Chocolate Stout Cake with Dulce de Leche and Vanilla Bean Buttercream

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter three 8-inch round cake pans or two 9-inch round cake pans. Line bottoms with parchment paper circles, then butter parchment. Set aside.

Place the stout and butter in a large, heavy saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally until the butter melts. Remove from the heat, and whisk in the sifted cocoa powder until smooth. Pour into a heatproof bowl and let cool.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the eggs and sour cream on medium speed until smooth, about 3 minutes. Pour in the cooled cocoa mixture, and mix on medium speed until combined, about 1 minute.

Slowly add the dry ingredients, a little bit at a time, and mix on low speed until incorporated, scraping the sides and bottom of bowl to be sure that all the dry ingredients are incorporated.

Divide batter evenly among prepared pans, using a kitchen scale if possible to be sure the layers are even. Place cake pans on middle oven rack about 2? apart (if using three pans space over two racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven), and bake until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, about 35 to 40 minutes.

Remove from oven and place on a wire rack until cool enough to handle. Run a small knife around the edges of each pan, then gently invert onto wire racks. Cakes should come out cleanly. Allow to cool completely. At this point, the cakes can be frozen until ready to use, up to 1 month. Simply wrap each layer individually in a double layer of plastic wrap and then store inside a large zip top bag. Personally, I always make my cakes a few days in advance and freeze them. I find the frozen cake to be much easier to level and frost than fresh cakes.

To prepare frosting, in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter for on medium speed until very pale & creamy, about 8 minutes. Add powdered sugar, a little at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add cream, vanilla bean, and vanilla extract and beat until light, creamy, and fluffy, about 6 minutes more.

To assemble, level each cake layer by cutting of the domed top with a long serrated knife. Leveling the cakes is an important step for creating a beautiful layer cake. Not to mention eating the scraps is the best part.

Place one layer, flat side down, on a cake stand or serving platter. To keep the platter clean while frosting, place 4 small strips of parchment or waxed paper just under the edges of the cake. This will allow you to frost the cake and then remove these strips cleanly later.

Spread half of the dulce de leche evenly over top of layer, followed approximately 1/2 cup of buttercream. Position second layer on top and press to adhere. Repeat with remaining dulce de leche, another 1/2 cup of buttercream, and final cake layer, flat side up.

Cover the entire cake with a thin layer of buttercream. This “crumb coat” will make frosting the cake easier. Refrigerate for about 15 minutes to allow this crumb coat to set. At this point if you will be coloring the remaining buttercream, add your food coloring to the mixing bowl and beat until color is smooth and uniform.

Remove cake from refrigerator and frost with remaining buttercream, reserving some if necessary for piping decorative details or grass if desired.