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Photograph of Chocolate Guinness Cake with Mascarpone Frosting

Chocolate Guinness Cake with Mascarpone Frosting

A soft and fluffy sponge cake loaded with Guinness and chunks of dark chocolate topped with a creamy, smooth, silky mascarpone cheese frosting

Course afternoon tea, Cake, Dessert, Morning Coffee, treat
Keyword Chocolate, chocolate chunks, guinness, mascarpone frosting
Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 55 minutes
Servings 8
Author Susan

Ingredients

For the Chocolate Guinness Cake:

  • 70g unsalted butter, roughly chopped into cubes
  • 170g plain/all-purpose flour
  • 50g cocoa
  • 2 teaspoons instant coffee
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda/baking soda
  • ¼ teaspoon fine salt
  • 100g caster sugar
  • 100g light brown sugar
  • 100g vegetable oil
  • 2 large eggs
  • 100g/100ml Guinness
  • 100g natural yoghurt
  • 100g chopped chocolate, 70% cocoa solids

Mascarpone Cream Cheese Frosting:

  • 100g unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • ¼ teaspoon fine salt
  • 250g icing sugar
  • 100g mascarpone cheese
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

  1. Collect together your equipment (see Recipe Notes below) and ingredients.

  2. Preheat oven to Fan Oven 160°C /180°C/350°F/Gas 4

  3. First make the cake: using a microwave safe mixing bowl, melt the butter in a microwave. Leave to cool a little whilst you collect all the remaining ingredients together.

  4. Add the dry ingredients: flour, cocoa, coffee and salt. Then add the baking powder and bicarbonate of soda directly on top of the flour.

  5. Add the remaining ingredients: both sugars, oil, eggs, vanilla extract, Guinness and yoghurt

  6. Beat with a balloon or electric whisk until incorporated – be careful not to over-mix. It should take 30 seconds to a minute and you may need to stop half way to scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl.

  7. Chop the chocolate into pieces and fold into the cake batter.

  8. The batter is quite liquidy. Pour it into the greased cake tin.

  9. Cook in a preheated oven for 50 – 60 minutes or until cooked. It is cooked when:

    - the centre feels springy when lightly touched with your finger and no imprint remains.

    - a toothpick inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean.

    - when the cake is beginning to come away from the sides of the tin.

  10. Leave in the tin for 5 minutes and then transfer the cake to a cooling rack to cool completely before frosting.

  11. How to make the mascarpone icing: put the butter into the bowl of your electric whisk and beat until light and fluffy.

  12. Add half the icing sugar and fold in.

  13. Beat in the vanilla extract and finally beat in the mascarpone cheese.

  14. Taste and add more vanilla, if necessary.

  15. Top the cake with the icing: when the cake is cold, top with this delicious frosting.

Recipe Notes

Equipment:

    • kitchen scales and measuring spoons 
    • electric whisk and bowl
    • chopping board and knife
    • 20cm/8in round, deep cake tin, buttered and base lined with baking parchment

Icing sugar:

Fold the icing sugar in with a spoon before whisking – this will help to stop the icing sugar clouding up and making a mess of your kitchen!