An Irishman's Dream: Car Bomb Cake

An Irish Car Bomb is a drink made with Bailey’s Irish Cream, Jameson Irish Whiskey, and Guinness stout. You fill half a pint with beer, pour a shot of half Bailey’s, half Jameson, drop the shot into the beer, and chug it before the cream curdles. I’m told it tastes like a chocolate milkshake if you do it properly.

For those of us who’d like to remember our evenings, however, there’s an alternative. And dare I say it’s a hundred times better than a chocolate milkshake could ever be?

Car Bomb cake. A divine combination of chocolate stout cake, whiskey ganache and Bailey’s buttercream. Drool.

I’d have no issue making this every day of the week, but on an Irishman’s 21^st birthday (or any birthday after that), it’s pretty much the only appropriate baked good to serve. And it’s sure to win you the girlfriend-of-the-year award when he cuts into it with all his friends J

Car Bomb Cake (adapted slightly from Smitten Kitchen)

For the stout cake:

-       1 cup Guinness (it all gets cooked out, so you can serve this part to kids as well!)

-       1 cup unsalted butter

-       1 cup cocoa powder (I like things really chocolatey, but feel free to adjust based on taste preference)

-       2 cups all-purpose flour

-       2 cups sugar

-       1.5 teaspoons baking soda

-       2 large eggs

-       2/3 cup sour cream

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease two nine-inch cake pans. In a saucepan over medium heat, simmer beer and butter until well combined. Mix flour, sugar, and baking soda and cocoa powder in a small bowl. In a larger bowl, beat together eggs and sour cream until combined, then slowly beat in beer liquid. Add the flour mixture and beat until combined. Distribute the batter evenly between the pans, and bake for approximately 23-30 minutes, depending on how moist you’d like your cake (I did 23 and it was slightly underbaked, which I love). Allow to cool, then level one half of your cake with a serrated knife.

Next up, the whiskey ganache:

-       8 oz Baker’s chocolate, chopped

-       ½ c heavy cream

-       2 tablespoons of butter

-       1.5 tablespoons whiskey (this makes it pretty strong, so feel free to adjust the cream/whiskey ratio, or omit the whiskey completely)

Place chopped chocolate in a medium-sized bowl. In a saucepan (medium heat) or in the microwave (50% power), heat the cream until simmering, then pour it into the bowl. Stir vigorously with a fork until mixture is smooth, then add butter and whiskey and continue to stir until combined. Smear onto bottom half of cake, then top with the other half. (Note: You will have about half your ganache left over- but don’t lick the bowl yet, because you’ll use it in the next step!)

Finally, the Bailey's buttercream frosting. My favorite part.

-       1.5 sticks of room-temperature butter

-    3-4 cups confectioner’s sugar (I used about 2¼ cups)

-       ¼ cup Bailey’s Irish Cream (again, this is strong- milk also works for a non-alcoholic version)

-       remaining whiskey ganache

In a large bowl, beat the butter until light and fluffy. Slowly beat in about 1.5 cups confectioner’s sugar, before adding ganache and Bailey’s. Add more powdered sugar until frosting reaches desired consistency (it should form peaks but feel smooth, not grainy). Frost cake using a spatula. This makes more frosting than needed, but I always like having some extra for fixing decorating mistakes + desserts!

I also sprinkled the top with chocolate chips. Just to gild the lily.

Now, who wants to lick the bowl?

Happy Birthday to Mike!!