Guinness Goodness
How better to celebrate St. Patrick's Day than to bake a cake with Guinness Stout in the batter?
March was always an important month in my old neighborhood in New York City. Two major saints' feast days, representing the two major ethnic groups in our parish, came within two days of each other, sparking good-natured rivalry about the relative importance of these two holy patrons. On the 17th, you had good St. Patrick, who, according to legend, drove the snakes out of Ireland. St. Joseph was the patient patriarch of the Holy Family and a patron saint to all the Sicilians in the neighborhood. We associated his feast day on the 19th with special foods laid out on a decorated table. Our Irish friends celebrated with revelry and parades and the wearing of the green.
It wasn't until I was much older that I began to appreciate some of the culinary traditions associated with Irish heritage and celebrations. What's not to like about corned beef and cabbage, the potato dish colcannon, Irish soda bread and Guinness Stout, first brewed in Dublin! When I first tasted this fabled dark brew of which the Irish are so proud, I thought it was like liquid pumpernickel bread - dark, rich and yeasty. It certainly wasn't like any other beer I had ever tried.
When we did our special on "QED Cooks" called "Cooking With Beer and Wine," chef Randy Tozzie from Giant Eagle Market District in Bethel Park came to the studio and made a gigantic batch of Guinness beef stew, which had the crew and the volunteers swooning. And while the perfect way to enjoy this chocolaty brew may be in a tall glass, I'm including here a recipe for a cake that takes advantage of the rich, malty overtones to create a mellow and magnificent cake.
Prepare the hearty Beans and Greens dish for the Feast of St. Joseph on March 19.
| Chocolate Guinness Cake Serves 8 |
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Ingredients: |
Instructions: Heat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly dust a greased 8-inch spring-form pan with cocoa powder. In a heavy saucepan or microwave oven, heat butter, beer and 2/3 cup cocoa powder until butter melts. Let cool. Sift salt, flour, sugar and baking soda together. Add the beer-cocoa mixture, and beat thoroughly for 1 minute on medium speed. Add the eggs and sour cream and beat 2 minutes on medium speed. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Place pan onto a wire rack, cool for 10 minutes, remove the sides and cool completely. To make the frosting, beat the softened butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add the vanilla and then incorporate the powdered sugar until you have a smooth and spreadable consistency. Using a flexible spatula, spread frosting on top of the cake to resemble the creamy head on a pint of Guinness. |
| Beans and Greens | |
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Ingredients: |
Instructions: Heat the oil in a 4- to 5-quart saucepan. Add the onion and cook until soft. Add the garlic and hot-pepper flakes and cook for 1 minute. Add the cannellini beans and chicken stock and bring to a boil. Add the escarole (or other greens) and simmer until the greens are tender. Stir in the grated cheese and serve. |
