Chocolate Peanut Butter Wonder Cake

Oh. My. Word.  Let me just tell you that this cake is amazing... intensely rich, chocolatey, dense cake layers covered in light and creamy peanut butter frosting and then smothered in smooth, glossy chocolate/peanut butter ganache.  As I think I've said before, I don't usually attempt things that need to look perfect, because I'd rather have the flavors be spot on and not necessarily the presentation.  But this cake is both- the flavors are incredible and it's approachably fancy in appearance.  Even if the frosting isn't perfect on the top, the ganache will easily cover it up and looks neat as it drips over the edges.  I used an icing comb (which you can get at a hardware store for around $1.00- I believe it might be used for cement?) to make ridges along the sides, and I think it all came together very nicely.


I saw this recipe on Smitten Kitchen's site, which is where I find a good amount of my favorite recipes.  I changed it up a bit by making a 2-layer cake instead of a 3-layer one.  This was originally because I thought the layers looked like they would be too thin to do 3 because I was using 9" cake pans instead of 8" ones.  I have now gotten a couple more 8" cake pans that I like because they have straight sides.  My 9" pans unfortunately are slightly angled, which makes it difficult to make straight layer cakes with them.  Here are the 8" pans that I have and like, which I bought off of Amazon.com.


I absolutely love this chocolate cake recipe.  The sour cream makes it moist and dense, and someone even compared it to cheesecake.  I have a few different ideas going with this cake as a base, including a dulce de leche filling and salted caramel buttercream.  Interested, anyone?


Then the frosting is out of this world.  The combination of cream cheese and peanut butter creates a slight tanginess that keeps it from being overly sweet, and complements the cake very nicely.  Make sure you beat it for a while until it's nice and fluffy.  The ingredients should be room temperature.  My favorite way to get cream cheese to room temp without letting it sit on the counter forever is to put the sealed foil package in a bowl of warm water for about 5 minutes.  It works like a dream!

The ganache that goes on top is fairly straightforward.  You melt chocolate chips, peanut butter and light corn syrup in the top of a double boiler and then whisk in half-and-half until it's smooth at the end.  Now this is not the way I learned to make ganache, which is to place the chocolate, peanut butter, and corn syrup in a stand mixer bowl, heat the cream to nearly a boil and then pour it over the chocolate and mix it for 10 minutes until everything is melted and glossy.  I think I will try it this way next time, as it's easier for the chocolate to burn on the stovetop than it is for the cream to burn.  If I try it, I'll let you know how that goes.


Since making this cake, I made a triple-layer red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting and local strawberries between each layer.  I had a little bit of trouble with it trying to imitate the Leaning Tower of Pisa, and so I'm wondering if anyone has tips on making 3-layer cakes more stable?  One thought I had for next time is to put down the first two layers and then let those set up in the refrigerator before adding the top layer, and then letting that one set before frosting the outside.  Feel free to comment if you have any suggestions, but for now I guess I will stick with 2-layer cakes.

Here comes the recipe...

Chocolate-Peanut Butter Wonder Cake

Yield: 1 - 8" triple-layer cake or 9" 2-layer cake

Recipe adapted from Smitten Kitchen

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 1/2 cups sugar

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, preferably Dutch process

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup neutral vegetable oil (ie. canola)

1 cup sour cream

1 1/2 cups water

2 tablespoons distilled white vinegar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 eggs

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray the bottoms and sides of three 8-inch round cake pans or two 9-inch round ones. Line the bottom of each pan with a round of parchment and spray the parchment as well.

2. Sift the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl. Whisk to combine them well. Add the oil and sour cream and whisk to blend. Gradually beat in the water. Blend in the vinegar and vanilla. Whisk in the eggs and beat until well blended. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and be sure the batter is well mixed. Divide among the 3 prepared cake pans.

3. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until a cake tester or wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out almost clean. Let cool in the pans for about 20 minutes. Invert onto wire racks, carefully peel off the paper liners, and let cool completely. Freeze the layers, wrapped in plastic wrap, for at least 30 minutes before attempting to frost.

4. To frost the cake, place one layer, flat side up, on a cake stand or large serving plate. Spread 2/3 cup of the Peanut Butter Frosting evenly over the top. Repeat with the next layer. Place the last layer on top and frost the top and sides of the cake with the remaining frosting. (Note: Making a crumb coat of frosting–a thin layer that binds the dark crumbs to the cake so they don’t show up in the final outer frosting layer–is a great idea for this cake, or any with a dark cake and lighter-colored frosting. Once you “mask” your cake, let it chill for 15 to 30 minutes until firm, then use the remainder of the frosting to create a smooth final coating. Once the cake is fully frosted, it helps to chill it again and let it firm up. The cooler and more set the peanut butter frosting is, the better drip effect you’ll get from the Chocolate-Peanut Butter Glaze.)

5. To decorate with the Chocolate–Peanut Butter Glaze, put the cake plate on a large baking sheet to catch any drips. Simply pour the glaze over the top of the cake, and using an offset spatula, spread it evenly over the top just to the edges so that it runs down the sides of the cake in long drips. Refrigerate, uncovered, for at least 30 minutes to allow the glaze and frosting to set completely. Remove about 1 hour before serving.

Peanut Butter Frosting

Makes about 5 cups

10 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature

1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature

5 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted

2/3 cup smooth peanut butter, preferably a commercial brand (because oil doesn’t separate out)

1. In a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy. Gradually add the confectioners’ sugar 1 cup at a time, mixing thoroughly after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl often. Continue to beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes.

2. Add the peanut butter and beat until thoroughly blended.

Chocolate-Peanut Butter Glaze

Makes about 1 1/2 cups

8 ounces semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

3 tablespoons smooth peanut butter

2 tablespoons light corn syrup

1/2 cup half-and-half

1. In the top of a double boiler or in a bowl set over simmering water, combine the chocolate, peanut butter, and corn syrup. Cook, whisking often, until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth.

2. Remove from the heat and whisk in the half-and-half, beating until smooth. Use while still warm.

Strawberry-Rhubarb Crisp...with a citrusy flair

Our local Whatcom county strawberries are finally here, and I couldn't wait to start working on some recipes to use them!  Conveniently, my parents were taking a group of people from church out for an evening dessert cruise.  As I was put in charge of desserts, it gave me a great excuse to bake!  For the evening, I decided to do one chocolatey dessert (post to come), one fruity dessert, and some fresh local strawberries with a simple mock devonshire cream (sour cream and brown sugar).  For the fruity dessert, I decided I would make a nice strawberry-rhubarb crisp to show off some of the local produce that is just fantastic this time of year.

This recipe has a lot of fruit.  Indeed, it will fill your 9"x13" pan nearly to the brim just with the fruit, and then the topping will fill it the rest of the way up.  But remember, the fruit will cook down a bit in the oven and you'll have a nice substantial crisp.  I also decided to add some orange-iness to the recipe, because I thought it would go really well with the bright flavor of the rhubarb and sweetness of the berries.  To do this, I added some orange zest as well as fresh orange juice.  Lemon zest would be a great addition here as well.  The citrus keeps the dessert from being overly sweet and one-dimensional, and really brightens the other flavors in the pan.  There is also some zest added to the topping to keep the flavors consistent throughout.

A key to any crisp is to make sure you cook it for a long time.  Even if you're tempted to take it out as soon as the topping turns golden-brown, don't do it!  Wait until the fruit is bubbling up all around the outside of the topping, and possibly even spouting up out of a couple of places in the middle.  This will make sure that the crisp sets enough so it's not just fruity oatmeal soup.  Put it on the middle rack of the oven and let it go for about an hour, maybe even more.  One of my friends once said that it's always good to keep a crisp in the oven longer because it will only make it 'crisp'-ier.  It's true, at least to a point.

So go ahead and try this out when you're in the mood for a sweet, tart, crunchy, fruity dessert and you won't be disappointed.  When paired with some Tillamook vanilla bean ice cream, you just can't go wrong!

Here's the recipe:

Strawberry-Rhubarb Citrus Crisp
Yield: 10-12 servings

Fruit layer:
7 c. rhubarb, sliced 1/4" thick
7 c. strawberries, quartered
1 c. sugar
4 1/2 Tbsp. cornstarch
Zest of 1 medium orange
Juice of 1/2 medium orange

Mix fruit layer ingredients together in a large bowl and pour into a greased 9"x13" glass pan.

Topping:

1 1/2 c. flour

1 1/2 c. brown sugar

1 1/2 c. old-fashioned oats

1/2 t. cinnamon

1/4 t. salt

1/4 t. orange zest

6 oz. (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted

Mix together everything except for the butter.  Then pour in melted butter and stir with a fork until evenly mixed.  The mixture should be crumbly.  Crumble it on top of the fruit mixture, trying to cover as much of the exposed fruit as possible.  Bake at 350˚F for about an hour, or until the fruit is bubbling up around the edges of the crisp.  Remove from oven and let cool for a couple of hours.  It's best to serve the crisp while it's still warm, but not so hot that it doesn't have time to set up.  This dessert is wonderful served with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.  Enjoy!

Blueberry-Nectarine Cream Cheese Tart

 

This dessert just screams summer to me.  It is a variation on a long-time family recipe for a raspberry cream cheese tart given to my mom by a friend.  Every year as soon as the local raspberries come out, I try to make this dessert as many times as I can before they run out.  I have recently tried some variations on the plain raspberry, including strawberry-kiwi, strawberry-mango, and this blueberry-nectarine tart that I made for a family dinner the other night.

It begins with a fantastically simple shortbread crust, which is baked on its own.  Then, you beat together a cream cheese layer, top it with fruit and then with a fruity glaze.  Once it has chilled down for a few hours, it's ready to cut and serve with homemade whipped cream, if you're into that (and who isn’t?). In the end you have a fruity, creamy, refreshing dessert that is an instant favorite. 

This can be made either in one 9”x13” pan, as I did here, or in two tart pans.  There are a couple of advantages to using tart pans: 1) The desserts will look a lot prettier with the scalloped edge on most tart pans, and 2) Tart pans have removable bottoms so you won’t ruin the first piece when trying to get it out of the pan.  Here's a great option for some tart pans if you don't have any:

       

So here’s the recipe!

Blueberry-Nectarine Cream Cheese Tart

Yield: 12 servings

Crust:

1 c. butter, softened

2 c. all-purpose flour

½ c. powdered sugar

Cream the ingredients together in a bowl using a spatula until well-mixed.  It helps to mix the powdered sugar and butter together first, and then add the flour so the gluten doesn’t get overdeveloped, leading to a tough dough.  Once everything is mixed well, press into the bottom of either a 9”x13” pan or two tart pans.  Bake at 350ºF for 15 minutes.  The crust will be very light, with nearly undetectable browning around the edges.  Just watch for it to lose a certain glossiness and for the crust to have puffed up just slightly. Let cool all the way before spreading on the next layer!  I sometimes make the crust the night before so I’m not tempted to try and spread the cream cheese onto a still-warm crust.  I’ve done it before, and the crust starts pulling up and mixing with the cream cheese, which is just not very appetizing!

Cream cheese layer:

2 – 8 oz. packages of cream cheese

½ c. powdered sugar

Beat together until smooth and spread on prepared and cooled crust.

On top of the cream cheese layer, evenly distribute about 2 ½ c. fresh fruit and/or berries.

Glaze:

½ c. nectarines, crushed

1 c. water

1 ½ c. sugar

Bring the above ingredients to a low boil in a saucepan.  While the fruit mixture is coming up to temperature, mix together the following in a small bowl:

2/3 c. cold water

4 ½ Tbsp. cornstarch

When fruit mixture is at a low boil, add the cornstarch mixture to the pot (you may need to stir it up again as cornstarch likes to settle to the bottom of the bowl).  As the mixture comes back up to a boil, it will become thick and turn clear.  Once this happens, turn off the heat and add:

1 Tbsp. lemon juice

Carefully pour the glaze over the fruit, making sure all the fruit and is covered.  Place uncovered in the fridge until well-chilled, about 4 hours.  Once chilled, it can be covered with plastic wrap tightly, so the plastic wrap doesn’t touch the glaze.  Cut and serve with whipped cream.

Welcome!

Hello! My name is Emily and I’ve thought for a while about starting a food blog, and have finally decided to do it! I have loved baking from a young age (I have pictures of me kneading bread dough and making chocolate chip cookies at the age of 4). Even though I have had this lifelong passion for food, I have only recently decided to look at it as a career option. So, about a year ago, I moved from my hometown in NW Washington to the beautiful island of Oahu to attend a Patisserie program at Kapi’olani Community College in Honolulu, HI. I learned so much there, from basic techniques in cooking and baking to the business side of things such as purchasing and cost control.

Through these experiences, I also learned more about my culinary point of view. I now know that I really enjoy making more rustic baked goods, such as yeast breads, scones, muffins, etc. rather than intricately decorated cakes and pastries. So in this blog I will be primarily trying recipes that fit in that category. I love to take a few simple ingredients (ie. Bread flour, yeast, salt and water) and create something that is memorable and comforting. That’s part of the magic of baking for me, I think. I hope you enjoy taking this journey with me as I explore old family recipes as well as new ones. Bon appétit!