With St. Patrick’s Day coming up, I thought it would be fun to cook with some Irish beer. I really wanted to try making something with a stout other than Guinness, and ended up with Murphy’s Irish Stout based on a recommendation from our local liquor store.  It’s dark, smooth, coffee-ish, sweeter than Guinness (if you’re into sweet). Made me want to eat some chocolate… seemed like dessert was in order!

Here’s my take on an Irish stout coffee cake – it’s dense and moist, not like a birthday cake. The recipe below is exactly what you see in the picture. My daughter helped mix the gooey batter. She had some choice words about what it looked like. You can only imagine what a ten-year old might say. My finished cake lacked a little sweetness, but there was good malty flavor. I’m probably going to make it again next weekend, and will add 1/2 cup of sugar and a streusel topping. I think a little crunch on top would add some nice texture and sweetness. I’ll let you know how that goes.

The stout cake definitely went well with my morning coffee (good morning to you too), and it goes well with after-dinner coffee or drinks too. Well, it’s not that light so maybe hold off a little while after dinner. And, the Bailey’s Irish Cream icing – yum. When it came time to taste, my trusty assistant had a couple bites – no icing – and was done. Note: The cake may not be for the younger palate.

If you bake this, I’d love to hear how it turns out!

Irish Stout Coffee Cake with Chocolate Chips and Bailey’s Icing

1 stick (8 tbsp.) unsalted butter
1-1/2 c. stout beer, Murphy’s or Guinness
1 cup rolled oats, not quick cooking
2-1/4 cup sifted white whole wheat flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
1-1/2 tsp. kosher salt
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup chocolate chips

For Bailey’s Icing
4 tbsp. confectioners sugar
1 to 2 tsp Bailey’s Irish Cream

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Prep a 10-inch springform pan with non-stick spray or butter and flour, set pan aside. In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Once the butter is melted, turn off heat and slowly pour the stout beer in the butter, whisking gently until the beer and butter are combined. It will foam slightly. Next, add the oatmeal and stir. Set this mixture aside while you prepare the cake batter.

In large mixing bowl, combine flour, baking soda and cocoa powder. In another bowl (medium size), mix the granulated sugar, brown sugar and salt. Add beaten eggs to sugar and salt. Take the stout and butter mixture from earlier and add to the egg-sugar mixture. Stir well. Now combine the wet mixture to the flour mixture and stir until dry ingredients are incorporated. The batter will be thick. Lastly, fold in the 1/2 cup of chocolate chips. (Tip: Lightly coat chocolate chips with your flour mixture (ahead of time) before adding to the batter. This helps the chips stay suspended in the batter when baking. They won’t fall to the bottom of the cake.)

Pour batter into your prepped springform pan and bake for 40-45 minutes, until cake springs back upon a light touch, or toothpick check in the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool completely. Dust with confectioners/powdered sugar and drizzle Bailey’s icing (optional).

For the icing: Combine sugar and 1 tsp. Irish cream. Add more liquor, 1/2 tsp. at a time, until consistency is like thick syrup and can easily be drizzled with a spoon or fork.

Another recipe you might like: Irish Soda Bread