Hello everybody,
I am making a retirement cake in 2 weeks for a special lady that i worked with for years. She is also a baker which sets the bar a little higher. She asked for chocolate cake and is leaving the rest to me. I made a pave d' amore cake (chocolate, coffee, cointreau) for the same crowd about 3 months ago, and was looking for ideas, but something a little different. What combos (with chocolate cake) have been your particular favorites/big hits over the years? Or that you save for those extra special occasions? thanks so much in advance!
ok I got one but I gotta get on the big computer and hubby is over there right now -- I call it my 'hot fudge' cake but it's a cayenne heat+ Saigon ccinnamon -- it's not shocking heat just mild -- it just comes out a lovely cake dark fudgey texture -- but not a slick pate fudge kwim?
one day I had this & that ingredients but not the right combo for any one recipe so I just tossed in some stuff & made it up --
It takes 3 or is it 4 different kinds of chocolate which is ridiculous i agree -- but I've tried to tweak that and it does not come out the right balance -- it's a very simple cake like a jazzed up Texas sheet cake but it is a wow -- I just stumbled on it --
so he's watching Olympic golf on there right now so...later today I can get on there --
it has coffee in it so that turns some peeps off so if that's a deal breaker lemme know -- one time I used cherry flavored coffee and it was incredible -- all I recommend is you gotta stick to the chocolates and spice and coffee as written for best result -- and the Italian cream filling -- I use a vanilla Swiss meringue so the flavor of the cake + filling is not diluted
also you need to bake short cakes not tall ones -- I have exact measurements...on the other computer...in a few 
I echo K8's suggestion for a spiced chocolate cake. I made a Chai Chocolate cake last week that was surprisingly good. I don't even like chai that much, but it was excellent. Most importantly, the bride was a fan of chai lattes.
I used my go-to chocolate cake recipe, replacing the liquid with chai latte concentrate (Black Mountain brand--It's a liquid that comes in a rectangular box.] I cut back the sugar by about 1/4 cup, because the concentrate is sweetened. I figured out how much to cut back by looking at the calories on the chai concentrate box. Sugar was the only source of calories, so based on that, I calculated how much sugar was in the amount of liquid I'd be using. After tasting the batter, I added additional spices: about 1 tsp cardamom, 3/4 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp ground ginger.
It was a wedding cake tier, and I made a vanilla chai latte layer, as well. That one was even better, sort of a mild spice cake with the cardamom kicked up. I torted both layers, and made it into a chocolate-vanilla-chocolate-vanilla chai latte tier, very pretty. I used a cream cheese-whipped cream filling to which I'd added chai spices, and spread melted mild (maybe 50%?) chocolate on top of the torted layers before filling. The chocolate hardened and provided a little bit of a crackle before melting in your mouth.
I'll probably use a different filling, next time, because the I thought the cream cheese overwhelmed the delicacy of the spices just a tad. Something like an IMBC/SMBC or even a vanilla whipped cream would be perfect.
Thank you so much! Never thought of a spiced chocolate cake, but it sounds wonderful. (never heard of cherry coffee, but I am not a coffee drinker - sounds really nice). Thank you so much. Not opposed to coffee at all, I often use it in my chocolate cake. (The pave d'amore has coffee SMBC which I didn't want to repeat). I would also like to try the chai latte version. I think I have some already - my son is a big tea person. I'll let you know what I come up with!
we're on the same wave length, dawncr, and thanks for posting -- the golf game is long over and i forgot to post
k8's 'hot fudge' cake
- 3 oz Baker's unsweetened choco
- hershey's extra dark 60% cacao 3.52 ounce bar (walgreen's) any dark 4 ounce bar will do
- 2 oz german's chocolate
^^^ melt gently and set aside ^^^
- 4 cups sugar
- 3 cups sifted ap flour less one heaping spoonful
- 1.5 teaspoon of baking powder
- 1.5 teaspoon of baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2-3 large tablespoons saigon cinnamon (tastes like cinnamon red hots candy)
- 1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon cayenne powder
- 1 heaping spoonful of cocoa powder
^^^whisk all together in mixing bowl -- set aside ^^^
- 2 cups strong hot coffee
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 cup oil
- 1 tablespoon vanilla
^^^ blend together with a whisk add to powder mixture combine well ^^^
- 4 eggs -- room temp
^^^ add eggs one at a time to mixture mix well in between -- then add choco mixture -- combine ^^^
makes a nice half sheet (12x16) or 4 8" layers -- makes shorter layers --
bake 350 for 40 minutes ish till toothpick comes out clean
fill with italian cream filling
ice with light vanilla icing (i use swiss)
the cream filling recipe is:
1# cream cheese
1 cup sour cream
one big tablespoon lemon juice
1.5 teaspoon vanilla
2-3 cups confectioner's sugar or so
i put gelatin in there sometimes -- this is a recipe i throw together every time i make it -- the important thing is a lot of sour cream, and more lemon juice than vanilla -- you can remove as much water as possible from the sour cream in advance -- just dig a hole in it all the way to the bottom (remove some first if it's a brand new container) and after a few hours it will fill with water -- keep discarding the water till you've removed it all
doesn't have to be cherry coffee :) Fresh Market sells it though
i forgot to bullet the ingredients makes it easier to read
the cream filling recipe is:
- 1# cream cheese
- 1 cup sour cream
- one big tablespoon lemon juice
- 1.5 teaspoon vanilla
- 2-3 cups confectioner's sugar or so
i put gelatin in there sometimes -- this is a recipe i throw together every time i make it -- the important thing is a lot of sour cream, and more lemon juice than vanilla -- you can remove as much water as possible from the sour cream in advance -- just dig a hole in it all the way to the bottom (remove some first if it's a brand new container) and after a few hours it will fill with water -- keep discarding the water till you've removed it all
Read more at http://www.cakecentral.com/forum/t/831936/over-the-top-chocolate-cake#5o4TYyvc8yKMwOTH.99
oh yeah that coffee is called chocolate cherry kiss -- just remembered
Brownie baked in a long tin then topped with a cherry coconut topping and baked for a short period to set it.
Once cooled cut into long thin 'strips' to resemble a 'cherry ripe' (use a board of course and overhang the cake just a mm or two on each side). Pour ganache over the cake and then once the first layer has set use a knife to run lines of ganache over the length of the cake to give it a cherry ripe look. Not the prettiest cake you will ever see but OMGoodness does it taste good.
For the best result make sure to leave the brownie nice and soft in the middle.
A few more ideas now that you've all got me dreaming of chocolate cake:
Summer (unless you're in S hemisphere) is good for fresh fruit or ice cream. I adore cherry-chocolate together, so maybe use fresh cherries to make a classic Black Forest cake? Or, how about an ice cream cake roll (choc cake filled with cherry choc chip ice cream...)?
Aside: K8, I'm going to have to make your 'hot' fudge cake. Your 3-kinds-of-chocolate made me smile. That's exactly what I have to do when I don't have enough of any one ingredient. (Like this year, when I forgot to order bulk chocolate before the weather got too warm for shipping.) Good on you for writing it all down, though. I usually forget, and then can't replicate!
me too, dawncr! i used to never write anything down but after the first 40/50 years of blowing it I caught on a bit -- hahahahahaha
there's something about the light german chocolate mixed with the others -- idk --
lemme know how it goes if you try it -- not all recipes transfer well but I hope you like it -- I rarely even used a mixer -- easy batter to make by hand --
best to you
@-K8memphis your recipe sounds very good. Thanks for sharing :-) Just a couple of questions:
1) What do you nean by German's chocolate?
2) What is saigon cinnamon? I've heard of different cinnamons but I am not familiar with that one.
3) What is 1# of cream cheese?
Thanks!
Kelly
sure
1. http://bakingbites.com/2010/01/what-is-german-chocolate/
2. Saigon cinnamon is the flavor of cinnamon red hots candy -- it's just a beautiful zippy spice -- great with chocolate doesn't get lost -- and in the us it's available in most grocery stores -- but you can luck out at stores like T J Maxx that mostly sell clothes but also foodie things and home decor & stuff -- sometimes you can get a great deal
3. one pound of cream cheese, 16 ounces -- in the us we sell it in 8 ounce packages so two of those
lemme know if you try it -- hope you like it
best 2u
This is my go to chocolate recipe. Shared by the sweet genius himself, Ron Ben-Israel. The coffee accentuates the chocolate flavor, it's super moist and beats any chocolate cake I've ever tasted. The batter will be very liquid - I use this for both cakes and cupcakes. Total yield is 12 cups of batter. If you're looking for something a little different, make a nice canolli filling as that pairs well with chocolate (use ricotta impastata for a thicker cream). Use a good quality coffee .
Regards,
Frank
Ingredients
- 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (sift, then measure), plus more for dusting
- 2 cups hot strong coffee
- 1 1/2 cups natural unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch process)
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 tablespoon baking soda
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 4 cups sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 2 cups of water
- 4 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
- Prep the pans: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Prep your pans, line with parchment.
- Make the batter: Pour the coffee into a liquid measuring cup or bowl; whisk in the cocoa powder. Put the flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer; mix with the paddle attachment on low speed, 1 minute. Add the eggs, vegetable oil, vanilla and 2 cups water; beat on medium speed, 2 minutes. Reduce the speed to low; beat in the coffee-cocoa mixture in a slow stream until combined. The batter will be thin.
- Bake the cakes: Divide the batter between the prepared pans. Bake until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean, 50 minutes to 1 hour. Let cool in the pans on a rack, 10 minutes, then turn the cakes out onto the rack to cool completely. Place each cake on a 10-inch cardboard cake circle (this helps stabilize the layers as you move them around), wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight.
@-K8memphis thanks for your speedy reply :-) I am in Canada and I've never seen that German's chocolate around here. I may have to check online for the cinnamon as while I've not looked for it before I think it may be another item we can't get here.
oh man! the german's chocolate is in all the grocery stores here -- do you get the Baker's brand chocolates? maybe your grocery store could order it?
aatkt -- yes I have you're right-- yes works perfect especially for a big amount --
kelly -- cool -- that's great-- hope it works out -- keep me posted
sour cream -- because when we get sour cream in Northwest Indiana you can literally slice it it's so thick -- here in Tennessee it's loaded with water -- so draining it for this filling is a real good idea -- might seem like a lot of extra work but it really isn't and it's worth it --
and if you want to keep your yogurt or sour cream all intact and not have the liquid sitting on top -- smooth the top surface level before storing it
I just turned my sour cream upside down -- it's a half used 3# tub -- wonder if it will all fall down -- we shall see -- have to warn hubby about possible waterfall -- hahahahaha
I mean it seems reasonable if gravity cooperates -- not sure why it would but we'll see
K8- Don't know what happened to the rest of the post. System does strange things sometimes. Anyway, I was commenting on your "hot fudge" cake. I found the Saigon Cinnamon and can't wait to try this recipe on my Son-in-law.
AND regarding ABOVE: I found your gelatin lace video and I literally laughed out loud. You are hilarious! In spite of your icks and ughs, I'm going to try it.
cool! i hope you do get to try the recipe and i hope he likes the cake!
no wait -- that's not me in the video, nana, i think i know who it is and they are on here but no not moi -- i like gelatin
yes that is kara of course -- acaketoremember, costumeczar
Quote by @-K8memphis on 6 days ago
we're on the same wave length, dawncr, and thanks for posting -- the golf game is long over and i forgot to post
k8's 'hot fudge' cake
- 3 oz Baker's unsweetened choco
- hershey's extra dark 60% cacao 3.52 ounce bar (walgreen's) any dark 4 ounce bar will do
- 2 oz german's chocolate
^^^ melt gently and set aside ^^^
- 4 cups sugar
- 3 cups sifted ap flour less one heaping spoonful
- 1.5 teaspoon of baking powder
- 1.5 teaspoon of baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2-3 large tablespoons saigon cinnamon (tastes like cinnamon red hots candy)
- 1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon cayenne powder
- 1 heaping spoonful of cocoa powder
^^^whisk all together in mixing bowl -- set aside ^^^
- 2 cups strong hot coffee
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 cup oil
- 1 tablespoon vanilla
^^^ blend together with a whisk add to powder mixture combine well ^^^
- 4 eggs -- room temp
^^^ add eggs one at a time to mixture mix well in between -- then add choco mixture -- combine ^^^
makes a nice half sheet (12x16) or 4 8" layers -- makes shorter layers --
bake 350 for 40 minutes ish till toothpick comes out clean
fill with italian cream filling
ice with light vanilla icing (i use swiss)
the cream filling recipe is:
1# cream cheese
1 cup sour cream
one big tablespoon lemon juice
1.5 teaspoon vanilla
2-3 cups confectioner's sugar or so
i put gelatin in there sometimes -- this is a recipe i throw together every time i make it -- the important thing is a lot of sour cream, and more lemon juice than vanilla -- you can remove as much water as possible from the sour cream in advance -- just dig a hole in it all the way to the bottom (remove some first if it's a brand new container) and after a few hours it will fill with water -- keep discarding the water till you've removed it all
@-K8memphis, Oh my K8, I tried this and it is super! My SIL is not much of a sweet-eater, so I'm always looking for something a bit different. This is it. He is going to love the "bite" with the addition of Saigon Cinnamon and Cayenne. I added the full amounts of both and you can definitely taste it. Thanks! Nana
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