Today’s recipe is for something extra special. Impossibly rich and decadent, this Baileys Cake is a little labor intensive, but I promise you’ll love the result!
Guys! Guyyyyyys! I’m so excited. Why?
Away From the Box is turning ONE!
That’s right, I have been chugging along for an entire year now. It has been quite a year with all kinds of up and downs, amazing recipes and some that will never see the light of day.
Blogging is a surprising amount of work (seriously, it’s so much more than you think) and some days it is tough to turn out a new recipe for you all, but it is such a rewarding experience and I just love it.
So thank you for joining me on this wild ride! I love hearing your feedback and seeing you all make my recipes, so please keep it coming!
A few weeks ago I celebrated my birthday, today is the blogiversary and in a few weeks we will be celebrating Kevin’s birthday – so it has basically been a non-stop party in my house all month-long.
So since I basically don’t make cake at any other time of year, I decided there’s no better opportunity to kill a day making a special cake. And not just any cake, but this delicious, rich, chocolaty Bailey’s Mousse Cake!
It’s a little bit of a process, I’m not gonna lie.. Cakes in general are a little labor intensive when you are making them from scratch. But they’re such a beautiful final product it’s totally worth it.
I won’t bore you too much with a long drawn out explanation of the process (you can find all of that within the recipe) but here’s what you need to know. The cake is three layers: a dense chocolate cake, chocolate ganache, and fluffy chocolate mousse. Then we top it with a whipped chocolate icing and spoiler alert(!!) there is Baileys in every step.
There are a few gadgets to help with the construction of this bad boy, but they aren’t totally necessary. However, if you choose not to use these items, please understand the cake might not come out as pictured.
So, this is what I used in making this: a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and whisk, 8″ round cake pan, cake collar (or parchment paper), angled icing spatula, turntable cake stand, piping bags and decorating tips and couplers (okay, so I forgot the tips while I was decorating but it would have made my life so much easier). Wow, that was a lot of links (They are affiliate links, by the way).
These items do make the entire process go a lot smoother and you’ll have a beautiful end result that is relatively stress-free!
What do you think of this recipe? Sound off in the comments below!
Until next time. X
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Items used in this recipe:
This post contains affiliate links. While at no extra cost to you, purchasing an item using one of these links provides us a small commission.
Baileys Cake
Baileys Chocolate Mousse Cake
Chocolate cake and Baileys Mousse come together for a rich and decadent Baileys Cake. Each layer is infused with the smooth, creamy taste of Irish Cream.
- Prep Time: 7 hours
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Total Time: 7 hours 35 minutes
- Yield: 8-12 servings 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
For the Cake:
- 6 TB unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 c. granulated sugar
- 6 TB sour cream
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
- 1 egg, room temperature
- 1 egg white, room temperature
- 1 c. AP flour
- 6 TB cocoa powder
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 c. Baileys Irish Cream
For the Mousse:
- 1 1/4 tsp unflavored powdered gelatin
- 1 1/2 TB water
- 1 2/3 c. semi sweet chocolate chips
- 1/2 c. Baileys Irish Cream
- 1 3/4 c. heavy cream, ice cold
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1/2 c. confectioners sugar
For the Ganache:
- 2/3 c. dark chocolate chips
- 2 TB heavy cream
- 2 TB Baileys Irish Cream
For the Whipped Icing:
- 1/2 c. heavy cream, ice cold
- 1 TB cocoa powder
- 1/3 c. confectioners sugar
- 1/4 tsp vanilla
Instructions
For the Cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and line the bottom of a 8″ round cake pan with parchment paper. Butter the sides.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes.
- Add the sour cream, vanilla and irish cream, then add the egg and egg white in one at a time, mixing in between additions.
- Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt in a separate bowl.
- Add the flour mixture to the mixer about 1/2 c. at a time, making sure it is fully combined before adding the rest.
- Pour the batter in the prepared cake pan and bake for 30-35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Let cool for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack or a decorator’s turntable. Use a cake wire or large serrated knife to slice the top of the cake, leaving a flat surface.
For the Mousse:
- Pour the water in a small bowl and sprinkle the powdered gelatin over it in a single layer. Set aside for about 5 minutes.
- In a small saucepan, bring the irish cream and 1/4 c. of the heavy cream to a boil. Remove from heat and add the gelatin to the mixture. Stir until fully dissolved.
- Add the chocolate chips and stir, then let sit, covered, for about 5 minutes. Whisk until the chocolate melted and the mixture is smooth. Set aside to cool.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the remaining 1 1/2 c. of heavy cream, vanilla and powdered sugar on high speed until stiff peaks form.
- Gently fold in the chocolate mixture half at a time, making sure the mousse is light and fluffy and fully combined.
For the Ganache:
- In a small saucepan, bring the heavy cream and irish cream to a boil. Add the chocolate chips and stir, then let sit, covered, for about 5 minutes.
- Stir until the chocolate is fully melted and combined and set aside to cool.
To Assemble:
- If using a cake collar, wrap it around the base of your already trimmed cake and secure it. Make sure the parchment paper has been removed from the bottom.
- If using parchment paper, place about 24 inches of plastic wrap in the bottom of the 8″ round cake pan with at least 6 inches hanging off each side of the pan. These will be your handles to remove the cake later.
- Remove the parchment paper from the bottom of the cake and place inside the pan. Trim the parchment so that it is the circumference of your cake + about 2″ and at least 4″ high. Wrap it around your cake so that it sits between the cake and the pan.
- Pour the ganache on top of the cake, spreading it in an even layer.
- Spread the mousse in an even layer on top of the ganache.
- Chill in the fridge for at least 6 hours, enough to firm up.
- Once firm, remove from the fridge. If you used a cake collar, slowly peel it off of the sides. If you used parchment paper, use the plastic wrap to remove the cake from the pan then slowly peel the parchment off of the sides.
- If you need to fix the sides of the cake, run a spatula or butter knife under hot water and smooth the sides.
For the Whipped Icing:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip together the heavy cream, cocoa powder, confectioners sugar and vanilla until stiff peaks form. If you’d like a more substantial frosting, add more confectioners sugar 1 TB at a time until you reach desired consistency.
- At this point, you can either use the icing to frost the top of the cake in an even layer, or you can place a piping bag in a drinking glass, tip at the bottom and fill with the icing.
- Pipe round peaks, stars, or large roses. Then garnish with fruit, sprinkles, chocolate shavings, candy or whatever you like!
Keywords: baileys cake, baileys mousse cake, baileys chocolate cake, irish cream, irish cream cake, chocolate mousse cake
Recipe adapted from Life, Love and Sugar.
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Janice says
Can this cake be made ahead and frozen? Not sure if gelatine products can be frozen.
Kate says
Making this recipe now! Thanks for sharing it. I cannot wait to try. Just took cake out of oven – it came out perfectly after 34 minutes. I also just finished the mousse (mousse came together lovely and is in the fridge). How long does the cake need to sit at room temp until it is assembled? I didn’t make the ganache yet because I wasn’t sure if it should be made closer to assembly… Thanks!
★★★★★
Marybeth says
can you use an 8 inch springform pan to bake the cake part? I would be easier (i think). Your recipe looks wonderful and I can wait to make it…….:)
Sarah | AwayFromTheBox says
Yes, I think that would work! The biggest concern is the mousse getting stuck to the sides of the pan – you’ll probably still need to use a cake collar or parchment for that part.
Angela says
Really loved the recipe! Thank you so much!!
★★★★★
Annette says
Absolutely wonderful! Will make it again and again.
★★★★★