Ganache-glazed Chocolate Cake with Raspberry Buttercream

Happy Valentine's Day!  I hope your sweetie showers you with a gift of chocolate, raspberry, and chocolate ganache ... maybe with pink and red and white jimmies on top.  Or make this cake for someone you love - they won't soon forget it - they may even thank you with a great big hug and a kiss!

Chocolate Cake

from Baked: New Frontiers in Baking

For the cake:
3/4 Cup Dark Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
1 1/4 Cups Hot Water
2/3 Cup Sour Cream
2 2/3 Cups All-Purpose Flour
2 Tsp Baking Powder
1 Tsp Baking Soda
1/2 Tsp Salt
3/4 Cup or 1 1/2 Sticks Unsalted Butter, softened
1/2 Cup Vegetable Shortening (or substitute softened butter)
1 1/2 Cups Granulated Sugar
1 Cup Firmly Packed Dark Brown Sugar
3 Large Eggs, room temperature
1 Tablespoon Pure Vanilla Extract


1. Preheat the oven to 325F.  Spray three 8- or 9-inch round cake pans with cooking spray, line the bottoms with parchment paper and then spray the parchment.  Set aside.

2. In a medium bowl combine the cocoa, hot water and sour cream. Whisk together and set aside to cool.

3. Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a medium bowl and set aside.

4. Add the butter and shortening to a stand mixer fitted with the paddle and beat on medium until light and fluffy - about 5 minutes. Add the sugars and beat for another 5 minutes until light and fluffy.

5. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the vanilla and beat until combined. Give the sides of the bowl a scrape and give one last mix for 30 seconds.

6. Add the flour mixture in three additions alternating with the cocoa mixture in two additions, starting and ending with the flour.

7. Divide the batter equally among the three pans and smooth the tops. Bake for 35 to 4o minutes until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Cool the cakes in the pans on a wire rack for 20 minutes before removing cake from the pans to cool completely.  Wrap the cake layers and freeze for 30 minutes or up to one week.  Allow to thaw slightly before applying icing.

Raspberry Buttercream

adapted from Katherine Seeley/Fine Cooking

Yields 7-1/2 to 8 cups enough to fill and frost a 9-inch four-layer cake or about 5 dozen cupcakes

5 large egg whites
1-1/4 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup plus 2 Tbs. light corn syrup
1 lb., 4 oz. (2-1/2 cups) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 cup raspberry puree, strained

Place the egg whites in the clean bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and whisk on medium-high speed until foamy. Sprinkle in 6 Tbs. of the sugar and beat on high speed to medium peaks (the whites should be smooth, full, and shiny, and the peaks should curl a little). Turn off the mixer.

Combine the remaining 3/4 cup plus 2 Tbs. sugar and the corn syrup in a medium (3-quart) saucepan over medium high heat, stirring briefly to dissolve the sugar. Continue to cook just until the mixture comes to a rolling boil.

Immediately remove the syrup from the heat, turn the mixer onto medium-high speed, and slowly pour the syrup down the side of the bowl in a steady stream, being very careful not to let the syrup hit the whisk.

Reduce the speed to medium and continue whisking until the whites are barely warm, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the butter 1 Tbs. at a time. Add the vanilla and continue beating until the frosting is smooth and creamy.  Add raspberry puree and beat until combined.  Add additional pink food coloring if desired.  Use at room temperature.

Chocolate Ganache Glaze
from Allrecipes.com via Sweetapolita.com

9 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 cup heavy cream

Place the chocolate in a medium heat-proof bowl.  Place the heavy cream in a small saucepan and heat until the cream starts to bubble at the perimeter and feels hot to the touch.  Pour the heavy cream over the chopped chocolate and let it sit for one minute.  With a whisk, begin whisking the mixture in the center and continue outward until the mixture is shiny and smooth.  Allow to cool 15 minutes before using.  Pour the ganache on top of the cake about 1/4 or 1/3 at a time and use a large offset spatula to cover the top and as the ganache drips down the sides of the cake, carefully spread it around the sides in a thin layer.  Decorate with jimmies.

Mint Bliss Ice Cream with Mint Ganache Sauce

Homemade mint ice cream...

...a chopped Mint Bliss chocolate bar...

...and a ganache sauce with creme de menthe...pure heaven!

Mint Chip Ice Cream
from Alton Brown courtesy of The Food Network

3 cups half and half
1 cup heavy cream
8 large egg yolks
9 ounces sugar
1 teaspoon pure peppermint extract
3 ounces chopped Ghirardelli Mint Bliss chocolate, or Andes candies, or semisweet chocolate chunks

Place the half-and-half and the heavy cream into a medium saucepan, over medium heat. Bring the mixture just to a simmer, stirring occasionally, and remove from the heat.

In a medium mixing bowl whisk the egg yolks until they lighten in color. Gradually add the sugar and whisk to combine. Temper the cream mixture into the eggs and sugar by gradually adding small amounts, until about 1/3 of the cream mixture has been added. Pour in the remainder and return the entire mixture to the saucepan and place over low heat. Continue to cook, stirring frequently, until the mixture thickens slightly and coats the back of a spoon and reaches 170 to 175 degrees F. Pour the mixture into a container and allow to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. Add the peppermint extract and stir to combine. Place the mixture into the refrigerator and once it is cool enough not to form condensation on the lid, cover and store for 4 to 8 hours or until it reaches 40 degrees F or below.

Pour the mixture into an ice cream maker and process according to the manufacturer's directions. This should take approximately 25 minutes. In the last minute or so of freezing, add the chopped chocolate to the ice cream machine. Serve as is for soft serve or freeze for another 3 to 4 hours to allow the ice cream to harden.

Mint Chocolate Ganache

from Baked: New Frontiers in Baking by Matt Lewis and Renato Polafito

6 Ounces / 170g Dark Chocolate (60 to 72% Cacao), coarsely chopped
1/2 Cup Heavy Cream
1 Tblsp Creme de Menthe
1/2 Tsp Peppermint Extract

1. Put the chocolate in a medium bowl and set aside. Bring the cream just to a boil and pour over the chocolate. Let the mixture sit for 2 minutes before gently mixing the chocolate and cream together until emulsified. Add the flavorings and stir to combine.

2. Mix for a couple more minutes to help cool then let the ganache sit for about 15 minutes.

3. If the ganache has cooled enough to become solid, microwave (for only a few seconds) or gently heat the ganache until pourable.

4. Drizzle over Mint Bliss ice cream.

Homemade Caramel Sauce

The first (and second and third) time I tried to make homemade caramel sauce, it didn't turn out quite right. And so I've had this fear of melting sugar...I mean, how much simpler can you get? It's just sugar and water and heavy cream and I think the water is optional, and you don't even need a candy thermometer. Yet, it's a bit tricky. Stir too much and the caramel crystallizes. Gritty caramel? No, thanks. Cook too little and it's sweet and tasteless, like eating raw sugar. Cook too much and it'll taste burned, almost bitter.



But getting it just right...well it's perfection...especially atop some vanilla ice cream or combined with hazelnuts and drizzled over Emily Luchetti's Chocolate Truffle and Vanilla Pastry Cream Tart. So if at first you don't succeed...try, try again.

Caramel Sauce

adapted from Classic Stars Desserts by Emily Luchetti

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

1/2 cup water

1 cup heavy whipping cream

In a heavy nonreactive saucepan, stir together the sugar and water. Place over medium heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sugar dissolves and the mixture comes to a boil.

(Tip: While the sugar is boiling, keep handy a bowl of water and a clean pastry brush. As you see crystals forming up the sides of the pan, dip the brush in water and brush down the sides of the pan to dissolve the crystals.)

Increase the heat to high and cook, without stirring, until the mixture becomes a golden amber color. You can gently swirl the pan occasionally to prevent hot spots that could burn, but don't stir or you'll get that gritty caramel sauce I was talking about.

(Tip: as the sugar is cooking and changing color, place a few drops on a clean, white plate to see the color more accurately. The sugar mixture will look darker in a stainless pan and you may end up under-cooking the caramel. Stop cooking when the drop of caramel on the white plate is a nice medium amber color.)

Remove from the heat and let the bubbles subside for a few seconds. Stir in the cream, very slowly and carefully. The caramel will bubble up when you add the cream so take extra caution as boiling sugar is very hot and could burn you. Serve the sauce warm or refrigerate for later use.