Luckily, my friend Kerrie's birthday comes at the end of January, and she has an eight year tradition (eight years!) of serving or eating a German feast to celebrate. Nothing truly says screw you, January (or happy birthday for that matter) like pork schnitzel and spaetzle. And cake! It's a birthday! I will make cake!
I spent an obscene amount of time trying to decide what cake to make. To make matters worse, Kerrie was being decidedly coy and selfishly wouldn't offer up any measly guidance ("just make something you're excited to make"). Of course, I had to go and make it more thrilling by creating fake criteria such as "all fruit must be seasonal" (in January) or "it's a birthday, it really should be a layer cake."
If you haven't guessed, I am not a cake maker. I don't even consider myself a baker, but I do know how to follow a recipe, and I know one simple rule: chocolate is usually well received. Being a non-chocolate-lover myself, I am highly aware of how often people serve chocolate and how freaking excited people become. I personally can enjoy chocolate, but usually when contrasted with something else: peanut butter, caramel, Oreo filling.
So, chocolate it was. I had initially asked my sister-in-law Lizzie for ideas, who is a true baker and lover of all things sweet. She gave me three amazing suggestions, but each had their minor flaw (out-of season berries, too much work, not a layer cake, etc). One of them in particular caught my eye, a beautiful mascarpone-filled cake with sherried berries. The reviews kept mentioning that the cake itself was just okay but that the mascarpone cream was to die for. I love a good cream cheese frosting, and mascarpone can take it up a notch, but mascarpone and heavy cream, whipped, together, at last, made me very happy. I also couldn't help but think how much it might taste exactly like a giant Oreo cookie if it were layered in between a good devil's food cake.
Now this devil's food cake is no joke. There is sour cream and buttermilk and a pretty delightful amount of butter and eggs. It's rich and very moist, so if you're looking for a lighter crumb, I would consider subbing your favorite chocolate cake recipe. The frosting is on the lighter side since it's really a mix between cream cheese frosting and whipped cream - no butter - so it gives a nice contrast. While not pictured here, I used a vegetable peeler to make chocolate shavings for the top which was very easy and I think an elegant touch.
For other amazing cake ideas, my sister-in-law also turned me onto this delightful blog with the most beautiful cakes I've ever seen! I will be working my way through some of her recipes this year (now there's a New Year's resolution), perhaps starting with this gorgeous lady.
For other amazing cake ideas, my sister-in-law also turned me onto this delightful blog with the most beautiful cakes I've ever seen! I will be working my way through some of her recipes this year (now there's a New Year's resolution), perhaps starting with this gorgeous lady.
Devil's food cake with mascarpone cream
adapted from Ad Hoc at Home
3 1/3 cups cake flour
2/3 cups and 2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp baking soda
3 cups granulated sugar
1 tsp kosher salt
2 cups buttermilk
2 cups sour cream
6 eggs, lightly beaten
12 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
Semisweet chocolate bar for shaving (optional)
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Add cake flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar into bowl of stand mixer and mix gently to combine. In a separate bowl, mix together buttermilk and sour cream. In a third bowl, combine eggs and melted butter and whisk gently to combine. Place the stand mixer with paddle on medium-low speed and add the two mixtures above alternately until mixture is smooth.
Cut parchment paper to fit the bottom of 3 9-inch cake pans and then spray with canola oil spray or butter generously. Divide batter evenly among cake pans. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool for 5 minutes in pan, then flip carefully onto cooling rack to cool completely. If your cakes have domed, you may want to even out the top by using a long serrated knife so that your cakes stack evenly. The cake scraps can be mixed with a bit of frosting to get a nice sample of what your cake will taste like!
Make the mascarpone filling (below). Place the first cake on cake stand and spread about 1/3 of filling evenly on top. Repeat with remaining two layers. If desired, use vegetable peeler to shave chocolate bar into thick crumbles and curls. Sprinkle on top evenly or in desired pattern. Chill cake in refrigerator until ready to serve. Cake is best served within a few hours of making filling.
Mascarpone cream
adapted from epicurious.com
16 oz mascarpone cheese
2 cups heavy cream
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla
Combine ingredients in stand mixer bowl and set on medium speed using whisk attachment. Whisk until high peaks form being careful not to over-beat. If you over-beat by accident, you can try to add a little more cream and try again.
This recipe has a very small amount of sugar by most frosting standards, so if desired, feel free to increase the amount, but personally I liked the flavor of the cream and mascarpone coming through. Full-fat cream cheese can be substituted for the mascarpone if necessary.
Cut parchment paper to fit the bottom of 3 9-inch cake pans and then spray with canola oil spray or butter generously. Divide batter evenly among cake pans. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool for 5 minutes in pan, then flip carefully onto cooling rack to cool completely. If your cakes have domed, you may want to even out the top by using a long serrated knife so that your cakes stack evenly. The cake scraps can be mixed with a bit of frosting to get a nice sample of what your cake will taste like!
Make the mascarpone filling (below). Place the first cake on cake stand and spread about 1/3 of filling evenly on top. Repeat with remaining two layers. If desired, use vegetable peeler to shave chocolate bar into thick crumbles and curls. Sprinkle on top evenly or in desired pattern. Chill cake in refrigerator until ready to serve. Cake is best served within a few hours of making filling.
Mascarpone cream
adapted from epicurious.com
16 oz mascarpone cheese
2 cups heavy cream
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla
Combine ingredients in stand mixer bowl and set on medium speed using whisk attachment. Whisk until high peaks form being careful not to over-beat. If you over-beat by accident, you can try to add a little more cream and try again.
This recipe has a very small amount of sugar by most frosting standards, so if desired, feel free to increase the amount, but personally I liked the flavor of the cream and mascarpone coming through. Full-fat cream cheese can be substituted for the mascarpone if necessary.
