Chocolate Stout Cake with Irish Cream Ganache

We celebrated St. Patrick’s Day a little earlier this year, and combined it with Steve’s birthday. I wanted to bake a birthday cake that would mark the occasion, and found the perfect solution in this Chocolate Stout Cake. It was moist and decadent, with a chocolatey richness that is brought out by the Guinness. Essentially, it’s an Irish Car Bomb in cake form, so what’s not to love? Bring this to your next St. Patrick’s Day get-together, and serve with vanilla ice cream for a festive treat.

Adapted from Epicurious

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Cake:
1 cup stout (such as Guinness)
1 cups (2 sticks) unsalted butter
3/4 cups unsweetened cocoa powder (preferably Dutch-process)
2 cups all purpose flour
2 cups sugar
1/2 tablespoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoons salt
2 large eggs
3/4 cup plain yogurt

Icing:
1 cup whipping cream
1/2 pound semisweet chocolate, chopped
3 tablespoons Bailey’s Irish Cream

For cake:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter two 8-inch round cake pans with 2-inch-high sides. Line with parchment paper. Butter paper. Bring stout and butter to simmer in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add cocoa powder and whisk until mixture is smooth. Set aside, and cool slightly. Whisk flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in large bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat eggs and yogurt in another large bowl to blend. Add stout-chocolate mixture to egg mixture and beat just to combine. Add flour mixture and beat briefly on slow speed. Using rubber spatula, fold batter until completely combined. Divide batter equally among prepared pans. Bake cakes until tester inserted into center of cakes comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Transfer cakes to rack; cool 10 minutes. Turn cakes out onto rack and cool completely.

For icing:
Bring cream to simmer in heavy medium saucepan. Remove from heat. Add chopped chocolate and whisk until melted and smooth. Refrigerate until icing is spreadable, stirring frequently, about 2 hours.

Place 1 cake layer on plate. Spread 2/3 cup icing over. Top with second cake layer. Spread remaining icing over top and sides of cake. Store cake in fridge. Serve at room temperature or chilled. Serves 16.