Chocolate Blackout Wedding Cake with Coconut Buttercream
- Level: Intermediate
- Yield: 1 cake (about 12 servings)
-
- Nutritional Analysis
- Per Serving
- Serving Size
- 1 of 12 servings
- Calories
- 1532
- Total Fat
- 124
- Saturated Fat
- 89
- Carbohydrates
- 112
- Dietary Fiber
- 17
- Sugar
- 81
- Protein
- 13
- Cholesterol
- 289
- Sodium
- 382
- Total: 1 hr 15 min
- Prep: 30 min
- Cook: 45 min
Ingredients
Cake:
1 1/4 cups cake flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (best quality like Valrhona)
3 tablespoons ancho chile powder, optional
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
10 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup buttermilk, room temperature
1/2 cup hot coffee
Whipped Ganache Filling:
2 cups heavy cream
1/2 pound bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped (recommended: Valrhona)
1/2 pound semisweet chocolate, finely chopped (recommended: Callebaut)
1/2 cup toffee bits
Coconut Buttercream:
6 egg yolks
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
2 cups (1 pound) unsalted butter, at room temperature, cut into small pieces
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup sweetened coconut milk (recommended: Coco Lopez)
2 pounds thick flaked unsweetened coconut (can be found at health food stores)
Directions
- Set a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees. F. Lightly grease 2 (9-inch) cake pans and line the bottoms with disks of parchment paper. Sift the flour, cocoa, ancho chile powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt onto a sheet of waxed paper. Sift again.
- Place butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat at high speed until smooth and fluffy. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating until each is incorporated. Continue beating, scraping down the sides of the bowl if necessary, until light and fluffy, about 5 more minutes. With the mixer on low speed, beat in 1/3 of the flour mixture. Beat in the vanilla, half of the buttermilk and half of the coffee, then another 1/3 of the flour mixture. Beat in the remaining buttermilk and coffee, then the remaining flour mixture.
- Spread the batter evenly in prepared pans. Bake for 30 minutes, or until the centers spring back when lightly pressed. Cool the cakes in the pan on a wire rack.
Whipped Ganache Filling:
- Bring heavy cream to a simmer in a small saucepan. Place chocolate in a large bowl, pour heavy cream over and let sit for 1 minute. Gently whisk until combined.
- Place the ganache over a bowl filled with ice water to chill slightly, whisking occasionally. Remove ganache from the ice and whip with a whisk until light and fluffy. Fold in the toffee bits.
Coconut Buttercream:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a wire whip attachment, beat the egg yolks at medium-high speed until creamy and pale yellow, about 5 minutes.
- In a nonstick saucepan, combine the sugar and corn syrup. Place over medium-high heat and bring to a full rolling boil without stirring and cook until it reaches soft-ball stage (238 to 242 degrees F) on a candy thermometer. Immediately pour the mixture into a buttered heat proof measuring cup to halt the cooking.
- Add a small amount of the syrup to the beaten egg yolks, turn on the mixer to high speed, and beat for about 5 seconds. Continue stopping the mixer, adding syrup, and beating in the same manner until all of the syrup is incorporated and the mixture is cooled completely.
- Add the butter, 1 piece at a time, and beat until incorporated before adding the next piece. When all of the butter has been blended in, add the vanilla and coconut milk and continue beating until combined.
Assembly:
- Slice each cake in half horizontally to make 4 layers total. Place the first layer down and spread with a thin layer of the Ganache. Repeat with the remaining cake layers and ganache, ending with a cake layer.
- Spread a thin layer of the buttercream over the entire cake. This is called a crumb coat. Chill the cake for about 30 minutes. Frost entire cake with the remaining buttercream. Press coconut into the sides of the cake.