Chocolate Stout Cake

A friend gave me this recipe from a Portland article explaining how this cake recipe has been all over town. There are a few variations you can make to it so it is never the same cake twice. This is the ideal chocolate cake for a birthday or special occasion. It stays moist for days and it is rich enough without overdoing it. My chocoholic husband said that it was the best chocolate cake he has EVER had! (and wants to sell it for $5 a slice to the cyclists on our bike path) And without further ado:

3 c. Unbleached All-purpose Flour
2.5 c. Sugar
1.5 Tb. Baking Soda
0.5 Tsp. Salt
1 c. Unsweetened Cocoa Powder, sifted
1.3 c. Canola Oil
1.5 c. Buttermilk
3 Large Eggs
1.5 c. Stout Beer (I used Guinness and Obsidian Stout)
1 Tsp. Pure Vanilla Extract

Icing:

24 oz. Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips (Nestle works fine)
1.5 c. Heavy Whipping Cream


Preheat the oven to 350º. Spray two 9 inch cake pans with a non-stick spray and line the bottoms with parchment paper.

Place flour, sugar, baking soda, salt and sifted cocoa powder in a bowl. Mix with an electric mixer on low to combine. Keeping the mixer on low, add oil, buttermilk, then eggs one at a time. Add the stout slowly down the sides of the bowl. Add vanilla and mix until batter is smooth. Batter will be very thin, that is expected.

Divide evenly into prepared pans and bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out with moist crumbs. Cool in pans on a cooling rack for at least 20 minutes.

While cakes are cooling, prepare the icing by creating a double boiler. Put 2 inches of water in a pot and bring to a boil. Put a stainless steel mixing bowl on top of the pot without touching the water. Add chocolate chips and heavy cream. Let partially melt before mixing with a whisk. Stir until just melted and then remove from heat and let cool at room temperature. You can refrigerate it to make it easier to work with.

Remove the cakes from the pan and let cool on a cooling rack. When they are completely cooled, place one cake on a serving platter or cake stand with wax paper lined along the edges (this will keep the plate clean while you ice the cake). With a serrated bread knife, cut the top of both cakes off to create a flat top. Add a dollop of icing to the plated cake to keep the crumb layer in. You may choose to refrigerate the cake before finishing the rest of the icing or you can slather on more icing before placing the second layer upside down onto the first. Finish the icing from the top down and then remove the wax paper. Refrigerate to set for 15 minutes if another coat of icing is needed.

Variations:

1.5 c. Freshly brewed, extra strong black coffee (in place of the stout)
Vegan: use egg replacement and vanilla soy milk
Less Chocolate (gasp!): top cakes with whipped cream and fresh berries

Cake will stay good for up to a week--if it lasts that long.