GUINNESS CHOCOLATE BROWNIES WITH A BAILEYS BUTTERCREAM FROSTING
From Cook for the Soul
Ingredients
440ml Guinness 180g unsalted butter 210g dark chocolate
(70 per cent cocoa solids) 120g plain flour
1 tsp salt
240g caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla bean paste (or
use vanilla extract)
3 large eggs
For the Baileys buttercream
160g unsalted butter 420g icing sugar Pinch of salt
½ tsp vanilla bean paste
(or use vanilla extract) 120ml Baileys
With a malty sweetness and deep, luxurious colour, Guinness (much like coffee) is the perfect addition to the rich and slightly bitter chocolate in brownies.
The Guinness is gently simmered down to a reduction that locks in all of the flavour notes and baked in with the brownie batter. The baked brownie is topped with a delicious, velvety buttercream with the boozy tang of Baileys. This is for my Irish friends who treat me like family.
Method: Pour the Guinness into a saucepan, place over a medium heat and simmer for 20 minutes until reduced by three-quarters. Pour into a heatproof bowl and set aside. Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan and grease and line a 20cm square baking tin with baking paper.
Using the same saucepan, gently melt the butter and dark chocolate together over a low heat, stirring to mix. Remove from the heat when they are almost melted as they will continue to melt together off the heat. Mix the flour, salt and sugar in a large bowl. Add the vanilla, then mix in the eggs, one at a time, to combine. Pour in the melted butter and chocolate, with the reduced Guinness, folding together until just mixed.
Pour into the prepared tin and bake for 30 minutes – it’s OK if the middle is still jiggly as the brownies will continue to cook out of the oven. Cool completely.
For the buttercream, use a handheld electric whisk to beat the butter for a few minutes until light and fluffy. Add the icing sugar, a little at a time, and whisk on a medium–high until all the sugar has been added. Add the salt and vanilla, then gradually add the Baileys until the consistency is soft but stable, like toothpaste. Spoon or pipe on to the cooled brownies. Best served chilled, so keep in the fridge and remove 30 minutes before serving.
Notes: If you don’t want to use Guinness, swap with 120ml freshly brewed coffee. Store for up to 3 days in the fridge. Unfrosted brownies can be frozen after baking and cooling – wrap tightly in cling film and freeze for up to 3 months.