After a hiatus from blogging for various reasons – motivation, or lack there of being one – I’ve decided it’s time for another attempt. ‘Real’ life has more than been full enough to make up from my somewhat absent blogging life. To name a few things, we’ve had two (soon to be three) groups of visitors from the UK totaling two months of hosting friends, which is always wonderful fun. Surviving a very busy university life while maintaining a regular cycling routine and a not so regular gym routine. New cafes have been discovered, tested and more often than not returned to with family and friends. Indeed, Fathers’ Day involved just that.
Now onto the recipe.
This is Design Sponge’s Devil’s Food Cake, which went down a treat (pardon the pun) for my younger sister’s birthday … back in November. This cake was wonderfully rich but not overpoweringly so - though that all depends on how many slices you have! After the party we placed the remaining cake in an airtight container in the fridge because it was too warm and humid to be left on the counter. The following day the cake became slightly fudgy leading to all involved switching to mass cake demolition mode, well worth the painful bellies that ensued.
Bear in mind that as ingredient quality increases so does the final product. You'll never get an outstanding ganache with mediocre chocolate.
Devil's Food Cake
150g unsalted butter (more for pans)
50g cocoa powder (more for pans)
2/3 cup boiling water
1/3 cup milk, scalded
210g plain flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
300g granulated sugar
3 large eggs
1 tbs vanilla extract
Whipped Ganache
15 g dark (70% cacao) chocolate, chopped
150g milk (40% cacao) chocolate, chopped
400g Nutella (the original recipe calls for Biscoff spread but I was unable to source any)
400g cold heavy cream
Chocolate Shards
120g dark chocolate, chopped
Method
Chocolate Shards
The shards can be made up to 3 days in advance and refrigerated until needed, just ensure that the ganache is at room temperature so the shards stick well.
To make the shards place the chopped chocolate into a double boiler and let it melt. When completely melted pour the chocolate onto a 16-inch length of baking paper resting on your bench top and using a palate knife or similar spread the liquid chocolate out evenly, maintaining about 1/3 of an inch away from the edge of the paper. Cover the chocolate with a second sheet of baking paper the same size as the first and gently smooth any air bubbles to the edge of the paper. Roll the paper from one short end to the other tightly to form a 1-inch tube and place on a tray in the fridge for a minimum of 2 hours. Unroll the tube in one smooth, quick movement to create the shards and refrigerate until ready to use.
Devil’s Food Cake
1. Move oven rack to the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 175°C. Butter two 8-by-2-inch round cake pans and line the bottoms with baking paper. Butter the baking papers and dust with cocoa powder, tapping out excess.
2. Sift cocoa powder into a medium bowl, add boiling water slowly while whisking to prevent lumps forming. Whisk in milk. Set aside to cool.
3. In another bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda and salt.
4. In a large bowl, cream butter on medium speed of an electric mixer or by hand until light and fluffy. Add sugar and continue beating on medium speed for 5 more minutes, scraping down the sides with a spatula as every so often. Add the eggs, one at a time, making sure each one is fully incorporated before adding the next. Beat in vanilla.
5. Add the flour mixture in three batches, alternating with the cocoa mixture on a low speed.
6. Divide batter equally between the prepared pans and smooth the tops. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the center of each cake comes out clean, rotating pans halfway through for even baking if over is not fan forced. Allow to cool in the pans for a 5 minutes, then take out and leave to cool completely on a wire rack.
Whipped Ganache
Place both milk and dark chocolate in a double boiler and allow to melt. Remove from heat and whisk in the Nutella. Add heavy cream and using an electric mixer, whisk until soft peaks form. Be careful not to over beat, as the frosting will become grainy.
Putting it all Together
1. Remove parchment papers from the bottoms of the cakes. Using a long, serrated knife, remove the top crusts to flatten the surface of the cakes. Place one cake on an 8-inch cardboard round or your serving plate (Several 2-3-inch wide strips of baking paper placed around the cakes edges will keep the serving plate clean after frosting).
2. Frost the top of the first cake with a 1/3 of the ganache. Place the second cake on top and frost the top and the sides with the remaining ganache.
3. Take the frozen chocolate chards out of the refrigerator and gently stick the shards to the ganache with the help of a tweezer as the heat from your hand may start to melt the shards, tweezers also allow for greater precision. Use long shards for the sides and smaller pieces for the top. Place the cake in the refrigerator until the ganache is firmly set, about an hour, then serve.
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