2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch salt
5 ounces unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 3/4 cups hot coffee
1/4 cup bourbon
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup shredded coconut
Chocolate Ganache:
12 ounces semisweet chocolate (either blocks cut into small pieces or chocolate chips)
8 ounces heavy cream
2 teaspoons your favorite liqueur or extract, optional
Place the sifted flour in a medium bowl and stir in the baking soda and salt; set aside. In a large bowl, place the chocolate and the butter. Pour the hot coffee over the chocolate and butter and then add the bourbon. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let stand until chocolate and butter are melted. Remove the cover and whisk to fully incorporate. Set aside until mixture has cooled.
Grease and flour 2 (8-inch) round cake pans. Preheat the oven to 275 degrees F.
When coffee mixture has cooled, add the sugar and whisk until blended. Add the flour mixture, half at a time and stir until just combined. Add the eggs, vanilla, and coconut and whisk until well blended. Pour batter into prepared pans. Bake for about 45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool cakes in pans for about 10 minutes and then cool completely on a rack before icing.
While cakes are cooling, make ganache:
Place the chocolate in a large bowl. Heat the cream in a saucepan just until it starts to boil. Immediately pour the cream over the chocolate, making sure that all of the chocolate is covered. Cover the bowl and let stand for 5 minutes. Whisk the chocolate until dark and shiny and then let cool to room temperature. The more you whisk this icing as it cools, the stiffer it will get. If you refrigerate the icing before you put it on the cake, it will get very hard and you will have to microwave it for a few seconds to soften it to a spreadable state.
Frost cake:
Spread ganache over bottom layer of cake. Place the second cake layer on top of the ganache. Frost the top and sides of the cake with the remaining ganache.
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