Guinness Cake for St. Patrick’s Day (grain free flours, no sugar)

No Sugar, Chocolate, Nut-free, Keto-Cycling

Yields 1x 8″ round cake, 2x 5″ round cakes or 16 cupcakes.

This cake was first introduced to me in Scotland and served up by a lanky Swedish man. I’m fairly certain the originator of the recipe was Nigella Lawson though, at least she is who I consulted for years in making it. It evolved over the years as I became more and more intolerant to wheat and then grains and sugars and I have to say this version is just as good as that first. If you can abide sugars go ahead and use 1 1/2 to 2 cups coconut sugar, but you may need to adjust the coconut flour a little. I call this cake flourless because as it’s made with Guinness it isn’t really grain free. Nor is it Paleo or Keto, but as Guinness has about 8-10 carbs per 12oz bottle that does add to the total carb intake. Let’s be real though, with only a cup in the recipe you are really only looking at an additional 0.5 carbohydrates per serving. No biggie, as long as you can handle grain. I normally cannot but I have found that my tolerance is much better when grains are fermented as in a beer or in sourdough bread or sprouted grains. So tread safely and know yourself but if you think you can handle it then this baby is WELL worth your effort. It makes a dense cake that I love best frozen, frosting and all. If you want it more dense and fudgy; I find the best trick is to turn up the heat a bit after you’ve whipped in the eggs thoroughly and let the batter “cook” a wee bit before pouring in the pan. Or you could just pour in that whole bottle of Guinness. Hey, for a beer it is pretty amazingly healthy. It is full of prebiotic fiber and it is high in iron and relatively low in calories. Don’t believe me? Read this. Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

Ingredients:

For the cake:

• 1 cup Guinness (I have used both draught and stout. The draught is milder and the stout is stronger)
• 2 sticks (16 Tbsp) Kerrigold butter
• ¾ cup unsweetened cacao powder
• 1 cup allulose
• 1/4 cup chicory fiber sweetener
• 15 drops liquid stevia
• 1/2 cup milk kefir (can sub sour cream or cream of coconut)
• 3 large humanely raised eggs (for vegan try subbing with 3 Tbsp ground chia in 9 Tbsp water. Or for fun you could stir it into the other half of the Guinness!)
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup coconut flour
• 1/4 cup pea protein (1 scoop) can sub collagen peptides or arrowroot
• 2 teaspoons baking soda (if using cream of coconut, add 2 tsp cream of tartar)
• parchment paper
• Cheesecake pan. I use Fat Daddio. Normally I do this in an 8″ pan but for this I used two 5×3 inch Fat Daddio’s so I could save one for my Birthday next week. Very convenient!

For the icing:

• 8 ounces cream cheese
• 1/4 cup allulose
• 5-10 drops liquid stevia
• 2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
• ½ cup heavy whipping cream or 1 cup milk kefir cream (heavy cream cultured with milk kefir grains)

Method:

Preheat the oven to 350ºF/180°C, and butter and line an 8 inch cheesecake pan with parchment paper. I love these pans because I can pop out the bottom, place it on the parchment paper and slice around it with a sharp knife for the perfectly lined pan. I cut the parchment for the sides a bit taller so I can “overfill” the pan and get the cake a bit taller.

Pour the Guinness into a large wide pan and then add the butter. Heat until melted then whisk in the cocoa and sugar.

Whisk in the milk kefir and then crack the eggs in one at a time, whisking them in vigorously.

Add the vanilla and whisk in the baking soda.

Last of all sift in the pea protein or arrowroot followed by coconut flour.

Pour the cake batter into the buttered and lined pan and bake for 45 minutes to an hour or 40 minutes for two smaller pans like the one shown. Let cool in the pan on a wire rack. I will sometimes pull it out of the pan and pop it in the freezer for a stint to make frosting easier.

While it is cooling, we deal with the icing. Whip the cream cheese until smooth. Add the vanilla, stevia and allulose and whip to combine.

Now if you are using kefir cream you will want to carefully add it in a bit at a time to keep the consistency smooth. You can get away with a cup as opposed to the heavy or whipping cream. If you whip it too hard it will curdle because it is already cultured to thickness and is just a step from becoming a lovely cheese and whey.

If using heavy cream, add it in slowly and whip until you have a light but spreadable consistency. I will sometimes need to fold it in with a spatula. Whipping cream can behave a bit differently and it is best to whip it to soft peaks first and then combine it slowly.

You can choose to make this dairy free by coconut cream and coconut butter together but as it is not very Irish to do so I have not tried it. I would recommend beating 1 cup coconut cream with 1/4-1/2 cup coconut butter and adding the vanilla and sweetener and whipping until combined.

Spread the icing over the top of the cake only so it resembles the head of a freshly poured pint of Guinness.

Keto Guinness Cake

Brenna May

A gorgeous keto chocolate guinness cake. It has hints of gingerbread and a glorious bittersweet chocolate fudgy texture. Feel free to sub the guinness with a gluten free stout for a fully gluten free cake.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 40 mins

Cook Time 45 mins

Course Dessert

Cuisine British

Equipment

• Cheesecake pan. I use Fat Daddio. Normally I do this in an 8″ pan but for this I used two 5×3 inch
• Saucepan
• oven
• Parchment paper

Ingredients

  

FOR THE CAKE:

• 1 cup Guinness I have used both draught and stout. The draught is milder and the stout is stronger
• 2 sticks 16 Tbsp Kerrigold butter
• ¾ cup unsweetened cacao powder
• 1 cup allulose
• 1/4 cup chicory fiber sweetener
• 15 drops liquid stevia
• 1/2 cup milk kefir can sub sour cream or cream of coconut
• 3 large humanely raised eggs for vegan try subbing with 3 Tbsp ground chia in 9 Tbsp water. Or for fun you could stir it into the other half of the Guinness!
• 1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup coconut flour
• 1/4 cup pea protein 1 scoop can sub collagen peptides or arrowroot
• 2 tsp baking soda if using cream of coconut, add 2 tsp cream of tartar

FOR THE ICING:

• 8 ounces cream cheese
• 1/4 cup allulose
• 5-10 drops liquid stevia
• 2 tbsp pure vanilla extract
• ½ cup heavy whipping cream or 1 cup milk kefir cream heavy cream cultured with milk kefir grains

Instructions

 

• Preheat the oven to 350ºF/180°C, and butter and line an 8 inch cheesecake pan with parchment paper. I love these pans because I can pop out the bottom, place it on the parchment paper and slice around it with a sharp knife for the perfectly lined pan. I cut the parchment for the sides a bit taller so I can “overfill” the pan and get the cake a bit taller.
• Pour the Guinness into a large wide pan and then add the butter. Heat until melted then whisk in the cocoa and sugar.
• Whisk in the milk kefir and then crack the eggs in one at a time, whisking them in vigorously.
• Add the vanilla and whisk in the baking soda.
• Last of all sift in the pea protein or arrowroot followed by coconut flour.
• Pour the cake batter into the buttered and lined pan and bake for 45 minutes to an hour or 40 minutes for two smaller pans like the one shown. Let cool in the pan on a wire rack. I will sometimes pull it out of the pan and pop it in the freezer for a stint to make frosting easier.
• While it is cooling, we deal with the icing. Whip the cream cheese until smooth. Add the vanilla, stevia and allulose and whip to combine.
• Now if you are using kefir cream you will want to carefully add it in a bit at a time to keep the consistency smooth. You can get away with a cup as opposed to the heavy or whipping cream. If you whip it too hard it will curdle because it is already cultured to thickness and is just a step from becoming a lovely cheese and whey.
• If using heavy cream, add it in slowly and whip until you have a light but spreadable consistency. I will sometimes need to fold it in with a spatula. Whipping cream can behave a bit differently and it is best to whip it to soft peaks first and then combine it slowly.
• You can choose to make this dairy free by coconut cream and coconut butter together but as it is not very Irish to do so I have not tried it. I would recommend beating 1 cup coconut cream with 1/4-1/2 cup coconut butter and adding the vanilla and sweetener and whipping until combined.
• Spread the icing over the top of the cake only so it resembles the head of a freshly poured pint of Guinness.

Keyword chocolate, guinness, keto, pancakes, stout