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Inky Chocolate Cake

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Riley's cake request for his Deep Sea birthday party: a dark chocolate cake with dark chocolate frosting topped with a marzipan octopus. Okey dokey.

I started with a recipe from Nick Malgieri's Perfect Cakes which is always my go-to when I need baking inspiration. His is aptly named: Perfect Chocolate Cake. I added chestnut flour and used raw sugar for little bit more depth of flavor.

1 C white whole wheat flour
1/2 C chestnut flour
1/2 C alkalized (Dutch-process) cocoa powder
1 t baking powder
1/4 t baking soda
2 sticks butter, softened
1 C organic raw sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
One 8-ounce container crème fraîche
1 T organic heavy whipping cream
I doubled this recipe so I ended up with two 8" round cakes.
Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees.

In a bowl, stir together the flour, cocoa, baking powder and baking soda. Sift the ingredients onto a piece of parchment or wax paper and set aside.

In a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar together at medium speed. Beat in the eggs one at a time, beating until smooth after each addition. Reduce the mixer speed to low and beat in half the dry ingredients. Scrape down the bowl and beater well. Beat in the crème fraîche and whipping cream, scrape again, and then beat in the remainder of the dry ingredients.

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes,or until well risen and a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake emerges clean.

Cool the cake in the pan on a rack for 5 minutes, then invert onto a rack and remove the paper. Invert the cake onto a rack again to finish cooling right side up.

Frost with a dark chocolate ganache. And top with a marzipan sea creature of your choosing!

Click here for a homemade marzipan recipe.
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Comments

  1. CindyMay 31, 2011 at 11:19 PM

    My grandson would love this birthday cake! He loves all creatures of the sea! Thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
  2. LisaJune 1, 2011 at 12:55 AM

    That is so cute!

    ReplyDelete

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