Chocolate Chip Irish Cream Cake

Dense and moist with a fluffy interior and a crunchy exterior, Chocolate Chip Irish Cream Cake is a decadent dessert! This chocolate chip loaf cake, made with a large pour of Irish Cream liqueur and finished with an Irish Cream Glaze, is the perfect sweet treat for St. Patrick’s Day or any other occasion. Makes 1 loaf.

Love Irish cream? Don’t miss Irish Cream Biscuits with Boozy Chocolate Gravy and Baileys Coffee!

2024 Update: This recipe was originally shared in March 2017. The recipe and post have been updated to include new photos and measurements by weight, as well as more tips and tricks. I hope you love this cake!

While I love mixing drinks and baking with booze and sipping an occasional beer or cocktail, I sometimes fear y’all are going to think I’m a lush.

And yet, with St. Patrick’s Day looming, I couldn’t help myself with a few more recipes. 

However, this Chocolate Chip Irish Cream Cake was a total shot in the dark. My mom and I made this together after surveying my liquor cabinet and discovering Irish Cream.

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This cake tastes amazing and turned out PERFECTLY the first time, which meant we gobbled it up and then made it again so I could photograph it.

Why I love this recipe:

This Bailey’s Irish Cream Cake is dense and utterly delicious without being too heavy.

The cake itself is a lovely, fragrant vanilla sponge that’s made completely from scratch. (No white or yellow cake mix here! Also, there is no chocolate cake base or a pudding mix involved, either.)

And then it gets lovely pops of chocolate from the chocolate chips in it. The glaze has a nice punch without being too sweet, too!

The only bad thing about this cake is that it’s not kid-friendly. 

While the Irish Cream bakes out of the batter, the cake is topped with an Irish Cream Glaze, which is definitely boozy.

So if you want to give this to kiddos, I advise skipping the glaze or simply mixing it with milk instead of the Irish Cream. 

But if you’re attending an adults-only party, drizzle this bad boy with the Irish Cream glaze and call it a lovely day.

Please note that this is not an Irish Cream Bundt Cake involving a bundt pan, nor is it a cake with layers. This is a loaf cake baked in a loaf pan, and it will not work if you swap out what it’s baked in. The size and shape of the cake pan matters, y’all. So if you’re looking for a bundt cake recipe, this one won’t work. 

Other festive St. Patrick’s Day recipes to try: St. Patrick’s Day Party Food | Mint Chip Guinness Beer Float | Mashed Potato Beef Hand Pies | Guinness Brownies with Cream Cheese Frosting Drizzle | Salted Caramel Guinness Float | Chocolate Guinness Cupcakes with Baileys Frosting

What you need to make this recipe:

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• Loaf pan
• Nonstick cooking spray
• Mixing bowl
• Liquid measuring cup
• Rubber spatula
• Wire rack for cooling

Here’s what you need to get at the grocery store:

• Unsalted butter — this is the main fat in our cake. You can pull it straight out of the fridge, as we’ll melt it before combining it with the sugar.
• Granulated sugar — also known as white sugar, this is the sweetener for our Baileys Irish Cream Cake.
• Eggs — I use large eggs. It’s important that they are at room temperature so that they can better be incorporated into the batter.
• Vanilla extract — the real deal kind will make this cake sing!
• Irish Cream — we always keep Bailey’s in our liquor cabinet, but you can definitely make homemade Irish Cream liqueur with Irish whiskey
• All-purpose flour — we keep unbleached AP flour on hand, but the regular ‘ol AP flour works, too. I have not tried this with a gluten free flour blend.
• Baking powder — this is our leavener. Make sure yours is fresh. It is not the same thing as baking soda.
• Kosher salt — I use a medium-grain kosher salt, but you could use a similarly sized sea salt, too. I do not recommend table salt.
• Dark chocolate chips — but you could use bittersweet or semisweet, too! Regular-sized or mini chocolate chips both work.
• Powdered sugar — also known as confectioner’s sugar, this is what makes our glaze sweet!
• Decorations — originally, I used green sprinkling sugar to decorate this cake, but in recent years, I’ve shaved a dark chocolate bar for a more elegant finish.

How to make this Chocolate Chip Loaf Cake with Irish Cream

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a loaf pan with nonstick baking spray, and set aside.

You may line this loaf pan with parchment paper, too, to assist in lifting the cake out of the pan.

Mix the wet ingredients in a medium-sized bowl. Combine the slightly cooled butter and sugar. Whisk until combined and smooth. 

Crack the eggs into a smaller dish, then add them into the butter/sugar mixture along with the vanilla extract. Give ’em a stir. (You could also do this in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, though I feel like that is not necessary and it can be hand mixed.)

Stir in the Irish Cream, as well.

Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Measure in the all-purpose flour, baking powder and kosher salt. Whisk until combined, then set aside.

Combine the ingredients. 

Pour the flour mixture into the wet ingredients, stirring until just combined.

Sprinkle in the chocolate chips, stirring until just combined.

Pour batter into the prepared pan, and transfer to the preheated oven. 

Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

Remove from the oven, and let the cake cool completely in the pan on a wire rack.

Make the Irish Cream Glaze

While the loaf cake cools, measure the powdered sugar into a smaller glass bowl. Add the pinch of salt, and pour in the Irish Cream.

Whisk (or whip together using an electric mixer on a low speed) until smooth, and set aside.

Decorate the Cake

When the cake has cooled completely, drizzle the Bailey’s glaze over it. 

Add chocolate shavings, green sprinkling sugar or sprinkles on top of the glaze before cutting into slices with a serrated knife.

Enjoy with a dollop of whipped cream and a few additional chocolate shavings.

How to store:

Store this cake wrapped in plastic wrap in the fridge for up to 5 days. You can also slice the cake and store those slices in an airtight container in the refrigerator, too.

Frequently Asked Questions

Interested in this decadent chocolate chip loaf cake with Irish cream?

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