I know what you’re thinking… Cake isn’t a craft, Sarah! But believe me when I say that this particular cake is a craft. An art, even. Yes, friends, I have found the perfect holiday dessert.

But not ANY old chocolate porter cake with whiskey frosting: Chocolate porter cake with candied ginger and a whiskey cream cheese chèvre frosting!

I adapted the recipe from the Autumn 2014 edition of the LCBO’s “Food and Drink” magazine.

For the cake:

1 cup of porter

1 1/4 cups of butter, cut into small chunks, plus a bit extra for buttering the pan

3/4 cup of unsweetened cocoa

2 tsp of ground cinnamon

2 tsp of powdered ginger

2 cups of sugar

1/2 cup of full-fat sour cream

2 eggs

1 tbsp of whiskey (you could substitute maple or orange extract, or another liqueur such as rum or Frangelico)

2 cups of all-purpose flour

2 1/2 tsp of baking soda

1/2 cup of candied ginger, finely chopped

1. Preheat the oven to 350° F.

2. Butter and line (with parchment paper) the bottom of a 9″ springform pan.

3. In a large saucepan of medium-low heat, add the porter and chunks of butter, whisking gently. Once the butter is completely melted, add the cocoa, cinnamon, powdered ginger, and sugar and continue to whisky until everything is blended. Remove the pan from the heat.

4. In a large bowl, beat together the sour cream, eggs, and whiskey. When it is completely combined, pour the egg mixture into the porter mixture, whisking quickly so that the eggs do not scramble.

5. Whisk in the flour, baking soda, and candied ginger.

6. Pour the batter into the pan. Bake for about an hour or until a toothpick comes out cleanly.

7. Cool the cake on a wire rack while still in the springform.

For the icing:

1/3 cup of butter at room temperature

1/2 cup of full-fat cream cheese at room temperature

1/2 cup of chèvre (unripened goat cheese) at room temperature

2 1/2 cups of icing sugar

1 tsp whiskey (you could substitute maple or orange extract, or another liqueur such as rum or Frangelico)

1. In a bowl using a stand or hand mixer, lightly whip the butter, cream cheese, and goal cheese together until smooth.

2. Add the icing sugar and whiskey and continue to beat until it becomes spreadable.

3. Use an off-set spatula to ice the top of the cake. This icing is VERY rich, so I would only ice the very top of the cake, not the sides.

This icing can become quite runny when it is warm. Just pop it into the fridge if this happens.

You can garnish with candied ginger, orange peel, shaved chocolate… Or, if you are hosting an “Outlander” party, with these printable Jamie and Claire toppers. Don’t judge me too hard, please. 🙂

Yeah, they’re totally checking each other out. Bow-chick-a-wow-wow!

See ya next weekend! Have a good one!