An Easy Sweet Treat for St. Patrick’s Day: Guinness Brownies with Irish Cream Frosting

Guinness Brownies with Irish Cream Frosting start with a box mix for an easy sweet treat to help you Eat, Drink and Be Irish this St. Patrick’s Day!

Everyone’s a little bit Irish on St. Patrick’s Day and these Guinness Brownies with Irish Cream Frosting

are a sweet ending to your celebration to help you Eat, Drink and Be Irish!

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Guinness Stout enhances the flavor of the chocolate in the same way coffee does,

resulting in a richer chocolate flavor.

You won’t find these brownies boozy. . . just a subtle note of Irish Cream in the frosting

and chocolate-malt flavor from the Guinness Stout.

These brownies start with a box mix for a quick and easy dessert!

I used Ghirardelli Dark Chocolate Brownie Mix but feel free to use the brownie mix of your choice.

Brownie mixes call for adding an egg, water and oil to the mix.

To make these brownies, substitute Guinness Stout for amount of water called for

and melted KerryGold unsalted butter for the oil, for a richer tasting brownie.

KerryGold Irish butter is a European-style butter, which has less water and

a higher butterfat content than American butter, resulting in a richer flavor.

Follow the directions on the box for mixing and baking your brownies.

For easy removal and cutting brownies,

line your pan with parchment paper that extends over the edge of the pan.

Ghirardelli brownies are thick and moist may appear slightly under baked just out of the oven,

but will continue to cook as they cool.

Allow brownies to cool completely in pan before frosting.

These brownies are rich with the frosting!

You can easily cut your squares into triangles for more servings.

To make the Irish Cream Buttercream Frosting here’s what you’ll need:

☘️ 1/2 cup Irish KerryGold unsalted butter (1 stick), softened

☘️ 2 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted so lump free (*plus more for added sweetness if desired)

☘️ 2 tablespoons Bailey’s Irish Cream or Homemade Irish Cream

☘️ 2 – 4 tablespoons milk or Guinness, added to desired consistency

☘️ 1/4 tsp. salt

*Taste your frosting, if not sweet enough add up to 1 more cup of sifted confectioners’ sugar, 1/2 cup at a time.

Tip: Chill brownies in refrigerator to allow frosting to set for easier cutting.

To cut, remove brownies from pan using edges of parchment paper.

For cleaner cuts, wipe knife after each cut; cut into 16 squares or 32 triangles.

Store brownies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to three days.

Homemade Irish Cream

An easy blender recipe that’s ready in 5 minutes. SO much better than the store brand!

Notes for better baking:

Factors that affect baking times are the age of your oven, electric vs. gas, humidity, elevation and ultimately the pan you use.

When baking in a dark pan, reduce your oven temperature 25 degrees. To be on the safe side, start checking about 10 minutes before the recipe says it should be done. Ovens can vary by 50 degrees higher or lower than the desired temperature. Use an inexpensive oven thermometer to get the most accurate reading. This oven thermometer has 4.4 out of 5 stars with 23,098 global ratings.

I’m a big fan of this precut parchment paper.

It’s unbleached, comes four different sizes, is greaseproof, waterproof and withstands oven temps up to 425°F.

Not only does the parchment paper make it easier to remove your loaf from the pan, but it also helps regulate the oven temperature, serving as a barrier between your batter and pan, neutralizing hot spots.

Spray your pan and then line your pan with parchment that hangs over the edge of your pan. The spray will keep your paper in place and slipping so no batter gets underneath the paper. The ends of the paper provide ‘handles’ making it easy to lift your loaf from the pan.

If you’re in the market for a new nonstick brownie or cake pan, I love my OXO Good Grips Non-Stick Pro Cake Pan Square 9 x 9 Inch!

It’s heavy gauge aluminized steel and provides fast, even heat distribution. It has 4.8 out of 5 stars with 2,290 global ratings

Glass vs. Metal Pans:

The insulating properties of glass make it slow to heat up and consequently it retains heat longer than metal. If you have ever baked brownies or a cake in a glass pan, you probably discovered to your dismay that the edges are hard and dry by the time the center has set.

The rule of thumb for baking in a glass pan is to lower the oven temperature by 25°F and bake up to 10 minutes longer.

Here’s a fun pan for brownie lovers!

This Chicago Metallic Professional Slice Solutions 9 x 13 Brownie Pan  features a removable divider to create 18 perfectly sliced uniform brownies without knife. It’s also handy for blondies, lemon bars, marshmallow treats or even coffee cake and has 4.5 out of 5 stars with 1,882 global ratings

Print Recipe

Guinness Brownies with Irish Cream Frosting

A sweet ending to your St. Patrick’s Day celebration to help you Eat, Drink and Be Irish! ☘️

Prep Time20 minutes mins

Cook Time40 minutes mins

Cooling time45 minutes mins

Total Time1 hour hr 45 minutes mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American, Irish

Keyword: dark chocolate brownies, Ghirardelli Brownie Mix, Guinness Stout, Irish Buttercream Frosting

Servings: 16 brownies

Equipment

• mixer

Ingredients

Guinness Brownies

• 20 oz. box Ghirardelli Dark Chocolate Brownie Mix
• 1/4 cup Guinness Stout room temperature
• 1 large egg room temperature
• 1/2 cup KerryGold unsalted butter melted (1 stick)

Irish Cream Buttercream Frosting

• 1/2 cup KerryGold unsalted butter softened (1 stick)
• 2 cups confectioners’ sugar sifted so lump free plus more for added sweetness if desired
• 2 tablespoons Bailey’s Irish Cream or Homemade Irish Cream
• 2 - 4 tablespoons milk or Guinness Stout to reach desired consistency
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Instructions

To make brownies:

• Preheat oven as directed (325 F for Ghirardelli Dark Chocolate Brownie Mix) brownie mix box.
• Line an 8 x 8 or 9 x 9 pan, sprayed with nonstick spray and lined with parchment paper with edges of paper hanging over edges of pan.
• Place Guinness, melted butter and egg in medium bowl. Stir until fully mixed. Add brownie mix and stir until well blended. Spread in prepared pan.
• Bake for 40 – 45 minutes until brownies are set in middle and edges have begun to pull away from sides of pan. Cool completely in pan before frosting.

To make frosting:

• Cream butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until smooth and fluffy.
• Gradually beat in 2 cups confectioners' sugar until fully incorporated. Add salt and 2 tablespoons Irish Cream. Beat an additional 2 minutes. Taste; if not sweet enough add up to 1 more cup of sifted confectioners’ sugar, 1/2 cup at a time.
• Add milk or Guinness a tablespoon at a time, beating until reaching desired consistency.
• Frost brownies immediately or store buttercream in an airtight container at room temperature for up to three days. After frosting, chill briefly to allow frosting to set for easier cutting. When ready to cut, lift brownies from pan using parchment paper edges. Wipe knife after each cut for cleaner cuts. Cut into 16 squares or 32 triangles for more servings.

Notes

• Different brownie mixes call for different amounts of oil and/or water. Use the quantity called for on your specific box mix substituting room temperature stout for water and melted Kerrygold butter for oil.
• Ghirardelli brownies are thick and moist so a toothpick method for determining doneness is not an accurate indication. Make sure your oven temperature is correct and bake according to the time listed on the package. They may appear slightly under baked just out of the oven, but will continue to cook as they cool.
• Ovens can vary by 50 degrees higher or lower than the desired temperature. Use an inexpensive oven thermometer to get the most accurate reading.
• KerryGold is an Irish (European-style) butter which has a richer taste as a result of a higher butterfat content and less water than an American butter.
• Store brownies in an airtight container. Keep at room temperature for about three days, or freeze for up to three months.

“There are two kinds of people, those who are Irish and those who wish they were.”

☘️ ☘️ ☘️

The lucky winners of my Eat Drink and Be Irish Giveaway are:

☘️  Tracey A.  ☘️ Pat S.  ☘️ Dorinda S.

Thanks to all who entered!

Find a round-up to help you Eat, Drink and Be Irish, with 17+ recipes

and St. Patrick’s Day inspiration from the kitchen to the table, HERE.

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