Chocolate Guinness Cake with Malted Cream Cheese Frosting
By Steve DunnPublished on February 28, 2026
Time
1¾ hours, plus 2 hours cooling
Yield
Serves 12
Ingredients
Cake
1 cup Guinness Draught beer1 cup packed (7 ounces/198 grams) light brown sugar 3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped fine½ cup (1½ ounces/43 grams) Dutch-processed cocoa powder ⅓ cup molasses 1⅓ cups (6⅔ ounces/189 grams) all-purpose flour ¼ cup (1⅛ ounces) malted milk powder 1¼ teaspoons baking soda ¼ teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon table salt ½ cup whole milk 2 large eggs ⅓ cup vegetable oil ¼ cup sour creamFrosting
1½ cups (6 ounces/170 grams) confectioners' sugar 4 teaspoons malted milk powder Pinch table salt 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 10 pieces and chilled5 ounces cream cheese, cut into 5 pieces and chilled1 teaspoon vanilla extractBefore You Begin
If you do not have a springform pan, use a nonstick 9-inch round cake pan that’s about 2½ inches tall. We prefer Dutch-processed cocoa powder here, but natural cocoa powder can be used. We developed this recipe with Valrhona Cocoa Powder and Baker’s Unsweetened Baking Chocolate Bar. Non-alcoholic Guinness can be used instead of Guinness and 2 percent milk can be used instead of whole. If the malted milk powder or confectioners’ sugar is very lumpy, sift before using.
Instructions
- Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray bottom and sides of 9-inch springform pan with baking spray with flour. Line pan bottom with parchment paper.
- Bring 1 cup Guinness Draught beer to simmer in medium saucepan over medium heat. Off heat, add 1 cup packed (7 ounces) light brown sugar, 3 ounces finely chopped unsweetened chocolate, ½ cup (1½ ounces) Dutch-processed cocoa powder, and ⅓ cup molasses and whisk until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth, about 30 seconds. Let cool for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, whisk 1⅓ cups (6⅔ ounces) all-purpose flour, ¼ cup (1⅛ ounces) malted milk powder, 1¼ teaspoons baking soda, ¼ teaspoon baking powder, and 1 teaspoon table salt together in large bowl. Whisk ½ cup whole milk, 2 large eggs, ⅓ cup vegetable oil, and ¼ cup sour cream together in medium bowl. Slowly whisk Guinness mixture into milk mixture until fully incorporated. Whisk half of Guinness-milk mixture into flour mixture until no lumps remain, then whisk in remaining Guinness-milk mixture until smooth.
- Transfer batter to prepared pan; bake until toothpick inserted in center comes out with few moist crumbs attached, 40 to 45 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking. Transfer pan to wire rack and let cool for 15 minutes. Remove sides of pan and let cake cool completely before frosting, 2 to 3 hours.
- Once cake is cool, whisk 1½ cups (6 ounces) confectioners’ sugar, 4 teaspoons malted milk powder, and pinch table salt together in medium bowl.
- Using stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment, whip 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 10 pieces and chilled, on medium speed until broken up into small pieces, about 1 minute. Increase speed to medium-high and whip butter for 1 minute, scraping down bowl as needed. Add half of sugar mixture and mix on medium-low speed until all sugar is moistened, 45 to 60 seconds. Add remaining sugar mixture and mix until no dry sugar remains, 30 to 45 seconds. Increase speed to medium-high and whip until smooth, about 1 minute. Add 5 ounces cream cheese, cut into 5 pieces and chilled, and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and whip until frosting is smooth, light, and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes, scraping down bowl halfway through whipping.
- Remove bottom of pan and parchment from cake. Transfer cake to serving platter. Spread frosting evenly over top of cake. Slice and serve. (Leftover cake can be refrigerated for up to 3 days. Bring to room temperature before serving).
for the cake
for the frosting
Time
1¾ hours, plus 2 hours coolingYield
Serves 12Ingredients
Cake
Frosting
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Cake
Frosting
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Cake
Frosting
Test Kitchen Techniques
Why This Recipe Works
To make a Guinness cake that actually tastes like Guinness, we turned to a slate of ingredients that replicate the stout’s signature flavor. Substituting brown sugar and molasses for the granulated sugar commonly found in the cake added toffee-like flavor and subtle smoke, while malted milk powder delivered buttery, caramelly notes. For the chocolate part of the equation, we used a combination of Dutch-processed cocoa and unsweetened chocolate for deep, rich complexity. Milk, oil, and sour cream lent the cake enough fat to keep it dense and moist. To top the cake, we created a malted cream cheese frosting that echoed the malted flavors in the cake. Using fridge-cold butter and cream cheese gave us more time to whip the frosting before the dairy became too liquid-y, which meant we didn’t have to add as much powdered sugar and risk turning the frosting too sweet or grainy.
Want more? Read the whole storyBefore You Begin
If you do not have a springform pan, use a nonstick 9-inch round cake pan that’s about 2½ inches tall. We prefer Dutch-processed cocoa powder here, but natural cocoa powder can be used. We developed this recipe with Valrhona Cocoa Powder and Baker’s Unsweetened Baking Chocolate Bar. Non-alcoholic Guinness can be used instead of Guinness and 2 percent milk can be used instead of whole. If the malted milk powder or confectioners’ sugar is very lumpy, sift before using.
Instructions
- Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray bottom and sides of 9-inch springform pan with baking spray with flour. Line pan bottom with parchment paper.
- Bring 1 cup Guinness Draught beer to simmer in medium saucepan over medium heat. Off heat, add 1 cup packed (7 ounces) light brown sugar, 3 ounces finely chopped unsweetened chocolate, ½ cup (1½ ounces) Dutch-processed cocoa powder, and ⅓ cup molasses and whisk until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth, about 30 seconds. Let cool for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, whisk 1⅓ cups (6⅔ ounces) all-purpose flour, ¼ cup (1⅛ ounces) malted milk powder, 1¼ teaspoons baking soda, ¼ teaspoon baking powder, and 1 teaspoon table salt together in large bowl. Whisk ½ cup whole milk, 2 large eggs, ⅓ cup vegetable oil, and ¼ cup sour cream together in medium bowl. Slowly whisk Guinness mixture into milk mixture until fully incorporated. Whisk half of Guinness-milk mixture into flour mixture until no lumps remain, then whisk in remaining Guinness-milk mixture until smooth.
- Transfer batter to prepared pan; bake until toothpick inserted in center comes out with few moist crumbs attached, 40 to 45 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking. Transfer pan to wire rack and let cool for 15 minutes. Remove sides of pan and let cake cool completely before frosting, 2 to 3 hours.
- Once cake is cool, whisk 1½ cups (6 ounces) confectioners’ sugar, 4 teaspoons malted milk powder, and pinch table salt together in medium bowl.
- Using stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment, whip 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 10 pieces and chilled, on medium speed until broken up into small pieces, about 1 minute. Increase speed to medium-high and whip butter for 1 minute, scraping down bowl as needed. Add half of sugar mixture and mix on medium-low speed until all sugar is moistened, 45 to 60 seconds. Add remaining sugar mixture and mix until no dry sugar remains, 30 to 45 seconds. Increase speed to medium-high and whip until smooth, about 1 minute. Add 5 ounces cream cheese, cut into 5 pieces and chilled, and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and whip until frosting is smooth, light, and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes, scraping down bowl halfway through whipping.
- Remove bottom of pan and parchment from cake. Transfer cake to serving platter. Spread frosting evenly over top of cake. Slice and serve. (Leftover cake can be refrigerated for up to 3 days. Bring to room temperature before serving).
for the cake
for the frosting
Gift This Recipe
Enjoyed this dish? Let others know by sharing it as a gift recipe.
Appears In
Keep Exploring
0 Comments