I did plan to do an Irish Stew but that is going to have to wait till tomorrow – instead we have this lovely cake with a trickle of Irish glaze. For St Patricks Day I usually make my Chocolate & Guinness cupcakes but this year I thought I would try something a little different.
This recipe comes from the Gramercy Tavern in New York City. A dense and richly flavoured cake that is so moist it is almost pudding-like. I thought the glaze might complete the cake – although a little dusting of icing sugar would work perfectly too.
At first taste Mr Man asked me why I would ruin a good chocolate cake with other flavours (and just to let you know – there is no chocolate involved!!) – but after his second and third and fourth bite, he was hooked. We had ours with a vanila ice cream but whipped cream would also work well.
If you celebrate St Patricks Day, then try these – or my Guinness cupcakes, even better, wait till tomorrow when you will see the most spectaular Irish stew EVER. And may the luck of the Irish be with you!
Ingredients
1 cup oatmeal stout or Guinness Stout
1 cup dark molasses (not blackstrap)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
2 tablespoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
Pinch of ground cardamom
3 large eggs
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup vegetable oil
Confectioners sugar for dusting or Irish Whiskey Glaze
Preheat oven to 350°F. Generously butter tin (bundt pan or 9 x 9 inch cake tin)and dust with flour, knocking out excess.
Bring stout and molasses to a boil in a large saucepan and remove from heat. Whisk in baking soda, then cool to room temperature.
Sift together flour, baking powder, and spices in a large bowl. Whisk together eggs and sugars. Whisk in oil, then molasses mixture. Add to flour mixture and whisk until just combined.
Pour batter into a bundt pan (I made mine in 4 small bundt pans which worked well) and rap pan sharply on counter to eliminate air bubbles. Bake in middle of oven until a tester comes out with just a few moist crumbs adhering, about 50 minutes. Cool cake in pan on a rack 5 minutes. Turn out onto rack and cool completely.
Serve cake, dusted with confectioners sugar, with whipped cream or ice cream. Or a trickle of the Irish Whisky Glaze (recipe below).
Irish Whisky Glaze
1 cup of icing (powdered/confectioners) sugar, sifted
1/4 cup of Irish Whiskey
Whisk ingredients together and trickle over cooled cake.
Notes: When bringing the molasses and stout to a boil, use a large saucepan – this quadruples in size very quickly and is hard to remove from your stove top.
Source: cake from Gramercy Tavern
© 2012, Michelle. All rights reserved.
