So many good chocolate cake recipes, so little time.....


I'll be making the cake on Monday. My weekend plans just got changed and I'll not be able to work in the kitchen til then.

Lorien I am definitely going to try your recipe next. It seems to have all the elements that I am looking for. I have to make another car cake in a couple weeks for my dads birthday so I'll try carving it too.
Linda, let us know what you think!

I also got to thinking about your original question. Seeing how the cake is a double cake, what would happen if you left out the melted chocolate all together? Have you tried this yet? It could make a moist cake without the gooiness. I,m not too sure how it would affect taste though.

Should I use cake flour in Skye's recipe or is it safer to use ap?

Linda thanks for answering my PM! I'm about to start Skye's recipe, guess I will go with AP :/ I'll let y'all know the verdict!

It's in the oven and it is a gorgeous batter color wise! SO dark! :]

I'm nervous because it was bubbly and it was very liquidy but I wasn't so nervous about that as Skye said it would be! The house smells YUMMY! :]

I used AP with it, I can imagine the cake flour being a pain in the butt with that recipe lol!

I used AP with Skye's and I used dark brown sugar so in about 30 minutes we will see! I'm excited! haha

They are still in the oven but the middle of both just sank about an inch!

Can I join in?

This is my favourite chocolate cake and the recipe was given to me by a friend. Its very moist and chocolately so I'm not sure I could carve it, but I've made it as cake rounds and doubled the recipe for a quarter sheet cake.
This recipe is for 2 8inch rounds.

green and blacks devils food cake


Ingredients:
7.5oz Plain Flour
8.5 oz Caster Sugar
1.25 level teaspoon bi-carbonate soda
1 level teaspoon of salt
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
2oz Cocoa
6oz Soft Margarine or soft butter
8 fluid oz Milk
2 teaspoons vanilla essence
2 standard eggs
50g grated Green and Blacks milk chocolate*
*this is a 34% cocoa milk chocolate, so I suppose any alternative similar to this would do.


Method
Grease and lightly flour two 8 inch round cake tins. Sift together flour, caster sugar,salt, bi-carbonate of soda, cream of tartar and cocoa. Add fat, milk and vanilla essense, mix until smooth.
Beat eggs and mix. Add grated chocolate. Mix. Pour into the prepared tins and bake in a moderate oven (350 deg F- 180 Deg C - Gas Mark 4) for 30-35 minutes till the cake is springy to touch, turn onto a wire tray and allow to cool or skewer comes out clean.
Once cooled sandwich the cakes together with a little chocolate icing. Then if you wish, coat the top and sides with the remaining icing. Then eat it all before anyone else does...its yum!

Chocolate icing:

Ingrediants
1.5 oz Cocoa powder
300ml/ 10ozs Double Cream
150g/ 5ozs soft butter
100g/3.5 ozs icing sugar
100g/3.5ozs Green and Blacks milk chocolate

Method

Melt your chocolate (either using your microwave or in glass bowl over a pan of hot water). While the chocolate is melting, whip your double cream in a mixing bowl until it forms peaks. Once the chocolate has melted, add it to the bowl with the cream and mix well. The add your icing sugar, butter and cocoa powder and mix well.
Then use to sandwich and coat the cake.

BTW, just used the hersheys mix to make cupcakes. nyum nyum

I'm curious too. You can save it, just use the bottoms and invert them so the tops are in the middle. Think of it as more room for filling.

I hope Skye checks in here too. I'm curious as to what she thinks.

Tell us how you mixed it and for how long. Did you use a stand mixer? What speed did you use. What size are your pans?

Will check in later and see what you have to say.

Oh, and how does it taste?

Ok so Skye's recipe, Everyone has tasted it and the people who LOVE dark chocolate, they love the cake! But the others prefer the epicurious, I do too. I don't think the cake was sweet enough for me. Which, I'm weird. Lol My hubby's input "it taste like chocolate cake." WOW thanks!

Keep in mind the tastings were without icing just scraps.

I also made the Hershey cake, sub coffee for the water, and it baked BEAUTIFUL! It rose to the top of the pan and there was no dome. It tastes great, I still like the taste of the Epicurious better, but the Hershey's does seem better to work with, I froze and I'm going to torte after thawing, we'll see!

Skye's cake I only mixed until it was blended, not longer. I used a KA and I put it on medium, right between 4 and 6. My pans are 8x2, and I used bake even strips.

I did torte but I tried the floss with one and a knife with the other and I kinda butchered them! :/ but you wont be able to tell after they are iced! Haha, I think I may use them both, Skye's and Hershey's together, alternating layers... any thoughts?

Overall both were very easy to make, and seem like they will be easy to work with (a piece of cake, if you will! haha whew I crack myself up!) I am icing the cake and decorating Wednesday so we will see!
ETA: Skye's cake was a little 'shiny' on the inside middle. At first I thought it was underbaked but then it didn't seem to be just shiny in the middle. I cooked it I think 10 minutes longer than the recipe.

Hi all,
Did not have time to read all of the post....(busy making cakes and gumpaste for roses )
When I saw this post though I had to jump in! I have tried so many chocolate recipes but have stopped looking about a year ago. I found Collette Peters Coco Loco cake and I am ADDICTED to it... I have made some minor changes to it and I am here to tell you, if you like chocolate and you need to carve; this is the cake for you.....freaking fanchocotastic! Did I mention I am ADDICTED?? I eat all of the scraps from this cake every time I make it. No sharing!!
I am not sure on the rules of the road of posting someones recipe....even if I have changed it some. If anyone knows and can let me know I will add the recipe to the discussion. If I can't, IM me and I will send it to you.
My changes are due to the fact that I just love to add a small amount of black cocoa to my chocolate cakes. I love the taste and I love the deep color it imparts though you do not have to do this.
This recipe calls for you to use actual chocolate so that is where I made changes. I used regular cocoa and black cocoa and oil (I use light tasting olive oil) in substituiton for the chocolate blocks.
The first time I made this it left me scratching my head because most of my other chocolate recipes have a thick batter. This one I was thinking no way this will be good, there is just too much liquid and the batter is thin. But to my surprise as stated above this cake is the bomb!! Moist, chocolatety, carvable (dense) cake.
This recipe does call for liquor in the form of Bourbon but I have used more coffee and water in its place when making for someone who did not want the alcohol in it and it still rocked!
Suzi

I've used this recipe and it doesn't sink in the middle. It is quite similar to the one you already used. I use the mocha mascarpone as filling instead of frosting. But I think you will not think this is sweet enough either. I like this cake but the other epicurious recipe is probably better.




Coffee-Chocolate Layer Cake with Mocha-Mascarpone Frosting Bon Appétit | April 2009

by Abigail Johnson Dodge



(photo by: Patricia Heal)
Yield: Makes 10 to 12 servings


Cake:
2 cups cake flour
3/4 cup natural unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups (packed) golden brown sugar
3 large eggs
11/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk
4 teaspoons instant espresso powder dissolved in 3/4 cup hot water

Frosting:
1/3 cup natural unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tablespoon instant espresso powder
1 1/2 cups chilled heavy whipping cream, divided
1 1/3 cups sugar
2 8-ounce containers chilled mascarpone cheese*
Bittersweet chocolate curls (optional)


For cake:

Position rack in center of oven; preheat to 325°F. Generously butter two 9-inch cake pans with 2-inch-high sides; dust with flour, tapping out any excess. Line bottom of pans with parchment paper.

Sift 2 cups cake flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt into medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat butter in large bowl until smooth. Add brown sugar and beat until well blended, about 2 minutes. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix in vanilla. Add flour mixture in 3 additions alternately with buttermilk in 2 additions, beating just until blended after each addition. Gradually add hot espresso-water mixture, beating just until smooth.

Divide batter between pans; smooth tops. Bake cakes until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 40 minutes. Cool cakes in pans on rack 15 minutes. Run small knife around sides of pans to loosen cakes. Invert cakes onto racks; lift pans off cakes and remove parchment. Place wire rack atop each cake; invert again so top side is up. Cool completely. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Wrap each cake in plastic and store at room temperature.


For frosting:

Sift cocoa powder into large bowl; add espresso powder. Bring 1 cup cream to boil in small saucepan. Slowly pour cream over cocoa mixture, whisking until cocoa is completely dissolved, about 1 minute. Add 1/2 cup cream and sugar; stir until sugar dissolves. Chill until cold, at least 2 hours. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover; keep chilled.

Add mascarpone to chilled cocoa mixture. Using electric mixer, beat on low speed until blended and smooth. Increase speed to medium-high; beat until mixture is thick and medium-firm peaks form when beaters are lifted, about 2 minutes (do not overbeat or mixture will curdle).

Using pastry brush, brush off crumbs from cakes. Place 1 cake layer, top side up, on platter. Spoon 13/4 cups frosting in dollops over top of cake. Using offset spatula, spread frosting to edges. Top with second cake layer, top side up, pressing to adhere. Spread thin layer of frosting over top and sides of cake. Chill 10 minutes. Using offset spatula, spread remaining frosting over top and sides of cake, swirling decoratively. Top with chocolate curls, if desired. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover with cake dome; chill. Let stand at room temperature 20 minutes before serving.

*An Italian cream cheese; sold at many supermarkets and at Italian markets



Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/printerfriendly/Coffee-Chocolate-Layer-Cake-with-Mocha-Mascarpone-Frosting-352096?printFormat=photo#ixzz0wX9EcOFs

Now I am wanting to make the epicurious cake just to make sure it's annoy to work with (it is, but it is SO good!) I am tempted to leave out the melted chocolate like Linda suggested, but I don't want to lose the chocolate/sweet YUMMM taste! arg, I am so puzzled!

I forgot to add this may be why some people get a sunken cake and some don't.

It might also solve the problem of the epicurious cake also. When I make these recipes I am going to adjust the leavening according to which cocoa I end up using. I'll let you know what results I get.

Linda, I used Hershey's Cocoa, I have absolutely no clue if it was dutch processed or not? It's just the regular Hershey's Cocoa. I'm not sure if I will make it again honestly, I am just craving a sweeter chocolate then it was, although the cake was SO dark and beautiful... sigh, I think I am going to do the alternating layers, and see what my friend thinks of it. I kinda just want to make it with icing to see how that changes my opinion...

Quick question, the poured ganache in the epicurious recipe, would whipping it turn it into more of a filling consistancy? I was wanting to use it but the last time I used it as a filling, it just kinda dissapeared into the cake.

The more I think about this, the more I think there is a typo in the book. Dutch processed is an alkaline, so you need the acid in the baking powder to create to carbon dioxide gas. Natural cocoa is acidic and to much baking powder and natural cocoa can create carbon dioxide gas.

To tell which kind of cocoa, check the can and look fornthe words Dutch process or alkaline process. If it doesn't say that, then it is probably natural. I believe Hersheys special dark cocoa is Dutch processed.

As for the ganache, let it settle longer. I usually wait overnight or till it is hardened to a spreadable state rather than a thin state. I have never whipped mine to use for a filling, but you can certainly do that. But my best guess is it didn't set up long enough.

Ok...let me just start by saying that this thread is AWESOME!!! I am a major chcolate addict. Coincedently, I just got through testing out the cake recipe on the Ghirradelli's cocoa container and it was ridiculously delicious but way too soft to stack or carve.The recipe is perfect for cupcakes though .

I can't wait to try the Colette Peters recipe! thanks for posting it Suzisweet!

Pretty sure the regular hersheys cocoa is natural. I think it says natural. The hersheys dark cocoa is a mix of natural and dutch process. I have been making sure to use natural in the epicurious recipe because that is what it states and I knew there was a difference in pH between the two and didn't want to screw it up!
I am anxious to try skyes recipe now that you said it was not sweet enough JaeRodriguez. Part of my problem with chocolate cake is its almost too much for me once its paired with icing. I much prefer a white cake and I wonder if I used a slightly less sweet chocolate cake I might like it better? Who knows.

I checked the regular hershey's cocoa and it is natural, and the dark is a mix like confections said, Linda, does that mean we might have a reason why Skye's cake sank in the middle on me?

confections, you might really love this cake then! I really wish I had some icing and extra I could try, I might love it then!

For some reason I stopped getting the reply notifications on this thread. Booo! Glad I happened to check back today! I'm not sure why you had problems with sinking, Jae. I use AP flour, Hershey's Special Dark cocoa (and confectionsofahousewife is right, it DOES contain dutch processed), as well as the baking powder and baking soda called for in the recipe. Mine alway rise beautifully, which is one thing I love about this recipe. It rises great without doming too much.

I tend to pair this with very sweet fillings and frostings (such as caramel, peanut butter BC, creamcheese BC, coconut pecan frosting, etc) so for my personal taste it is the perfect balance of sweet but not sickly. After reading all of this thread I'm now anxious to try the epicurious recipe just for comparison!

Skye- I have a hard time trying to picture how cakes would be with icing so it is probably amazing with icing on it, especially because I use icing and ganache!

You should do the epicurious one for comparison!

How long do you mix btw? Maybe I didn't mix long enough?

Skye, is the T for the powder and soda a tablespoon?
I did it wrong already then because I did a teaspoon. Although 1.5 tablespoon each is very high. That is enough leavening for about 15 cups of flour. I think I won' t try and fix this and see what I get.

Jae, I did some research and every one I read about this type of recipe is 2 minutes, so that is what I'm going to do.

Ok, now I am extremely embarassed. When I went back to look at my original post, I did put 1 1/2 T. for the baking soda and baking powder both. It's supposed to be TEASPOONS. I am soooo sorry. Jae- that competely explains your sinking cakes- way too much levener thanks to my brain fart. Thanks for the catch, Linda

Going back to see if I can edit that first post before anyone else follows my faulty instructions..........

Haha, I thought when I was doing it "gee, that's a lot!" I forgot to mention it when I was talking about the cake!

Linda I hope you see Skye's post before you make it! I think I could have beat it about 30 seconds longer.

Skye- It's ok, I was able to make it into two layers, instead of 4, and I am going to do these alternating with the Hershey's...

Would adding too much of the two make the cake taste different? Is that a dumb question lol? Would it affect the texture of the cake?