Chocolate Cake

I saw a picture of Martha Stewart's cake and thought that was a great cake for Easter!  So I set out to make it.  The above picture is my attempt at it.  It doesn't quite look like her elegant one, but the taste was amazing.  The quality and texture of the cake was wonderful.  The frosting was sweet but that was because I substituted milk chocolate for the bittersweet.  Next time I would probably use the bittersweet.  Definitely a keeper!

Source: www.marthastewart.com  Chocolate Cake with Crepe Paper Flowers and a Phyllo Nest

Posted by Lisa

• For the Cake

  • Unsalted butter, room temperature, for pans
  • 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 1/2 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 1/4 cups unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder, plus more for pans
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
  • 2 large eggs, plus 1 large egg yolk
  • 1 1/4 cups buttermilk
  • 3/4 cup warm water
  • 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1/2 cup dark rum
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract
• Make the cake: Butter two 10-by-2-inch round cake pans. Line with parchment cut to fit, and butter parchment. Dust with cocoa, and tap out excess. Sift flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into the bowl of a mixer. Add remaining ingredients. Mix on low speed until smooth, about 3 minutes. Divide batter among prepared pans.
• Bake, rotating pans halfway through, until a toothpick inserted into centers of cakes comes out clean, about 35 minutes. Let cool in pans on wire racks for 45 minutes. Run a knife around edges of cakes to loosen, and turn onto racks. Remove parchment, turn cakes right side up, and let cool completely.

• For the Frosting

  • 4 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 12 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
  • 1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 18 ounces bittersweet chocolate, melted
  • 1 1/2 cups sour cream
• Make the frosting: Sift confectioners' sugar, cocoa, and salt into a bowl. In the bowl of a mixer, beat cream cheese and butter on medium-high speed until fluffy, about 4 minutes. Reduce speed to low. Gradually add sugar mixture, beating until combined. Beat in melted chocolate and sour cream until combined

• For the Garnish

  • 1 thick 16-ounce block bittersweet chocolate, room temperature
  • Confectioners' sugar, for dusting (optional)
  • Phyllo nest
  • Small candy-coated chocolate eggs
• Make the garnish: Using a vegetable peeler, scrape chocolate at a 45-degree angle. Using a spatula, transfer curls to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes (or up to 4 days).
  (I tried this and it did not work...at all.  I ended up tempering my own chocolate and then spreading it on the back of a cookie sheet, and using a small metal spatula, scraping it up before it set completely and making curls.  It actually worked. Surprised me!  Beware that the chocolate sets up pretty fast so you have to move quickly)

• For the Nest

  • 2 teaspoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more for mold
  • 1/2 ounce ( 1/2 cup) kataifi (a type of phyllo), thawed
  • Cocoa powder, for dusting
• Make the nest: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly brush a 1/3-cup-capacity round silicone mold with butter. In a bowl, gently toss butter and kataifi to combine.
• Lift kataifi out of bowl, gently stretching strands to form a loose rope. Lay 1 end in the cupped fingers of 1 hand. Gently spiral rope to shape into a nest.
• Fit nest into mold, pulling up edges to rest over rim. Place on a baking sheet. Bake until golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool completely in mold on a wire rack. Unmold. Dust with cocoa.

I tempered good quality chocolate and made the curls that way.

1. To assemble: Using a serrated knife, trim tops of cakes to create level surfaces. Reserve trimmings

1. Place 1 cake, cut side up, on a cake stand. Spread 2 cups frosting over top. Top with remaining cake, cut side up.

1. Spread remaining frosting over top and sides

1. Using tweezers, gently press chocolate curls to sides of cake. Dust top with confectioners' sugar if desired. Decorate with nest, chocolate eggs, and flowers

1.  Finely grind cake trimmings in a food processor

1. Sprinkle crumbs over top of cake.

Perfect Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Frosting

Submitted by Heather

Just keeping it real with the picture above.  You know I can't get a fancy cake made without the rest of the house falling to pieces.  With 5 kiddos, it doesn't take long to trash the house.  But the taste of the cake made up for the chaos that ensued!

This is a really good chocolate cake.  I don't use the word "perfect" lightly, but this has become my "go-to" chocolate cake for special occasions. It has a light crumb, tastes like chocolate (unlike some cakes that only LOOK like chocolate) and cuts nicely.  I wish I had enough time to do a taste test with other chocolate cakes so that I could definitively say which one is the best, but just know that this one is very good and worth the time to make it.  I was making up excuses to level the cakes over and over just so that I could taste the cake again.  I started out with about 2 1/2 inch layers and was left with about 1 1/2 inch layers by the time I was done "testing"! Just make sure that you don't overcook this cake!  I made that mistake the first time and it was very dry.  I was so annoyed, that I immediately made the cake again - much to the amazement and happiness of my family. It was moist and wonderful the next time.

The frosting is also very good.  How can it not be, when it is mostly melted chocolate?  Make this cake for your next birthday or celebration and wait for the chocoholics to sing your praises.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, plus more for pans
3/4 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder, plus more for pans
1/2 cup boiling water
2 1/4 cups sugar
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
3 cups sifted cake flour (not self-rising)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk

Directions:
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Arrange two racks in center of oven. Butter three 8-by-2-inch round cake pans; line bottoms with parchment. Spray the pans with vegetable oil spray. Sift cocoa into a medium bowl, and whisk in boiling water. Set aside to cool.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter on low speed until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in sugar until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes, scraping down sides twice. Beat in vanilla. Drizzle in eggs, a little at a time, beating between each addition until the batter is no longer slick, scraping down the sides twice.

In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, and salt. Whisk milk, little by little, into reserved cocoa mixture until smooth. With mixer on low speed, alternately add flour and cocoa mixtures to the batter, a little of each at a time, starting and ending with flour mixture.

Divide batter evenly among the three prepared pans. Bake until a cake tester or toothpick inserted into center of each layer comes out clean (or almost clean), 30 to 45 minutes, rotating the pans for even baking. DO NOT OVERBAKE. Transfer layers to wire racks; let cool, 15 minutes. Turn out cakes, and return to racks, tops up, until completely cool.

Remove parchment from bottoms of cakes. Reserve the prettiest layer for the top. Place one cake layer on a serving platter; spread 1 1/2 cups chocolate frosting over the top. Add the second cake layer, and spread with another 1 1/2 cups frosting. Top with third cake layer. Cover outside of cake with the remaining 3 cups frosting. Serve.

Source: Moist Devil's Food Cake by Martha Stewart

FROSTING:

16 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped

8 Tbsp. unsalted butter (1 stick)

1/3 C. sugar

2 Tbsp. corn syrup

2 tsp. vanilla extract

1/4 tsp. table salt

1 1/4 C. heavy cream (cold)

Melt chocolate in heatproof bowl set over saucepan containing 1 inch of barely simmering water, stirring occasionally until smooth.  Remove from heat and set aside.  Meanwhile, heat butter in small saucepan over medium-low heat until melted.  Increase heat to medium; add sugar, corn syrup, vanilla, and salt and stir with heatproof rubber spatula until sugar is dissolved, 4-5 minutes.  add melted chocolate, butter mixture, and cream to clean bowl of standing mixer and stir to thoroughly combine.

Place mixer bowl over ice bath and stir mixture constantly with rubber spatula until frosting is thick and just beginning to harden against sides of bowl, 1 to 2 minutes (frosting should be 70 degrees). Place bowl on standing mixer fitted with paddle attachment and beat on medium-high speed until frosting is light and fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes.  Stir with rubber spatula until completely smooth.

Source: America's Test Kitchen Old Fashioned Chocolate Layer Cake (frosting)

Giant Chocolate Cake

I have made this cake a couple of times, once with the ganache and this time I just used the cake portion.  It is really a delicous cake.  I am very please with the consistency and the texture/flavor of it.  This time I poured 1/2 a jar of warmed up caramel over the cake (punctured with holes when out of the oven first) then topped with cool whip and crushed up butterfinger candy bars.  It was my husbands birthday cake request.  Delish!

Posted by Lisa

Source: www.epicurious.com

Cake:

• Nonstick vegetable oil spray
• 2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup plus 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 cup boiling water
• 2 cups sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

**(I did not make the ganache this time.  I topped with caramel ice cream topping, cool whip, and butterfinger candy bars chopped up)**  (to use the caramel, take a fork and repeatedly puncture the top of the cake when it is still warm and pour the warmed up caramel over the cake and let it soak in)

Ganache:

• 5 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) chilled butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
• 3/4 cup sugar
• Edible flowers* (for decoration)

For cake: Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray 12-inch round cake pan with 2-inch-high sides with nonstick spray. (I only had a 10 inch spring for pan, had to cook for about 40 to 45 minutes but turned out great...truthfully I think the larger pan size would produce a very thin cake.  The picture shows the thickness of the 10 inch cake.  I did not cut the cake into 2 layers.)Line bottom of pan with parchment paper round. Spray parchment paper with nonstick spray. Dust pan with flour, tapping out any excess. Sift 2 cups flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into medium bowl. Sift cocoa into another medium bowl. Pour 1 cup boiling water over cocoa; whisk to blend. Using electric mixer, beat sugar and eggs in large bowl until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add butter to egg mixture and beat until blended. Beat in cocoa mixture. Add buttermilk and vanilla; beat to blend. Add dry ingredients and beat on low just to blend. Transfer batter to prepared pan; smooth top.

Bake cake until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 38 minutes. Cool cake completely in pan on rack. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and let stand at room temperature.

Place chopped chocolate, butter, and vanilla in medium bowl. Bring cream and sugar to boil in medium saucepan, stirring to dissolve sugar. Carefully pour hot cream mixture into bowl with chocolate. Let stand 1 minute. Whisk until melted and smooth. Chill ganache until thickened and spreadable, about 1 hour.

Carefully invert cake onto large cake plate. Gently remove parchment paper. Spread ganache over top and sides of cake and allow ganache to set, about 1 hour. DO AHEAD: Cake can be made 1 day ahead. Cover with cake dome and refrigerate. Let stand at room temperature 1 hour before decorating.

Decorate cake with edible flowers. Cut into wedges and serve.