Guinness Chocolate Brownies

Guinness makes a batch of brownies extra rich and extra chocolatey! Make these for St. Patrick's Day or any day. They're a crowd-pleasing treat any time of year.

Elise Bauer

Elise founded Simply Recipes in 2003 and led the site until 2019. She has an MA in Food Research from Stanford University.

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Elise Bauer
Updated February 16, 2021
Elise Bauer
Guinness Brownies
Elise Bauer

Guinness Brownies anyone?

I don't know how they celebrate St. Patrick's Day in the Emerald Isle, but it amuses me to no end that here in the States we get decked out in green (lest we invite a pinch), make corned beef and cabbage, and enjoy Ireland's most celebrated foamy export—Guinness extra stout.

You know St. Pat's is close at hand when the grocery stores start stacking cases of it. It's malty, hearty, and rich, and if you want to drink your dinner, Guinness is the best way to do it.

It's also wonderful with chocolate, which is why I've been making these Guinness brownies for weeks. The rich flavor of the stout just enhances chocolate in baked goods. (If you're looking for more evidence, check out our Chocolate Guinness Cake. It's awesome!)

Several Guinness Brownies On Cutting Board
Elise Bauer

How to Bring Out More Guinness Flavor in These Brownies

For these brownies, we are reducing the Guinness to concentrate the flavor in the liquid, and then building up our brownie batter in the same pot, with butter, sugar, cocoa, eggs, vanilla, flour, and pecans.

The result? A dense, moist, chewy chocolate brownie with the malty notes of Guinness. Great with a dollop of vanilla ice cream or a glass of milk.

Birds Eye View of Moist Guinness Brownies on Wax Paper
Elise Bauer

(BTW, if you've given up alcohol and/or sugar for Lent, I think they make an exception for St. Patrick's Day. At least that's my story and I'm sticking with it.)

Love Guinness? Try These Other Recipes

Guinness Chocolate Brownies

Prep Time 5 mins
Cook Time 55 mins
Total Time 60 mins
Servings 16 to 25 brownies

Ingredients

  • 1 cup (240 ml) Guinness Extra Stout
  • 10 Tbsp (1 1/4 sticks, 140 g) unsalted butter
  • 1 1/4 cup (250 g) sugar
  • 3/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp (85 g) unsweetened natural cocoa
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
  • 3/4 cup (96 g) flour
  • 2/3 cup  (90 g) chopped pecans, optional

Method

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F:

    Line an 8x8 square baking pan with parchment paper or foil in a way that there is overhang over two sides of the dish making it easy to remove the brownies once they are baked. Brush with a little butter or baking spray.

  2. Boil Guinness, reduce by half:

    Place the Guinness stout in a medium saucepan (2-quart) and bring to a boil. Watch out for the stout bubbling up too much. Boil until the liquid reduces by half.

  3. Progressively add butter, sugar, cocoa, salt, cinnamon to the Guinness, then let cool:

    Stir the butter into the reduced Guinness until melted. Add the sugar and whisk until dissolved. Whisk in the cocoa, salt, and cinnamon.

    Whisk until smooth. Remove from heat and let cool until just lightly warm to the touch.

  4. Stir in the vanilla, eggs, flour, nuts:

    When the mixture has cooled until just lightly warm to the touch, stir in the vanilla extract and eggs. Stir in the flour until smooth. Stir in the nuts.

  5. Bake:

    Pour into the prepared lined baking pan. Bake at 350°F for 30 minutes. Cool on a rack. When completely cool lift the brownies out of the pan. Cut into 16 to 25 squares or rectangles.