Chocolate Beer Cake


For the cake:
2 oz cocoa powder
7 fl oz stout beer
4 oz very soft butter
10 oz dark soft brown sugar
2 large eggs, beaten
6 oz plain flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

For the icing:
4 oz icing sugar, sifted
2 oz very soft butter
2 tablespoons stout
4 oz dark chocolate (50-55% cocoa solids)
1 oz walnut pieces, finely chopped

To decorate:
8 walnut halves
cocoa powder, for dusting

Pre-heat the oven to 350 F You will also need two 8 inch round cake pans,
11/2 inches deep, lightly greased, and the bases lined with baking
parchment, lightly greased. Cream the butter and sugar together, beating
thoroughly for 3 or 4 minutes until pale and fluffy. Gradually beat in the
eggs, a little at a time, beating well between each addition. Next, sift
the flour, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda on to a sheet of baking
parchment. Then weigh the cocoa and put it in a separate bowl, gradually
stirring the stout into it. Now carefully and lightly fold into the egg
mixture small quantities of the sifted flour alternately with the
cocoa-stout liquid. Then, when both have been added, divide the cake
mixture equally between the 2 pans and level it out.

Bake the sponges in the centre of the oven for 30-35 minutes. The cakes
should be flat on top and feel springy and will have shrunk slightly from
the side of the tin. Leave them to cool in the tins for 5 minutes before
turning out on to a wire rack to cool further, carefully stripping off the
base papers.

To make the icing, beat the icing sugar and butter together until blended,
then gradually add the stout, making sure it is thoroughly mixed in after
each addition. Now melt the chocolate in a bowl set over hot water, making
sure the bottom of the bowl doesn't touch the water. When melted, remove
the bowl from the water, and carefully fold the chocolate into the icing
mixture. Now remove a third of the icing to a separate bowl and stir in
the chopped walnuts. After all the icing has cooled to a spreadable
consistency, sandwich the cake with the walnut icing. Then spread the
remaining two-thirds of the icing on top of the cake, using a palette
knife. Next, dust the walnut halves with cocoa powder and arrange on top
of the cake.

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