I Couldn’t Stop Thinking About This Cake, So I Tracked Down The Recipe
Photo by Vanessa.
My favorite kind of bar is one that serves snacks: peanuts, potato chips, an emergency hot dog, whatever. They’re almost as important as the drinks. At the cozy Brooklyn spot Dynaco, there’s usually a freshly made cake behind the bar. Recently, while my girlfriend and I played cards, I had a slice I hadn’t yet tried: a gingery chocolate cake with a whipped bouffant of cream cheese frosting. I haven’t stopped thinking about it.
Let’s just assume I won this round of Spite & Malice.
Eventually, I tracked down Catherine Lloyd Burns, whose husband started the bar with his brother back in 2013. Catherine bakes all the cakes for Dynaco and fielded an email I’m sure she’s seen many times over the years. “Lots of people have asked for the recipe and I haven’t given it out yet,” she wrote me. “I don’t know if I ever will.” But! She was still very helpful. She told me she started with a Nigella recipe and then “did some altering because I don’t like to just make someone else’s cakes.” But “that particular Nigella cake is perfect” and, she promised, I would be very happy with it.
The next weekend, I grabbed a Guinness from the bodega and gave it a spin. I can’t even remember the last time I baked a cake, so making one is an indicator of how much I loved Catherine’s cake at Dynaco and also how approachable Nigella’s recipe is. Catherine is right about Nigella’s cake; it’s really, really good. Because I’m no star baker, mine looked a little like a children’s bake sale cake, but that did not detract from how good it tasted. The next morning, I had a slice with my coffee.
Breakfast of champions.
As I was sampling the Nigella cake, I wondered if one of Catherine’s modifications was adding a bit of fresh ginger, but both cakes are fantastic. I’m definitely going to make it again. And probably head to Dynaco to see what seasonal cake they’re serving now.
If you’d like to make it yourself, here’s the recipe (NYTimes gift link). “This cake is magnificent in its damp blackness,” says Nigella. “I wanted to make a cream cheese frosting, but it is perfectly acceptable to leave the cake un-iced: in fact, it tastes gorgeous plain.”
Have you ever tracked down a recipe from a restaurant? Or tried to reverse-engineer one? Thank you, Catherine, for tipping us off to this great recipe. New York non-bakers can order one of Catherine’s stout cakes by emailing her directly. It’s $80 and, as I’ve said, wildly delicious.
P.S. The best strawberry cake, Dorie Greenspan’s everything cake, and pound cake with apples, French style.
(Top photo by Vanessa of Kitchen Feasts.)
Comments
156 commentsI’m super late to the game but I had a similarly ginger-forward, chocolate cake (felt like chocolate gingerbread) at a Bay Area restaurant more than a decade ago. I couldn’t get it out of my head so I reached out to my go to for any baking related endeavor – Deb from Smitten Kitchen. In the comments she suggested combining the spices from the Gramercy Tavern gingerbread on her site (https://smittenkitchen.com/2008/12/gramercy-taverns-gingerbread/) with the chocolate stout cake (also on her site – https://smittenkitchen.com/2006/11/ganached-guinness-goodness/). The result was – and continues to be – perfect. I just made this for Christmas this year – I served it with fresh whipped cream but the addition of cream cheese icing sounds amazing. I wish I’d thought of it before. Anyway, in case you wanted to go in a different direction for your recipe hunting! Happy Baking!
I have been looking for a recipe since 2002! I worked downtown SF and a restaurant near me had the best tuna pasta salad I’d ever had and would get it for lunch there frequently. Then the restaurant closed and I was too shy at the time to ask for the recipe! (what’s the worst they could have said?!) It had olive oil, a shell-type pasta, tuna, red onions.. but I’m not sure what else!
Visiting Portland 3 years ago we went to Life of Pie (*incredible* pizza) and every table had a bottle of this olive oil that was insanely good drizzled on the pizza. It had a little heat (we could see peppers floating in the bottle) and also tasted garlicky. I called and asked them for the recipe and they didn’t tell me exactly, but did say they used dried arbol chiles and roasted garlic in olive oil to get the garlic flavor (but there were no cloves floating in the bottle). I made garlic confit, removed the garlic, and then added two of the dried arbor peppers and it’s a very close replica. The longer it sits on your shelf the spicier it gets (in a good way!) If you’re a homemade pizza maker, I think this is a must for your pizza nights.
As a child, cookie cakes from The Great American Cookie Co (at the mall, of course!) were THE ultimate birthday cake. Now that I live in Australia, the shop, or even the concept of the humble cookie cake does not exist. So please believe me when I say that I have made it one of my motherhood-missions to make sure my children experience the joy of a cookie cake with that perfect white, almost crunchy frosting. While a big cookie does not seem hard, getting it the correct texture and amount of saltiness vs. sweetness and also replicating that frosting with different ingredients has turned into a SCIENCE. But, 13 years into motherhood and I feel like I have finally succeeded. And when my kids ask for it for their birthday and parties, my 8 year old American heart and my 39 year old Australian/American heart simultaneously rejoice (and then enjoy the nostalgic leftovers for days after!).
I made Joy the Baker’s Chocolate Stout cake for St Patrick’s Day and dang was it delicious- if it was good enough to be her wedding cake, I knew I had to try it. I’m always open to trying a new recipe though;) https://joythebaker.com/2024/12/wedding-cake-inspo-chocolate-stout-cake-with-raspberries-and-cream/
My all time favorite cake is a chocolate zucchini cake flavored with orange and cinnamon. I think it is from a site called chocolate and zucchini. It’s moist and so flavorful and doesn’t need any frosting.
This looks so fabulous! Also, while I am here ( ! ) any recommendations for MUST see/eat stops in Acadia/Franklin Maine? We are staying in a DREAMY house in Franklin and planning to hit up the best stops for the yummiest foods, coolest sights, best drives. We have been to Portland/Bath pre-children, but I MUST go back with my boys …. and now venture to Acadia! While we aren’t going until next August (2026) for 7 days, my brain won’t let me stop thinking/planning this getaway! 2 young boys with us (5 and 7 at the time). What do we got? Hints? Tips? Recs?!?!!? Where do all you locals go? Thanks, group <3
Too many recommendations for this space…. Bar Harbor Cafe This Way, go on a Whale Watch Boat. We saw more whales in Maine than in the Dominican Republic. Swim in Echo Lake, crystal clear water. Ask the locals where the ledges are for jumping off, perfect height for your kids. Drive your car onto the Bar Island sandbar at low tide….Bike, Hike, Breathe, Be Present, Slow down and enjoy Maine
I would recommend Jeannie’s Great Maine Breakfast before you start a hike in Acadia. Acadia is magical. The shuttle bus in Acadia is awesome, you won’t need a car in the park.
Go to Belfast! It’s about a hour drive from Franklin. You probably already know to go to a lobster pound. We love Young’s in Belfast.
Wow! Funny to see this: I live in Ellsworth and work “on the Island” so this is my place and my sweet spot! Lots of places close over a year, so be sure to check in again before you Make Plans. However, I’ll heartily recommend Ironbound in Hancock and, for breakfast on the island, go to the “quiet side” of Southwest Harbor to Clark Point Cafe for amazing baked goods and delicious savory treats. Things get busy in August, so try to call ahead to check if they take reservations and be sure to carry your UNO cards to keep kids busy when there’s a wait! You’ll have a blast.
Ahh! I love this area! Harvest moon deli! Mothers kitchen! Jordan’s restaurant for a hearty breakfast! Yall will have the best time!
Thank you all for the lovely recs! I will be sure to pop in again before we head off (in one year haha!) I’m so excited to be going back!
Check out Granite Gardens (a quarry turned granite art studio/museum/quirky family hang – don’t miss feeding the catfish in the old quarry pond!); Abel’s Lobster on MDI is my favorite seafood spot, Peter Trout’s in SW Harbor for low key dive bar vibes w great food, Thursday night patio party at Milk & Honey in NE Harbor is the best; take an on-water oyster farm tour from my friends Rob and Graham at Waukeag Neck Oyster Co (suppliers of oysters to the aforementioned Ironbound); hike Tunk Mtn then pop across the road for a paddle/swim in Tunk Lake; Littlefield Gallery in Winter Harbor for great Maine art and to meet the gallery rooster.
15 years ago I ate an elderflower soup with semolina soufflé at a restaurant in the town where I lived at that moment. It was fantastic! I then googled the recipe and found out that the exact one was published in a food magazine some time ago. I ordered a copy because luckily it was still available. I haven’t cooked it since then, not one time, but one day I will! ;-)
We need a copy of that recipe! Sounds amazing 🤩
Has anyone tried this with gluten free flour?
This comment was under the NYT aritcle so sounds like it works: “My wife is gluten-free so I use King Arthur’s Cup for Cup Flour and you can hardly tell the difference. Most people don’t know and are amazed when I spill the beans!”
I was wondering the same thing, but the beer would have gluten in it too. I guess one could sub the beer out for a GF beer?
When I saw the photo, I immediately knew it was Nigella’s chocolate Guinness cake, just from the sight of it :)
The shells & cheese from Perla’s is a restaurant meal I make at home all the time. Presentation is key! I recommend a tiny skillet. https://www.thebacklabel.com/perlas-seafood-oyster-bar-shells-and-cheese/#.YX56FxDMK3J
I LOVE to reverse engineer a recipe but I always ask too, because there is often a little trick and I end up learning something new. The last recipe I asked for was for an absolutely delicious, vegetarian beet reuben sandwich. I had to get it every time I went to that town, about twice a month. SO good even if it cost almost $20, which is way outside what I’ve ever thought a sandwich could cost! They eventually discontinued it and I begged the bewildered owner for the recipe and he gave it to me! I was thrilled. It was still never as good as the sandwich shop version but I still enjoy a tweaked version of it immensely to this day.
treva, i adore beet reubens, and would LOVE to have the recipe if you’re willing to share! xo
He told me the recipe verbally and I cobbled it together from that, which is why it probably was not exactly like they made it but it is close enough: – Toasted Apricot Rye bread from Blue Heron Bakery in Olympia, WA (I tried that once then just used regular caraway-seeded rye ever after because I love a firm rye and that one is super soft. It was great when they did it at the cafe though…) – Gruyere (essential!) – Homemade Russian dressing (I looked up a random recipe online) – Roasted beet slices tossed in pastrami seasoning (I looked up pastrami spice mixes online and made my own.) – Sauerkraut (in my opinion, caraway seeds in sauerkraut are essential) Butter the bread on both sides. Toast one side in a heated cast iron pan then flip and load the toasted sides with cheese, dressing, sauerkraut, beet slices, and the second slice of toast with the by now melted cheese. Slice d i a g o n a l l y, heh, and enjoy : ).
@ Jenni, meant to say, if it wasn’t obvious, toast the both sides of the bread slices but on the first flip, add the cheese to both, load one slice with everything else as well, then once the second slice of bread with cheese has melted, put it cheese side down on the loaded slice and press it a bit to melt it all together. Then maybe flip the whole sandwich until it’s as toasty as you like. Slice and enjoy!
So excited to bake this! The story reminds me of how Bon Apetit used to have a section in their magazine where people would write in about an amazing dish they had somewhere, and Bon Apetit would get in touch with the chef and share the recipe.
I found a copycat recipe for the sweet potato crème brûlée that I had at Half Shell Oyster House in Biloxi and it’s become my Thanksgiving must have dish to make. I was thrilled when I found the recipe.
I reverse engineer recipes alll the time, it’s one of my special skills. Easier though is when the waiters make things at the table as happened in Merida Mexico. If you want an excellent, meaty but vegan dip. Roast pepitas in the oven until brown, about half a cup. Roast 6 Roma tomatoes in a separate tray. When the toms are wilted and charred blitz both with sea salt and olive oil and a little fresh grated garlic. It’s DIVINE. Smokey, nutty, warm. A great alternative to hummus if anyone has a wonky tum for legumes. You can trick it up with diced coriander stalks or cumin powder but I like it as is. Yum!
This is a really creative take! I can’t wait to try it out. Thank you!
I think what you are describing is called Sikil Pak, a mayan inspired pepita dip…and yes, it is so delicious and addictive!
Omgosh! Thank you Stephy! I searched online at the time 2012 and could not find the name. It’s delicious!!
I made this cake for my wedding! It’s an all time favorite.
Jess, same! I made this for our wedding — love that you did, too! It’s been our family’s favorite for years.
Can someone help me with this — I can never open the recipes from the NYT gift links? Is it always supposed to say only something about a month trial for free? I don’t want to do that either, as I know I’ll forget to cancel it (their ploy, I’m sure). Love all the recipes posts but I never get to enjoy them :(
Unfortunately I can’t help with the NYT links issue (I have NYT Cooking, which opens automatically for me, and the regular NYT gift links always work for me) but for anyone who similarly struggles with canceling free trials before they switch to paid, this is what finally worked for me – I now put the cancel date in my calendar (with or without an alarm reminder, depending how often you check your calendar) and now I never forget!!
That’s so weird because it should open without a trial. The “gift” is that CoJ has already paid for the free access. Try clearing your cookies and cache and see if it opens. Failing that, here is the direct link to Nigella Lawson (you can toggle between volume and weight measurements): https://www.nigella.com/recipes/chocolate-guinness-cake
Thank you Jeanne! That worked :) going to make it this weekend now!
Can attest this is a truly special cake! I don’t repeat many recipes but this is one. I personally prefer it with a fudgy frosting or ganache. I have a few bottles of guinness on hand to bake this cake when the need arises. Those I have served it to say it’s the best cake they’ve ever had and it really is just this recipe, no changes!
three things: 1. I’ve been craving cake for three days (ask my husband) – how wonderful. 2. heading to NYC in october for a long weekend and Dynaco is now on my Brooklyn list 3. Nigella Lawson is the best. (second the question on why the butter amount is different!!)
This looks (and sounds) so damn delicious and it’s such a good idea to serve cake at a bar. It’s winter where I am now and playing cards, eating cake and having mulled wine sounds like the perfect evening right now. I’ve been baki g a cake or two a week at the moment for “supper”. Supper is pretty new for our family outside of the handful of chips on the couch or late cereal and I love it so much. I saw a cake on cup of Jo I think and it was at a restaurant. The cake was vanilla with the thickest dark looking chocolate icing and I just had to try it. I made my version and it’s been so popular for our supper. It’s so relaxing to sit on the couch with a square of it and a fork and the New York Times games. My tip, my husband gave me this idea and it’s been good, is the half quantity cake. It’s always enough before people get sick of it and you usually have the right amount of butter left AND it cooks faster and just looks lovely. I’ll try this nigella one next!
can attest to Nigella’s cake being pretty close to perfect. I make it at Christmas and add a touch of bailey’s to the frosting. 10/10
I have to make this!
Yes, as a matter of fact. When I lived in San Francisco many years ago my buddy and I were locals at a cafe called Chow and obsessed with a ginger cake they served with caramel and pumpkin (I think) ice cream. When we moved, I begged a server for the recipe and they actually printed it out for me! It comes out great at home and made me so happy.
Yes! I lived in SF for 20+ years and also enjoyed the ginger cake at Chow many times. I’d forgotten about that. The ice cream and caramel sauce were perfection. Thanks for a little nostalgia!
Wait Tovah we need this recipe!
OMG this is where I had my first date with my now-husband! The ginger cake! if you still have the recipe, please share!!
I used to live in San Mateo and almost every time we visited SF we went to Chow for brunch with our kids – it was always a good experience – and the food always yummy – was so sad when they closed! Yes please share the recipe :-)
oh, Chow! I’d drive up from Palo Alto with a bunch of friends to eat at Chow and wander the Castro… Please, share the recipe!
Please share chow’s ginger cake recipe 🙏🏻. I loved that dessert. Lived in sf for years and now on the other side of the bay bridge.
Wow, I had no idea the love for Chow ran so deep! I also didn’t know it had closed, but since it has I don’t feel bad sharing the recipe. It’s written for restaurant use so you kind of have to know what you’re doing but it’s a pretty straightforward cake! CHOW’S GINGER CAKE Makes 1/4 sheet cake (9″x13″ pan). Spray pan with oil and line with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. 1 C sugar 1 C rice bran oil (or canola) 1 C molasses 1/4 C ginger puree 3 eggs 2 1/2 C all purpose flour 1/2 tsp cinnamon 1/2 tsp cloves-ground 1/4 tsp black pepper-ground 2 tsp baking soda 1 C water-hot Whisk together sugar, oil, molasses, and ginger on speed 2. While this is mixing; Combine flour, cinnamon, cloves, black pepper, and baking soda. Add eggs to sugar/oil mixture on Speed 1. Add dry ingredients, Speed 1. Whisk on Speed 2 for 2 min. Add water, Speed 1 until combined. Pour into pan. Bake at 325 for 1 hour or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.
I have begged for the pear and pumpkin soup recipe from Chef’s Hat in Ephraim, WI. Todd, the owner, is keeping it close to his chest though.
I have been making this cake for over a decade and seeing love for it here is like seeing a good friend’s kid smash sports day! My hot tip is, if you’re serving alco-free folks / kids, use a malty drink as a Guinness replacement. I’m UK based and use Ovaltine (and the UK recipe). Also cherries or raspberries go with it a dream. I bake it for every birthday and it never fails to please. Although for me, the original is the best. I’m a terrible baker (I make this and one other cake) and I promise this beauty is hard to mess up.
I have very little faith in my kitchen skills so the only thing I’ve tried to recreate is the Starbucks Cranberry Bliss Bar because I thought it’d be less expensive buying it as much as I would need to to keep up with my craving…but the “bliss” part really is ignorance because once I knew what all went into it I couldn’t pretend it was just dandy to eat the whole tray. The only other reverse engineering of a recipe I’ve witnessed is Monica going crazy trying to recreate Phoebe’s grandmother’s cookies, only to find it’s the Tollhouse (“Tooloose”!) cookie dough recipe.
Oh Starbucks…I found a recipe for the only thing I’ve bought from there in the last 20 years: iced matcha with lavender cold foam, with stevia instead of sugar. I’ve never tasted anything so divine! I tried making it at home, buying a list of expensive ingredients, thinking I would save money, but it is just not the same. I’ve ended up just getting it there, probably twice a week. Now the season for it is over I guess, just when I want it for the hot, hot summer!! What are they thinking, to remove it NOW?
Haha loving this friends episode also! 🫶
I never bake at home (I can’t. I’ll literally eat it all), but I LOVE place that serve cake slices! Here in Seattle we have a coffee shop that bakes a cake every day and offers free slices to customers who just happen to have great timing (you don’t know when the cake will appear) and another favorite place is the Tokeland Hotel (the oldest hotel in Washington!). The restaurant there, The Wandering Goose, always has the best cake and serves slices and wine and coffee and is such.a.vibe. I visit every single year (usually more than once).
Sarah, I live in Seattle and would love to know the coffee shop you mention.
Another Sarah in Seattle humbly asks you the name of this coffee shop!!
Love Nigella’s recipe, and I agree with the delicious “damp blackness,” who doesn’t love Nigella and her adjective use? Ina Garten’s famous Beatty’s chocolate cake is also excellent.
I try to get a recipe from a local spot every time I travel! So far, everybody I’ve asked has shared generously. Part of the adventure is untangling handwriting and different measurements when I get home—sometime it takes finding something similar online and piecemealing a bit. But it’s worth it, because I get to remember the recipe’s origins as I try to figure out how to recreate it at home. A memorable travel souvenir!
This is genius!! I just might start doing this as well.
Off topic – lol at my being distracted by details. WHAT is the card game on photo? (Or was it just a staging & not meant to be a analyzed;) cuz I love games & open to new things!
Looks like Spite and Malice :)
It’s Spite & Malice! The most fun.
We make this cake for St. Patrick’s Day every year. I add a small bit of espresso powder into the recipe and grate crystallized ginger on top. It’s amazing!
I LOVE Spite & Malice! My grandmother taught me when I was little and I even have the app for my phone. Also, a bar that serves cake is next level genius!
This cake is awesome! Makes a gorgeous adult birthday cake, it is so delicious and moist. I did use less butter. As I found the full amount made it too greasy. I t worked well with a simple chocolate ganache and some berries for decoration. Also, for those worried about alcohol, the non-alcoholic Guinness is delicious.
I believe the alcohol cooks out of it in the oven?
@Mollie Chen, Not necessarily, and at the least, not all of it: https://www.isu.edu/news/2019-fall/no-worries-the-alcohol-burns-off-during-cookingbut-does-it-really.html
One cup of beer in an entire cake is probably giving you about one tablespoon of beer in any given slice… if that. It’s really probably not something to worry about. And if it is something to worry about, you might as well then be worried about the amount of alcohol in the vanilla extract too, haha
It IS something to worry about if you are an alcoholic. Not necessarily because of the amount of alcohol you will consume in a slide, but because the act of buying a Guiness (and you probably need to buy a 6 pack) is actually, dangerous…SO. while it’s funny and hahaha to some, others actually really appreciate the thoughtfulness of alternate options being presented.
For alcoholics and those who abstain from booze, search for chocolate cakes with wet coffee added. This one is spectacular, and I’ve subbed coffee for Earl grey tea before which was a dream; https://addapinch.com/the-best-chocolate-cake-recipe-ever/
Has anyone subbed coffee for the Guinness? I have a feeling it would work?
My two favorite chocolate cake recipes (David Lebovitz’s and my grandma’s) use coffee and orange juice, respectively. A whole cup of coffee strikes me as too much, but hey, the great thing about an experimental cake is that you then get to eat cake! And do it for science!
This cake found me again! I totally forgot about it! I first had it in a pub in London in 2010 and ate 3 slices because it was so good. They told me that it was Nigella’s recipe and wrote the name on a paper napkin. I kept the napkin for a year, then lost it, and subsequently forgot the name of the cake. For years after, I would think about the cake and wonder WHICH Nigella cake it was. Seeing these photos just brought back a rush of memories of the cake. Yay! Reunited again!
1. This cake sounds amazing. I want to play cards with my friends and eat alternating salty and sweet snacks. This cake will be included. 2. Alex and Jo — Catherine sounds *awesome.* On her site, she alludes to an amazing essay and juicy story about this essay — could she post it on Cup of Jo?!! The excerpt from her site: “I love to cook. I wrote an article about how many times cooking myself something nice to eat saved me from being sad, from grief, from heartbreak… Someone at the Food Network read it and asked me to make a video audition. They were looking for people to have their own shows. They didn’t choose me. I am still mad at them.”
oooh we will investigate!!
This recipe and I are like high-school sweethearts who reconnected at a reunion, since I got all excited about it before realizing that Guinness wasn’t OK for vegetarians (until 2018 at least some versions of it still contained trace amounts of isinglass, a fish-bladder byproduct). But we’ve been going strong for 7years now, and having fish-free cake is dreamy! Related: A man walks into a fish market carrying a trout under his arm. “Do you make fish cakes?” he asks. “Yes, we do,” replies the fishmonger. “Great,” says the man. “It’s his birthday.”
I appreciate you.
Hahaha!
This looks amazing. Wondering why NYT adapted it from the original Nigella one with so much less butter???
We will try to find out!
I have used the ingredient lists on discontinued Starbucks baked goods to make at home, like their gingerbread loaf bread. Hands-down my favorite winter snack and I feel so, idk, powerful?, that I can just make it at home.
Oh I love the Starbucks gingerbread loaf. I’ve contemplated trying to make it over the holidays but my family is so cookie focused that no one is interested. This might be the winter that I simply don’t care…
I’m not sure how it compares to Starbucks, but Deb’s Gingerbread Snacking Cake is THE dessert of winter time around here! And – dare I say it, it will be better than the ‘bucks because all things Smitten Kitchen are wonderful. Amy, I say you should absolutely go for it and not care. The hard part is that once this bad boy comes out of the oven, everyone WILL care and you’ll find yourself making another one immediately! https://smittenkitchen.com/2013/12/gingerbread-snacking-cake/
You should try it! Find the ingredients list for the Starbucks bread and match it up with the best quick bread recipe you know and it should turn out pretty close if not better, enjoy!!
Hilary, I was just coming on here to link Deb’s gingerbread. Winter isn’t winter until I’ve made that gingerbread!
I am a big reverse engineerer! I am have made or tracked down recipes from a European vacation we just got back from. There is an Umbrian stew that my husband loved called fricco. In terms of ginger punch, I also like a good candied ginger in baked goods (chopped not too fine). The crust and chew and ginger heat are great in baked goods.
Yes! Years ago, Yankee magazine pubkished a recioe for Triple Ginger Cake, containjng powdered, fresh, and crystallized ginger. Great in cold weather, and for breakfast!
So happy to see some love for Umbrian cuisine. We can be a bit of a forgotten region, but the food and wine here is just as delicious as in other parts of Italy (some, ahem, might even say more so!)
I also ask for recipes from restaurants. I usually try to do it when I’m there if they aren’t too busy. They’ve always given them to me. I’m always super polite and tell them I would like the recipe because we enjoyed it so much. We did have a private chef cook a meal for a bunch of us and I asked him for a recipe. He wouldn’t give it to me. We were in Tucson on vacation. I told him I wasn’t going to be competing for his business, but I get it. I like getting them from places when we are on vacation because when I make them at home it reminds us of our vacation. The only issue is I have to scale them down, but it isn’t hard to do that. I got the recipe for mushroom bisque that was served at my niece’s wedding. I made it for her and her husband as a surprise.
I’ve “reverse-engineer” a cake, but I did it with a dip : “ktipiti”. A Greek dip that in France we can find next to the hummus in the lunch/aperitif sections of supermarkets. It’s so easy : wring a big pot of bell peppers. Mix it with a greek yoghurt (milk or vegan) and olive oil, then add chopped feta and grilled onions (the ones found in plastic contenants). You can add chopped mint as a bonus. You can put it in sandwiches, toss it on a salad, or offer it with crisps or cut veggies! I don’t know itmf it’s popular in US ? It’s not that much known in France, but always a success! Also : Thinking of you people living in USA in these dark timed, and sending support particularly to people from minorities.
Oh man, I saw the photo of the tabletop and immediately texted my BFF to request a night of cards and drinks next time we get together (23 days and counting till our visit…). Maybe I’ll make the cake!
If you, like me, find cream cheese frosting to be too much, do half cream cheese and half mascarpone, and give it a good whip in a stand mixer so it’s nice and light. I’ve never made it with this cake, but I imagine it would be heavenly.
Adding a little heavy whipping cream or sour cream can also be a real game changer for cream cheese frosting!
My best friend can reverse engineer restaurant recipes! She’s so talented :) For my birthday one year she replicated the turmeric tonic from Sqirl.
I’ve made this gorgeous cake a few times and it is a WINNER!
My MIL makes the Guinness cake every year for my SIL’s birthday (which is on Christmas) and it is SO, SO good.
This post hit me in two ways- one I love to play spite and malice and had never heard of it before being taught by a friend. I adore playing cards, chatting and snacking. Watching my mom and her friends play cards and gossip at night and occasionally getting to join is one of my best old memories. And Guinness cake, I might just try making it. I had the luxury of partaking in a homemade version at a friend’s birthday a few times. I am sure my memory of it isn’t doing it justice. It is probably even more delicious that I remember.
I once wrote to a cafe in Old Town, Alexandria for their vanilla currant cream scones. And the chef replied with the recipe AND a phone number if I had any questions! This was 20 years ago so I feel safe sharing now (plus I just looked and it’s not on their menu). Vanilla Currant Scones 3 Cups all-purpose flour 3/4 tsp. salt 1 1/2 Tbl. baking powder 3 1/2 Tbl. sugar 6 Tbl. cold, unsalted butter cut into 1 inch pieces 3/4 Cup currants 1 1/2 Tbl. best quality vanilla extract 2 Cups heavy cream Mix all dry ingredients together. Work in cold butter with your fingertips until the butter is the size of oatmeal flakes. Add the vanilla and currants to the cream. Add the liquid quickly and be careful not to overwork. Roll 1/2 inch thick on a lightly floured surface. Cut into shape of choice. Scraps can be re-rolled. Place on a lightly buttered baking sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 10-15 minutes until lightly brown.
“AND a phone number” <3 <3 <3
What cafe? I lived in Old Town Alexandria about 20 years ago and there was a place that had fantastic scones. Don’t remember the name. Will try these… maybe the same?
The Majestic! (more diner than cafe)
Like some of the other commenters, I’m here to talk about the game Spite and Malice. My family is obsessed with this card game, but we call it Spit. It’s ideal for 4-5 players, but we’ve played with as many as 8, and we are INTENSE about it. Lots of yelling. Lots of rules. -We don’t allow two-handed playing, meaning you must hold your play-off pile in one hand and use your other hand for everything else. -We don’t keep score anymore but the winner is required to gather up all the cards and deal for the next round. -You MUST shuffle your cards well, meaning for at least a few minutes before the next round. It’s a game that requires a lot of concentration and my late grandma would always get so annoyed with my mom for being able to play and hold a conversation at the same time. :)
Love those rules! I routinely accuse my family of being “chunky shufflers.” It is a serious offense.
We call it Spit too! My fave card game growing up.
I kid you not, as soon as I saw the picture I knew exactly what cake it was. I’ve made it dozens of times. That Nigella recipe is A+++ I never thought to change it up with ginger or anything else, but maybe I will some time!
I googled spite and malice and realized it’s what my family calls “double solitaire”! If you like this game, I HIGHLY recommend the game Dutch Blitz (described on the deck as “a vonderful goot game”, lol). It’s GREAT for big groups if you get the expansion pack. I think around 8 people can play. (Sorry for all the caps, I love this game so much, haha.) Link to Dutch Blitz: https://www.nobleknight.com/P/2147523516/Dutch-Blitz
We love Dutch Blitz too and get vigorously competitive, playing standing up so we can snatch and place cards faster!
But double solitaire is just….double solitaire! Two people playing solitaire, sharing aces. At least that’s how my families have always played :) Spite & Malice is practically religion for us, I’ve never heard it called anything else!
Agreed, HIGHLY recommend Dutch Blitz. Our household played Dutch Blitz so much that we had to enforce house rules, (all players must be seated, can’t have both hands in the playing area, etc.). We also wore out multiple sets of cards but my mom always had a back up set or two in the storage closet!
Dutch Blitz is ALL CAPS WORTHY!! Takes a second to get the hang of, but if those learning have played solitaire, it’s easy. Although watch out for “beginner’s luck” because after losing to my little sister for an entire evening, she later taught her friends, and then realized she was cheating the entire time!! Haha. My older sister’s kids and husband refuse to play with her because she’s too intense. Family get together’s have gotten hilariously heated (but thankfully no real hurt feelings).
That cake looks so delicious! The restaurant recipe I tracked down was from PokPok in Portland, Oregon. It was an amazing Thai restaurant that closed during the pandemic and I dream about their Khao Soi soup all the time, literally the best flavor. I was able to track down the exact recipe but it’s very labor intensive and I haven’t made it yet. I will someday soon! This is the link if anyone else has this very specific craving. https://www.austinbushphotography.com/blog/blog/pok-pok-preview-2-khao-soi-kai.html
Please invite us all over when you do make it. Looks amazing.
I have both the Pok Pok and Night Market cookbooks and yeah, Khao Soi is definitely lots of prep work. I know a lot of Thai people use Lobo Kao Soi Seasoning mix, Mae Ploy or Maesri Red Curry to make things faster. They don’t want to do all the work either haha. They’re available at your local Asian grocery store or online. Hopefully it can scratch your Khao Soi itch!
I miss Pok Pok so much. We make the steak salad and khao mun som tum from the Pok Pok cookbook every year for Christmas and it’s such a treat. We have tried so many times to recreate the wings but we can’t master it.
I knew it was the Nigella Guinness cake the minute I saw the photo! My husband bakes this every year for my birthday. It’s sooo good.
That’s a perfect birthday gift.
I join the chorus for the The Nigella Guiness chocolate cake! It’s my go-to for St. Patrick’s Day and it is always requested as the birthday cake by my son. I also made it for Joe Biden’s inauguration in 2021, in honor of his Irish heritage. Any excuse to make it!
Yum! Speaking of asking a restaurant for a recipe, does anyone remember the Bon Apetit (maybe Gourmet?) column where people could write in with requests and the magazine would track down recipes and publish them? I think about it all the time, though I guess the internet and the proliferation of restaurant cook books kind of made it obsolete.
I remember! I even asked and got them to get a watermelon salad from a restaurant in Hawaii. Many years ago before a savory watermelon salad was a novel idea
YES! Gourmet did this and then they compiled these recipes into annual books! Best recipe resource ever
The column was “YOU ASKED FOR IT” in Gourmet
Hello, my Gourmet comrades-in-arms! I LOVED to read “You Asked for It,” and pretty much everything else between its covers. The day I learned it was shuttering was a dark day.
This looks so good!! I make Nigella’s Guinness Gingerbread every Christmas and it’s fantastic. This one looks even better, with the cream cheese frosting! I like that it doesn’t seem overly complicated either.
love dynaco! we must be neighbors
should we all descend on dynaco for a cake meetup?
yes please!!!
Here’s the recipe with metric weights (and more butter): https://www.nigella.com/recipes/chocolate-guinness-cake
It’s interesting that on her website Nigella adds cornflour to the icing. I wonder why?
I think the English one is slightly different, in part, because English heavy cream has more milk fat than American heavy cream.
It’s to thicken and stabilize the cream so that it stays fluffy longer. In North America you won’t need to add anything because cream typically contains all kinds of gums and stabilizers. In the UK, it only contains cream.
If you want to add a bit of ginger flavor, I would suggest powdered ginger or finely chopped candied ginger. Fresh ginger when baked tends to lose its flavor entirely. Thanks for giving us the recipe!
Thanks for the tip, Roberta!
PS the Earl Grey yogurt cake posted in the comments a few weeks ago on the birthday cake thread is also so good! Super duper easy to make. And it turned out perfectly. I saved the recipe as my new basic vanilla cake, it can easily adapt – chocolate chips, ganache or cream cheese frosting, sprinkles, berries in the cake, berries on top, pb filling and chocolate on top.
oh I’m so glad to hear that!
This cake looks delicious!!! The very best cake I’ve ever eaten is the Earl Grey chocolate mousse cake from the Park Avenue bakery in Helena Montana. It’s just perfection. I found a recipe online years ago and wrote it down. It’s gone now and way too long to type out here. But this is a slightly simpler version that I bet is also very good. https://confessionsofbakeaholic.blogspot.com/2013/09/earl-grey-mousse-cake.html?m=1 My daughter and myself and my mom rented an adorable house in Helena for the weekend for my mom’s 80th bday last summer and we got her this cake. It’s just the most special beautiful perfectly choclately rich special occasion cake. I’ve made it at home a few times for very special bdays and guests, always a hit.
Helena is such a gem!
This cake is so delicious. I make it every Christmas and St Patrick’s Day. I bake it in a bundt pan that has swirls the top it with a Bailey’s Irish Cream frosting. When you have a slice, it looks like snow covered dark mountains! Adding ginger is a great idea!
yummmmm
@Kaye – same :) Making the irish cream frosting just brings it to another level! I read somewhere that it sorta looks like a glass of Guiness with the cream top and dark color. A real winner of a cake!
I’ll definitely be trying this! Only Nigella can use the word “damp” to describe a cake and immediately inspire you to want some of that dampness. She also describes this cake as “damp” and it’s a good one. https://www.nigella.com/recipes/clementine-cake
hahahaha she is awesome
Should we use ‘moist’ to describe it too? LOL Sorry, Joanna!
My friend made her own wedding cake, and it was layers of Nigella Guinness cake with cream cheese frosting and fresh cherries! Delicious and beautiful. Also: how does Nigella make the term “damp blackness” sound so romantic???
wow that’s amazing.
Yes! I loved the sauce they use for the Green Machine at Bamboo Sushi in Porrtland, Oregon. We asked the sushi chef and made it for ourselves when we made sushi at home. And, I have perfected the Starbucks red pepper egg white bites! The secret is a silicon cupcake mold!
I need to know the recipe for the green machine sauce!! I’m a native Portlander who lives far away now and every time I go home I get Bamboo and my whole order is Green Machines. Please share!
Ooh, ooh, ooh… thank you Alex! And please, please, please Catherine, share some of your recipes with us!
The cake looks lovely … but I’m here to give a shout out to Spite and Malice! I thought my family was the only one that played this complicated, addictive game :) My partner and I have dealt it everywhere (bars, campsites, beaches, fireside at a lodge), and no one ever knows what it is.
freddie and I are meeting up with Alex and her girlfriend for drinks next week to learn the game!! my eyes glaze over when I read game instructions online, so we need them to tell us IRL :)
It’s the best game ever, and Joanna and Freddie will not be leaving the table until they agree!
Spite and Malice is fantastic! We always played with my grandparents growing up; my dad grew up playing with HIS grandparents. So much of our family lore revolves around disputes during spite and malice. Also…my mom hilariously refers to it as “S & M”. As in, after any holiday or family dinner, she’ll say “who’s up for some S and M tonight?” Cracks me up every time.
Joanna, you and Freddie will love it! I cannot imagine learning how to play from written instructions. But it is hysterical to teach people and see it “click.” My grandparents always played for a dime a game and kept a running tally for DECADES. It is that engrossing, it never gets old. And I will totally now and forever refer to it as S&M :)
My husband makes this Guinness cake at least once a year and I can attest to its deliciousness. I have also frosted it with grocery store canned frosting (the horror!) and although homemade cream cheese frosting would be the best, the premade stuff makes it even more easy :)
I’ve known about Nigella’s cake for ages and I think I will finally make it! Thanks for sharing, Alex!