Triple Chocolate Mousse Cake

Dark. Rich. Intense. I'm not talking about the newest hunk in Hollywood but this delicious cake.

I made this cake for my mom's birthday. When I asked her what kind of cake she wanted all she said was chocolate.



I asked her this same question last year and she gave me the same answer. Last year's birthday cake was a Chocolate Velvet Cake with White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting.




This recipe came from America's Test Kitchen. I had to make a couple of changes because I live in Podunkville, USA. I could not find any bittersweet chocolate anywhere so I had to use semi sweet. There was no espresso powder anywhere to be found in the local area so I had to use regular instant coffee. It did not matter. It was still wonderful. Everyone loved it.

It is a lot of steps but don't let it scare you. If you bake regularly, you'll find the steps simple. It only looks hard but really it is not.






Serves 12 to 16. Published November 1, 2009. From Cook's Illustrated.

Ingredients

Bottom Layer
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter , cut into 6 pieces, plus extra for greasing pan
7 ounces bittersweet chocolate , chopped fine (see note)
3/4 teaspoon instant espresso powder
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 large eggs , separated
Pinch table salt
1/3 cup packed (about 2 1/2 ounces) light brown sugar , crumbled with fingers to remove lumps

Middle Layer

2 tablespoons cocoa powder , preferably Dutch-processed
5 tablespoons hot water
7 ounces bittersweet chocolate , chopped fine (see note)
1 1/2 cups cold heavy cream
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1/8 teaspoon table salt

Top Layer

3/4 teaspoon powdered gelatin
1 tablespoon water
6 ounces white chocolate chips (see note)
1 1/2 cups cold heavy cream
Shaved chocolate or cocoa powder for serving, optional (see note)

Instructions



1. FOR THE BOTTOM LAYER: Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Butter bottom and sides of 91/2-inch springform pan. Melt butter, chocolate, and espresso powder in large heatproof bowl set over saucepan filled with 1 inch of barely simmering water, stirring occasionally until smooth. Remove from heat and cool mixture slightly, about 5 minutes. Whisk in vanilla and egg yolks; set aside.

2. In stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment, beat egg whites and salt at medium speed until frothy, about 30 seconds. Add half of brown sugar and beat until combined, about 15 seconds. Add remaining brown sugar and beat at high speed until soft peaks form when whisk is lifted, about 1 minute longer, scraping down sides halfway through. Using whisk, fold one-third of beaten egg whites into chocolate mixture to lighten. Using rubber spatula, fold in remaining egg whites until no white streaks remain. Carefully transfer batter to prepared springform pan, gently smoothing top with offset spatula.


3. Bake until cake has risen, is firm around edges, and center has just set but is still soft (center of cake will spring back after pressing gently with finger), 13 to 18 minutes. Transfer cake to wire rack to cool completely, about 1 hour. (Cake will collapse as it cools.) Do not remove cake from pan.


4. FOR THE MIDDLE LAYER: Combine cocoa powder and hot water in small bowl; set aside. Melt chocolate in large heatproof bowl set over saucepan filled with 1 inch of barely simmering water, stirring occasionally until smooth. Remove from heat and cool slightly, 2 to 5 minutes.


5. In clean bowl of stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment, whip cream, granulated sugar, and salt at medium speed until mixture begins to thicken, about 30 seconds. Increase speed to high and whip until soft peaks form when whisk is lifted, 15 to 60 seconds.


6. Whisk cocoa powder mixture into melted chocolate until smooth. Using whisk, fold one-third of whipped cream into chocolate mixture to lighten. Using rubber spatula, fold in remaining whipped cream until no white streaks remain. Spoon mousse into springform pan over cooled cake and gently tap pan on counter 3 times to remove any large air bubbles; gently smooth top with offset spatula. Wipe inside edge of pan with damp cloth to remove any drips. Refrigerate cake at least 15 minutes while preparing top layer.


7. FOR THE TOP LAYER: In small bowl, sprinkle gelatin over water; let stand at least 5 minutes. Place white chocolate in medium bowl. Bring ½ cup cream to simmer in small saucepan over medium-high heat. Remove from heat; add gelatin mixture and stir until fully dissolved. Pour cream mixture over white chocolate and whisk until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth, about 30 seconds. Cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally, 5 to 8 minutes (mixture will thicken slightly).


8. In clean bowl of stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment, whip remaining cup cream at medium speed until it begins to thicken, about 30 seconds. Increase speed to high and whip until soft peaks form when whisk is lifted, 15 to 60 seconds. Using whisk, fold one-third of whipped cream into white chocolate mixture to lighten. Using rubber spatula, fold remaining whipped cream into white chocolate mixture until no white streaks remain. Spoon white chocolate mousse into pan over middle layer. Smooth top with offset spatula. Return cake to refrigerator and chill until set, at least 2½ hours.


9. TO SERVE: If using, garnish top of cake with chocolate curls or dust with cocoa. Run thin knife between cake and side of springform pan; remove side of pan. Run cleaned knife along outside of cake to smooth sides. Cut into slices and serve.

O-R-E-O! Cake

Dark chocolate with cream filling, oreos are one of the favorite cookies. What if you made a giant "oreo" out of cake? Here is what happens when you try it.



It looks a little like is double stuffed because the weight of the top layer started squishing out the filling.

This was the dessert I took for Easter dinner. We had many fruit desserts (lemon pie, key lime pie, carrot cake) so I thought we needed something chocolate. It was a big hit because everyone loves oreos and everyone loves chocolate.

I used my favorite devil's food cake recipe I found at Food Network. It's rich, dark, and delicious.

The filling is

8 oz brick of cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
8 oz cool whip, thawed
12 oreos, crushed

Put the filling between the two layers so it resembles an oreo. I made a ganache (cream and chocolate) to pour over the cake just to dress it up a bit.

It was delicious and a fun cake. Everyone kept saying, that cake looks like an oreo.

Orange Chocolate Bundt cake

I needed to bake a cake for Sunday dinner dessert, but I could not figure out just what I wanted to bake. I went searching around my favorite blogs and I found a recipe for this orange chocolate bundt cake on Joy the Baker's site. I love her blog and her recipes. Not to mention, she takes the most beautiful pictures. If you get a chance check it out.

Here is the cake in one of my favorite Nordic Ware pans. I think I've mentioned here before my love for Nordic Ware. Everyone kept asking me where the chocolate was when I said it was an orange chocolate cake.




They were surprised when I cut into the cake and they saw the chocolate ring. It was moist and delicious. The perfect cake for a warm spring Sunday dinner.




You can find the recipe on Joy's blog.

My 100th post!! Let's celebrate with a Chocolate Overload!

One Hundred Posts! Wow. Who knew? When I started my blog it was a way to keep track of things I'd made and to share recipes with a few friends. I don't have a following, and that is ok, this blog is still very much for my friends and me. I do wish more friends and family would leave comments just so I know you're still out there, but I still appreciate you taking the time to view the blog.



This cake is the one I made for my mom's birthday. She is such a chocoholic, this was the perfect cake for her. It is a Chocolate Velvet Cake with White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting decorated with dark and white chocolate curls and pirouette cookies. It is rich, chocolaty, and DELICIOUS.




The recipes for the cake and frosting both came from MYRecipes

Chocolate Velvet cake layers

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate morsels
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 (16-ounce) package light brown sugar
3 large eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 (8-ounce) container sour cream
1 cup hot water
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Preparation
Melt semisweet chocolate morsels in a microwave-safe bowl at HIGH for 30-second intervals until melted (about 1 1/2 minutes total time). Stir until smooth.

Beat butter and brown sugar at medium speed with an electric mixer, beating about 5 minutes or until well blended. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until blended after each addition. Add melted chocolate, beating just until blended.

Sift together flour, baking soda, and salt. Gradually add to chocolate mixture alternately with sour cream, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Beat at low speed just until blended after each addition. Gradually add 1 cup hot water in a slow, steady stream, beating at low speed just until blended. Stir in vanilla. Spoon cake batter evenly into 3 greased and floured 8-inch round cakepans. Bake at 350° for 25 to 30 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.

Cool in pans on a wire rack 10 minutes; remove from pans, and let cool completely on wire rack.


White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting:


Ingredients

* 3 cups white chocolate morsels
* 3 (8-oz.) packages cream cheese, softened
* 3/4 cup butter, softened
* 7 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Preparation

1. Microwave white chocolate morsels in a microwave-safe bowl at MEDIUM (50% power) 3 minutes; stir until smooth.

2. Combine cream cheese and butter in a large mixing bowl; beat at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Add melted chocolate, beating well. Gradually add powdered sugar, beating at low speed until blended. Beat at medium speed until mixture reaches desired spreading consistency.

Cranberry Upside Down Cake

I made chutney but I still had some fresh cranberries left. I have been wanting to try new cranberry recipes so I went on a search. This one looked easy and delicious. I decided to give it a try, on a week night even. After all, who doesn't come home after working all day and having an afternoon class to make dinner and bake a cake for dessert? Don't look at me, this was a one time moment of crazy, but a tasty crazy.

Actually this came together easily and it had time to bake while I put the pork tenderloins on the grill, made dirty rice, and steamed some broccoli. Multitasking is the only way to get things done, especially on week nights.

This will probably be the dessert I take to our Thanksgiving feast.




Recipe found on recipezaar
Ingredients:

4 tablespoons sweet butter, very soft
3/4 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon orange zest, finely grated (optional)
2 cups cranberries, fresh or frozen (If using frozen, thaw first)

Cake

* 12 tablespoons sweet butter, very soft
* 7/8 cup white sugar (1 cup minus 2 tablespoons)
* 1 large egg yolk
* 2 large eggs
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 2/3 cup sour cream, room temperature
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1 3/4 cups cake flour
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Place 4 tablespoons of butter in a 9 inch cake pan. (The pan should have at least a 2 1/2 inch rim.) Place the pan in heated oven for 4 to 5 minutes until the butter is fully melted. Stir in the brown sugar, cinnamon and orange zest (optional). Spread the sugar mixture evenly across the bottom of the cake pan. Spread out the cranberries in an even layer over the butter and sugar mix.
3. To make the cake, begin by using a wooden spoon to cream together the butter, sugar and egg yolk for about 30 seconds. Switching over to a whisk, stir in the eggs one at a time. Continue to whisk another minute until the sugar crystals dissolve. Whisk in the vanilla extract, salt and sour cream.
4. Sift the flour, baking soda and baking powder into the bowl with the wet ingredients. Whisk everything together until the batter is smooth and lump-free.
5. Pour the batter over the cranberries and bake for 50 to 65 minutes. When done, the center of the cake should be dry to the touch and spring back when lightly poked.
6. Remove the cake from the oven and set on a rack for 5 to 10 minutes (no longer as the bottom begins to set as it cools).
7. Run a knife around the edge of the pan. Invert cake onto a serving plate and remove pan. Let it rest an additional 15 minutes before serving.
8. Best served warm.

Lemon Sour Cream Pound Cake and my love for Nordic Ware

I love Nordic Ware. I have so many different Nordic Ware bundt pans and other shapes. I love all the different shapes. They have pans for ever season, every occasion. I have big bundt pans, baby bundt pans, Christmas pans, Snowman pan, and many other shapes. Hopefully there will be more pictues of these to come on my blog. Have I mentioned that I love them.

One of my favorite cakes to make in my bundt pan is a lemon sour cream pound cake. My family loves it, especially the lemony glaze I put over the cake.



Lemon Sour Cream Pound Cake (baked in my chrysanthemum pan)

Ingredients

* 3 cups cake flour
* 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1 cup unsalted butter, room temp
* 3 cups sugar
* 6 eggs, room temp
* 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
* 1 tablespoon freshly grated lemon rind
* 1 cup sour cream

Directions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
Grease 16-cup tube pan.
Dust with cake flour; tap out excess flour.
Sift flour, baking powder and salt into medium bowl.
Using electric mixer, beat butter in large bowl at medium speed until fluffy.
Gradually add sugar and beat 5 minutes.
Add eggs 1 at a time, beating just until combined after each addition.
Beat in lemon juice and peel.
Using rubber spatula, mix in dry ingredients.
Mix in sour cream.
Transfer batter to prepared pan.
Bake cake until tester inserted near center comes out clean, about 90 minutes.
Let cake cool in pan on rack 15 minutes.
Cut around cake in pan.
Turn out cake.
Carefully turn cake right side up on rack and cool completely.

The glaze is simple. Lemon juice and powdered sugar. I mix quite a bit and let it sit over night. Then I add a bit more before I serve it. It's delicious.

Chocolate Velvet Cake with Butter Pecan Frosting

Yes it is as delicious as it sounds. It makes a great ending to a meal or heck around here, it could be the actual meal itself. This is my go to cake when I have to make something for a church dinner or holiday meal. Everyone loves it, plus it's a simple recipe. The recipe came from Southern Living, December 2003. I've been making it since I first got the recipe and it's still a family favorite.




Sadly I don't have a picture of the cake sliced because this one had to go to a church function.

For the layers:
Ingredients

1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate morsels
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 (16-ounce) package light brown sugar
3 large eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 (8-ounce) container sour cream
1 cup hot water
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Preparation
Melt semisweet chocolate morsels in a microwave-safe bowl at HIGH for 30-second intervals until melted (about 1 1/2 minutes total time). Stir until smooth.

Beat butter and brown sugar at medium speed with an electric mixer, beating about 5 minutes or until well blended. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until blended after each addition. Add melted chocolate, beating just until blended.

Sift together flour, baking soda, and salt. Gradually add to chocolate mixture alternately with sour cream, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Beat at low speed just until blended after each addition. Gradually add 1 cup hot water in a slow, steady stream, beating at low speed just until blended. Stir in vanilla. Spoon cake batter evenly into 3 greased and floured 8-inch round cakepans. Bake at 350° for 25 to 30 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.

Cool in pans on a wire rack 10 minutes; remove from pans, and let cool completely on wire rack.

For the frosting:

Ingredients

2 cups chopped pecans
1/4 cup cup butter, melted
2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 (16-ounce) packages powdered sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Preparation
Stir together chopped pecans and 1/4 cup melted butter. Spread in an even layer in a 13- x 9-inch baking pan. Bake at 350° for 15 minutes or until pecans are toasted. Remove from oven, and let cool.

Beat cream cheese and 1/2 cup butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Gradually add powdered sugar, beating until light and fluffy. Stir in pecans and vanilla.

I love having my oven back

I went 6 months with a broken oven. All I could use for that time was my cook top. No baking at all. I was going through withdrawals. I'm still trying to catch up from not baking during that time. Today I got a good start.

First there is the Five Minute Artisan Bread
It was so good, I ordered the book. Not to mention we ate half the loaf. I only used half of the dough. I can't wait to see how the next batch bakes up.

Because it was such a nice day, it was time for grilling. Grilled chicken marinated in Scott's Barbeque Sauce and potato salad. I guess I'm skipping spring and going right for summer meals.


Earlier in the day, I'd made a chocolate sheet cake. It's a simple recipe I remember my mama making when I was younger. It's so rich and so so good.

Pineapple Upside Down Cake: Times Three

Pineapple Upside Down Cake (PUSDC) is such a classic. We all know it's delicious. Leave it to Paula Deen to make it something even better (and use a full pound of butter!) In Paula Deen's Holiday Baking she has a recipe for a double decker pineapple upside down cake with a pineapple buttercream. What could be better? It's so beautiful in the magazine and I love PUSDC so it seemed like just the dessert for Easter dinner.

Paula makes a 2 Layer PUSDC, but even though I used 9 inch pans like the recipe said, I had enough batter for a third layer. We started to keep the other layer just for our dessert tonight, but I really like a three layer cake better than a two layer (looks wise anyway) so I stacked it high. Her recipe also calls for a regular buttercream frosting but I prefer a cream cheese frosting so I made that instead. It was SO DELICIOUS. Everyone raved over it and I thought it was pretty damn good myself.

Here is Paula's recipe:

1 cup butter, softened
2 1/4 cups sugar
5 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 cups cake flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/4 cups whole buttermilk
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 1/2 cups firmly packed brown sugar
2 (20 ounce) cans pineapple slices in juice, drained well (reserve 2 Tbl juice for frosting)
1 (10 ounce) jar marashino cherries, drained well

Preheat oven to 350. Spray 2 (or for me it took 3) 9 inch round cake pans with nonstick cooking spray with flour.

In a large bowl, beat 1 cup butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Gradually add sugar, beating until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla.

In a small bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt; sift twice. Add flour mixture alternately with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour mixture.

Pour 1/4 cup melted butter into each prepared pan. Sprinkle brown sugar evenly over butter in each pan. Arrange pineapple slices and cherries over brown sugar. Reserve remaining pineapple slices and cherries for another use. (Using 3 pans, it took all of the pineapple slices)



Pour batter evenly over fruit



Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Let cakes cool in pans for 10 minutes. Invert cakes onto wire racks to cool completely.



To assemble cake, carefully place one cake layer, pineapple side up on a cake plate. Carefully stack remaining layer, pineapple side up over first layer. (I added a thin layer of frosting to help anchor the layers) Frost sides of cake with Pineapple Buttercream Frosting. Press chopped pecans into sides of cake, if desired.

Pineapple Buttercream Frosting:
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 TBL reserved pineapple juice from can
3 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar

(I made cream cheese frosting so I added an 8 oz block of cream cheese and more pineapple juice and extra sugar. I didn't measure the sugar, I just sifted and poured until I looked right. )

In a medium bowl, beat butter and pineapple juice at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Gradually beat in confectioners' sugar until smooth.

Let me Bake Cake! (marble cake with white chocolate glaze)

I went through my many cookbooks trying to figure out what I would bake next. I happened to have all the ingredients for Martha Stewart's Marble Cake with White Chocolate Glaze.
I'd never made it before but my love for Martha is almost as great as my love for chocolate so I knew it had to be good. And it was. My husband isn't a huge sweets fan, so this cake was right up his alley; a buttery pound cake that is not too sweet even with the glaze.



Mine was a little more marbled looking than Martha's, but it turned out tasty. It was even better the next day, especially when you used the extra glaze that puddled on the side and put it on your slice.





The Recipe: (from Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook)

1 stick unsalted butter, room temp plus- more for pan
1 3/4 cups cake flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs, room temp
1 tsp vanilla extract
2/3 cup buttermilk, room temp
1/4 cup plus 1 Tbl Dutch Process cocoa powder
1/4 cup plus 2 Tbl boiling water

Preheat oven to 350. Generously butter a 9 by 5 inch loaf pan. Set aside. Whisk together the cake flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
In mixer bowl, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating until combined after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Mix in the vanilla. Add the flour mixture in two batches, alternating with the buttermilk and beginning and ending with the flour. Set aside one-third of the batter.

In a bowl, mix the cocoa and boiling water with a rubber spatula until smooth. Add the cocoa mixture to the reserved cake batter; stir until well combined. this made the chocolate batter way too runny to effectively spoon it in alternately. next time I am going to wait and see if the chocolate batter will set up more so my marbling is more defined.

Spoon the batters into the prepared pans in two layers, alternating spoonfuls of vanill and chocolate to simulate a checkerboard. To create marbling, run a table knife (or wooden skewer) through the batters in a swirling motion.

Bake, rotating the pan halfway through, until a cake tester comes out clean, 40 to 50 minutes. Transfer pan to a rack to cool 10 minutes. Turn out cake from the pan and completely cool on the rack. Pour glaze over cake, letting it drip down the sides. Cake can be kept in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

White chocolate glaze:
3/4 cup confectioners' sugar, sifted
2 TBL milk
2 1/4 oz best quality white chocolate, melted and cooled

In a small bowl, whisk together sugar and milk. The mixture should have the consistency of thin sour cream. Add the melted chocolate and whisk until glaze is smooth. If it is too thin, add 1 Tbl more sugar; if too thick, add 1 tsp milk. Use immediately.