Triple Chocolate Cake

This was supposed to be for a goodbye party for a friend that I attended.  However, I got a phone call from the organizer that the venue was not letting us bring in our own cake.  It then became mine to share with family.  Three types of chocolate in one cake – just like my wedding cake.  However, I didn’t want a heavy cake.  I figured using my favorite chocolate cake recipe was a good start.  For the filling, I was inspired by my favorite cake from my local bakery, chocolate fudge.   Reading online, I found that you can whip chocolate ganache to be fluffier.   I was sold.  Lastly, I felt that I needed a light chocolate buttercream.  Swiss-buttercream is always a crowd pleaser and its light.  It was the perfect topping.   Apparently, I did not make enough ganache to fill all of the layers of the cake.  Instead, I filled the middle layer with some chocolate swiss buttercream.  Next time, I would double the recipe or make two types – dark and white.  Verdict from the Polka Dot family – YUM!, including from my sister who never eats cake.

I couldn't wait to take a bite!

My favorite Chocolate Cake: 

Hershey’s “Perfectly Chocolate” Chocolate Cake

2 cups sugar

1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup HERSHEY’S Cocoa

1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

2 eggs

1 cup milk

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup boiling water

Directions:
Heat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans.  Stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt in large bowl. Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla; beat on medium speed of mixer 2 minutes. Stir in boiling water (batter will be thin). Pour batter into prepared pans.   Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely.

Whipped Chocolate Ganache 

Adapted from Savory Sweet Life  

12 ounces chocolate, chopped into small pieces (I used dark chocolate chips)

1 cup heavy cream

Directions:

Place chocolate pieces in a large bowl.  Heat heavy cream on medium high until it comes to a boil. Remove from heat and immediately pour cream over chocolate and stir until completely mixed and glossy.  Stick it in the fridge to cool down.  Whip the ganache into a frosting.  Be careful when you whip as it if you whip too long, it will curdle and look like the start of butter.

Chocolate Swiss Meringue Buttercream

From Martha Stewart 

5 large egg whites

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar

Pinch of salt

1 pound (4 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into tablespoons, room temperature

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

4 ½ ounces of semisweet chocolate, melted and cooled

Directions

1.       Combine egg whites, sugar, and salt in the heatproof bowl of a standing mixer set over a pan of simmering water. Whisk constantly by hand until mixture is warm to the touch and sugar has dissolved (the mixture should feel completely smooth when rubbed between your fingertips).

2.       Attach the bowl to the mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Starting on low and gradually increasing to medium-high speed, whisk until stiff (but not dry) peaks form. Continue mixing until the mixture is fluffy and glossy, and completely cool (test by touching the bottom of the bowl), about 10 minutes.

3.       With mixer on medium-low speed, add the butter a few tablespoons at a time, mixing well after each addition. Once all butter has been added, fold in vanilla and semisweet chocolate.  Switch to the paddle attachment, and continue beating on low speed until all air bubbles are eliminated, about 2 minutes. Scrape down sides of bowl with a flexible spatula, and continue beating until the frosting is completely smooth. Keep buttercream at room temperature if using the same day.

Once each individual component is completed, put the cake together.  I made four layers out of the chocolate cake.  Be aware, they were thin and could break very easily.  Alternate filling the cake with chocolate ganache and chocolate buttercream. 

A couple of years ago, I found this beautifully decorated cake on Martha Stewart.  Ruffles all around the cake.  Such a simple decoration for a cake.  It was exactly what I was looking for.

I found a video on you tube to help me and tried my best.  Not the worst first attempt. 

 

Enjoy!

Decorating Basics Wilton Method Course Review

This summer I decided that it was time to learn how to decorate a cake, especially if I keep on making them. I figured that it would give me a new ways to make a cake interesting. This four week course taught me how to make zig zags, write, and the ribbon rose in buttercream. The first week we decorated sugar cookies with the star tip.

The next week we had to bring in our first layer cake. We learned how to transfer designs and decorate it. Unfortunately, I didn’t have that much time to make a cake from scratch, so I made a two layer chocolate cake from mix, with cookies and cream pudding in the middle. My frosting was the Wilton Buttercream.  Personally, I’m not a fan of it. To me, it just leaves a coating in your mouth as most Crisco-based frostings do. As you can see, I chose to put a cupcake on my cake. Here’s a picture – be nice, it was my first cake.

The next week was cupcakes. I made vanilla cupcakes from the book Hello Cupcake! As Zach Morris says, “Time Out,” this book gives you amazing ideas on how to decorate cupcakes. “Time In” - This vanilla cupcake recipe, however, I felt was too dense to eat. My favorite sous chef decided that it was much better when cold. In the class, we learned how to make various flowers to decorate our cupcakes. My favorite flower was the yellow shaggy mums.

 

The last week we made the final cake. We learned how to make the ribbon rose. This was my favorite flower for the week. This cake was my favorite cake to make (and all from scratch). It was chocolate cake with a vanilla filling along with a chocolate frosting.

This cake went by the pool in my backyard very quick. My sister’s friends came over for sun and sangria. Let’s just say this cake was devoured by the end of the day. Now onto this amazing recipe.


This recipe for chocolate cake is definitely my go-to chocolate cake. Believe it or not, it is actually from the back of the Hershey’s Unsweetened Cocoa powder box.


Hershey’s “Perfectly Chocolate” Chocolate Cake

2 cups sugar
1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup HERSHEY’S Cocoa
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water
Directions:


Heat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans. Stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt in large bowl. Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla; beat on medium speed of mixer 2 minutes. Stir in boiling water (batter will be thin). Pour batter into prepared pans.  Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely.

After the cake cools, cut off tops to form layers. Insert the Vanilla filling.


Vanilla Cream Filling
From Group Recipies

3 tbsp all purpose flour
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 scraped vanilla bean or 1 tsp vanilla extract

Whisk together the flour and milk and cook in a small saucepan over medium heat until thick. This will only take a few minutes. Sir continuously to prevent the mixture from clumping and do not bring all the way to a boil. When thickened (consistency will be that of a thin pudding or custard), strain with a mesh strainer into a small bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let cool completely to room temperature. When the milk mixture is cool, cream the butter (or shortening) and sugar together in a medium bowl until light. Add in the milk/flour mixture and the scraped vanilla bean seeds (or vanilla extract) and beat at high speed with an electric mixer for 7 minutes, until light and fluffy


Lastly, frost the cake with the Chocolate Buttercream. This recipe is also from Group Recipes.


Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2-3 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla extract


Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and beat, with an electric mixer, until frosting is creamy, 3-5 minutes. Add additional powdered sugar as needed to achieve a thick, but not stiff, frosting that is easy to spread. Add additional milk, if necessary, to thin the frosting if it gets too thick.

Overall, I think this class is a great class to learn how to decorate cakes. I learned a lot of skills, even if they still need work. Personally, I loved this class so much in July that I signed up for the Flowers and Cake Design Wilton Method Course for August. Review coming soon.