Chocolate Fudge Cake with Vanilla Buttercream Frosting and Chocolate Ganache Glaze

Recipe courtesy Sara Campbell

Show: $40 a DayEpisode: Santa Barbara, CA

Rated: 5 stars out of 5Rate itRead users' reviews (136)

RECIPE
COMMENTS & REVIEWS(136)

Cook Time:
15 min
Level:
Intermediate
Yield:
6 servings

Times:

Prep: 45 min
Inactive Prep: 1 min
Cook: 15 min
Total:: 1 hr 1 min

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Ingredients

Cake:

3 cups packed brown sugar
3/4 cup canola oil
3 eggs
2 2/3 cups flour
2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
2 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups water
1 1/8 cups cocoa powder

Frosting:

1 1/2 pounds sweet butter, soft
3 cups sifted powdered sugar
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
1 pinch salt

Ganache:

1 1/4 cups semisweet chocolate chips
3/4 tablespoon light corn syrup
3/4 cup heavy cream

Directions

To make the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Oil 3 (10-inch) cake pans and line the bottom with parchment paper. Alternately, oil the pans and then flour them.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the brown sugar and oil. Turn on the mixer to a low speed and mix in the eggs. Let the sugar, oil, and eggs mix while sifting together the flour, baking powder, soda, and salt in a separate bowl. Set this mixture aside.

In another small bowl, mix the vanilla into the milk and set this aside as well. Bring the water to a boil and pour over the cocoa and whisk it until it is smooth. To the egg mixture, alternately add the flour mixture and the milk mixture beginning and ending with flour. With the mixer off, scrape down the sides of the bowl after each addition. With the mixture at a low speed add the cocoa. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and pour this mixture into the prepared cake pans. Bake the cake for approximately 15 minutes or until tester comes out clean. When cake layers have cooled, remove from pans and refrigerate until cold.

To make the frosting: In an electric mixing bowl place the soft butter and beat it on a low speed while adding powdered sugar. When all the sugar is mixed in, turn off the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add in the vanilla and salt and let the mixer beat for 5 to 7 minutes on a medium speed. Fill and frost the cake and refrigerate it for 10 to 20 minutes to set up the frosting.

To make the ganache: In a heatproof bowl, place the chocolate chips and the corn syrup. Bring the heavy cream to a full boil. Pour the cream over the chocolate and whisk it until smooth then set it aside.Pour ganache over the top of the cake and, with a cake spatula, smooth the top of the cake and allow ganache to spill over the sides. Refrigerate for 20 minutes or longer.

Serve the cake cold or allow it to come to room temperature before serving.

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Comments & Reviews

recipe Chocolate Fudge Cake with Vanilla Buttercream Frosting and Chocolate Ganache Glaze
amirah new york, NY 02-08-2010
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Always a Hit!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

This is by far the cake that everyone requests I make. It's beautiful, delicious and serves a whole bunch of people. It is... a bit time consuming but who cares about that when you finally make it to the end. Other people have said the frosting is too buttery and I agree. Simply cut the butter the frosting calls for in half, the rest of the ingredients stay the same. Three sticks of butter is plenty. If you're looking for a showstopper cake, this is it.Read more
recipe Chocolate Fudge Cake with Vanilla Buttercream Frosting and Chocolate Ganache Glaze
Vanessa Sanatoga, PA 01-28-2010
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Unbelieveably, Awesomely, Chocolatey Good!!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

I am not a cake lover by any stretch of the imagination but my boyfriend is and I need a cake recipe for his birthday next... week. I tried this recipe out on my family(with few of the reader suggested modifications) and it was HEAVENLY! It was the hit of the house warming party! I got comments like " wow, it tastes like oreos" " i didn't expect to enjoy this so much"and " you really put your foot in this one" (smile). I used HERSHEY SPECIAL DARK Cocoa powder and hershey bittersweet chips for the ganache. On the down side, the prep and bake times are double for this cake. I took the advice of a few others reviewing this recipe and used a cream cheese butter cream frosting instead (1 stick of butter and 1 8 oz.pkg cream cheese). If you're using the butter cream frosting recipe, the amount of butter listed is way too much. The ganache is very delicious but messy when appyling; I would recommend waiting a few minutes before pouring it over the cake to control the mess. This is a secret weapon cake. Definitely worth adding to one's repetoire. -Not a Cake Lover Langhorne, PARead more
recipe Chocolate Fudge Cake with Vanilla Buttercream Frosting and Chocolate Ganache Glaze
M Newton, MA 12-25-2009
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Watch the Butter!!!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

There is a big typo in this recipe--for the butter cream frosting use 1 1/2 STICKS not CUPS!!! The best cake, frosting and... ganache ever!! I made this cake for Christmas and everyone just loved it. MillieRead more
recipe Chocolate Fudge Cake with Vanilla Buttercream Frosting and Chocolate Ganache Glaze
Janet Elida, OH 12-05-2009
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DECADENT!!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

This is a magnificent cake with a beautiful presentation. The cake made up very easily, though the layers did take about 28... minutes to bake. I modified the frosting by using 4 sticks of butter to 4 cups of confectioners sugar and beat it as recommended till it was delightfully fluffy and easy to spread. The ganache spilled over the sides of the cake perfectly. I served this at a dinner where I needed to impress my employers and it was a huge success. I intend to serve it twice more this holiday season at dinner parties.Read more
recipe Chocolate Fudge Cake with Vanilla Buttercream Frosting and Chocolate Ganache Glaze
Patrick Tuscaloosa, AL 10-23-2009
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Delicious!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

I made this cake for a birthday party, and I will admit it took 2 trips to the grocery and 3-4 hours to make, but my efforts... were rewarded with a moist and delicious cake. I was afraid this cake would be too rich, but I was surprised to find it was "light" yet creamy. Instead of 3 layers, I made 2 larger layers so that obviously added some cooking and cooling time, but time aside, the recipe went by-the-book! I do recommend serving the cake at room temperature rather than chilled, as the cake tastes and feels denser when it is cold.Read more
recipe Chocolate Fudge Cake with Vanilla Buttercream Frosting and Chocolate Ganache Glaze
Andrea Indianapolis, IN 10-15-2009
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This was terrific!!!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

This cake is amazing, I didn't make the frosting or the ganache, but the cake is really moist and has a great taste. I made a... vanilla bean buttercream frosting and then covered with ganche, and it turned out great!!Read more