Never mind the brownies or store-bought chocolate chip cookies. Your family and guests will like this cake much better, and it's simple to make. If you want to make the cake a day ahead, feel free. The flavor improves on standing. The cake has a rich, malty chocolate taste with just a hint of cinnamon. Although “lightened” with canola oil and yogurt rather than butter and sour cream, the cake remains moist and sweet. I think the cake is best with just a dusting of powdered sugar. Nonetheless, a little low fat ice cream or whipped topping nestled alongside has been tried to good effect in my household. In the unlikely event you have cake leftover, my husband, who has tested the concept repeatedly, insists the cake works well for breakfast alongside a bowl of oatmeal.
Chocolate Stout Cake – Serves 12+
½ cup of canola oil
1 ½ cups of sugar
¼ cup of molasses
2 eggs
¾ cup of plain, non-fat yogurt
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
1 cup of chocolate stout (or Guinness)
1 cup of flour
1 cup of white whole-wheat flour
¾ cup of unsweetened cocoa powder
1 ½ teaspoons of baking soda
¼ teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
1 tablespoon of confectioners’ sugar (optional)
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and coat a 9 or 10-inch spring form pan with nonstick cooking spray (or line the pan with parchment and spray the parchment). Combine the canola oil, sugar, molasses, eggs, yogurt, and vanilla extract and whisk them well until they're combined. Whisk in the stout. In another bowl, whisk together the flours, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Whisk the wet ingredients into the dry until the batter is just smooth. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake the cake for 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with just a few crumbs and no wet batter clinging to it. Let the cake cool in the pan for at least 10 minutes. Run a knife along the inside of the pan to loosen the cake and remove the outer rim of the pan. Dust the cake with confectioners’ sugar if you’d like.
