This cake is moist, rich, and creamy. Intense chocolate and coffee taste. 4 coffee-infused chocolate cake layers frosted with coffee cream frosting and topped with chocolate ganache.
Ingredients :
cake :
2 cups all-purpose flour (240g)
¾ cup dutch-processed cocoa powder (65g)
1 ½ cups granulated white sugar (300g)
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 tsp espresso powder
½ cup canola or vegetable oil (120ml)
2 large eggs
½ cup buttermilk (120ml)
1 vanilla bean* (or 1 tsp vanilla extract)
1 cup strong hot coffee (240ml)
frosting
2 ¼ cups mascarpone (500g)
1 ¼ cups powdered sugar, sifted (150g)
¼ cup strong hot coffee, room temperature (60ml)
¼ cup heavy cream (60ml)
ganache
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate, finely chopped (6.1oz / 175g)
½ cup heavy cream (120ml)
2 tbsp light corn syrup (30ml)
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350°F / 175°C. Line the bottom and the sides of two 8″ (20cm) baking pans with parchment paper. Set aside.
Cake: In a medium bowl combine flour, cocoa, sugar, baking powder, salt, and espresso powder and stir to combine. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl with a stand or handheld mixer fitted with a whisk or paddle attachment, beat oil, eggs, buttermilk, and vanilla* just until combined. Stir in dry ingredients to combine.
Slowly mix in hot coffee until combined. The batter will be very thin. Divide batter into the two prepared baking pans equally. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick in the center comes out clean. Don’t overbake. I baked mine for 22 minutes. Let cool in the pan for about 20 minutes. Then remove from pan and transfer to a cooling rack. Let cool to room temperature.
Frosting: In a large mixing bowl with a stand or handheld mixer fitted with a whisk or paddle attachment, beat mascarpone until creamy. Sift in powdered sugar and mix until combined and sugar is dissolved. Add cooled hot coffee and stir until incorporated. Stir in heavy cream and mix until creamy.
Assemble the cake: Cut a thin layer off the tops of your cakes to create a flat surface. Then cut each cake in half horizontally. Place one cake layer on a cake stand, turner or serving plate. Spread ¼ of the frosting over the cake. Repeat two more times. Place last cake layer on top and lightly frost the outside and the sides of the cake with the remaining frosting. Chill at least 4 hours in the fridge or overnight.
Ganache: Place chopped chocolate in a large heatproof bowl. Place heavy cream and corn syrup in another heatproof bowl and microwave until very hot, almost boiling for about 1-2 minutes. Pour over chocolate and let stand 1-2 minutes. Whisk until smooth, and the chocolate is completely melted.
Let stand for about 10-15 minutes. Test the consistency of the glaze down the side of the bowl. It should drip. The longer it stands, the thicker it gets. If it is too firm, re-warm it a few seconds in the microwave. Once it reached the desired consistency, it’s ready to spoon on top of the cake (read the blog post and watch 60-sec. video for additional information and better understanding).
Remove cake from the fridge and spoon the glaze little by little around the sides and let it drip off the sided. Do this with a small spoon and do one drip at the time. Then spoon or pour the rest of the glaze on top of the cake (maybe you don’t need all) and level with an offset spatula. Place cake in the fridge for 15 minutes that the glaze gets firm if needed. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge up to 3 days.
