bowl of a stand mixer, mix the butter until light and fluffy. Add the pinch of salt and vanilla and mix to combine. Add the powdered sugar and mix again until incorporated. Finally, add the Baileys and mix thoroughly to create a light buttercream.
For the Caramel: In a medium saucepan combine the sugar and water. Allow to cook on the stovetops over medium high heat until the sugar begins to caramelize. As the sugar begins turning amber, gently swirl the pan to keep the color even. Once the caramel has reached the desired caramel color, add the butter and stir gently to melt. Follow this with the cream, being careful to avoid splatters. Once combined, remove from heat and stir in the whiskey. Add a sprinkling of sea salt if desired.
Notes
When baked in two 8″ round pans, this recipe yields thicker cake layers. This will increase the bake time from what is found in most of my cake recipes.
More:
Looking for some more treats that might be perfect for St. Patrick’s Day? Try my Chocolate Mint Sandwich Cookie or a Chocolate Mint Cream Pie.
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