Sunday, March 17, 2013

Chocolate Guinness Cake

I found this cake on pinterest.  I had Rumchata frosting in the freezer from a previous cake and decided to use that for the frosting!  The Cake is delicious!  Heavy and tasty!  The frosting adds a ton of flavor!
Chocolate Guinness Cake
The icing on the top of the cake resembles the famously frothy head that sits on top of a pint of stout!
for the cake:
1 cup Guinness
2 sticks unsalted butter, cubed or sliced (I used salted)
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup sour cream
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
for the topping:
11 oz  Philadelphia cream cheese
1 1/4 cups confectioners’ sugar (icing sugar)
1/2 cup heavy cream (double or whipping cream)
Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease a 9 inch springform tin.
Pour the Guinness into a large pot. Add the butter cubes or slices and heat until the butter melts, then whisk in the cocoa and sugar. In a separate bowl, beat the sour cream with the eggs and vanilla, then pour into the beer and butter mixture. Lastly, whisk in the flour and baking soda. Pour the cake batter into the greased tin and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour. Leave to cool completely in the tin on a cooling rack, as it’s quite a damp cake.
When the cake is completely cold, sit it on a flat platter or cake stand to ice it. Lightly whip the cream cheese until smooth, sieve over the confectioners’ (icing) sugar and then beat them both together. (Alternatively, you can do this in a food processor, putting the unsieved icing sugar in first, and blitz to remove lumps before adding the cheese.) Add the cream and beat again until it’s a spreadable consistency. Ice the top of the black cake so that it resembles the frothy top of the famous pint.

Slow Cooker Corned Beef & Cabbage

Since we couldn't be in Ireland for St. Patrick's Day like we were 2 years ago, we needed to find a way to celebrate it at home!  Paul wanted Corned Beef.  Oh Yum (NOT! - I had boneless chicken wings).  We invited the "Neighbors" over to celebrate and help Paul eat the Corned Beef & Cabbage.  The main recipe came from Allrecipes.com and then he added a few minor changes.  Penny & Jeff brought us a wonderful bottle of Jameson to enjoy with Gingerale & Lime Juice.  We also had wine and Guinness Beer.  And a Guinness Cake! 

The recipe for the Slow Cooker Corned Beef and Cabbage is:

Original recipe makes 8 servings

Directions
  1. Place the carrots, potatoes, and onion into the bottom of a slow cooker, pour in the water, and place the brisket on top of the vegetables. Pour the beer over the brisket. Sprinkle on the spices from the packet, cover, and set the cooker on High.
  2. Cook the brisket for about 8 hours. An hour before serving, stir in the cabbage and cook for 1 more hour.