Prep Time: 40 minutes Cook Time: 30 minutes Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes Yield: 8-12 Slices
Chocolate Cake
400 grams (2 cups) Granulated Sugar
250 grams (2 cups) 2 cups all-purpose flour
90 grams (¾ cup) Dutch-process Cocoa powder (current fave: Bensdorp Dutch Cocoa Powder)
2 tsp Baking Soda
½ tsp Salt
1 tsp Baking Powder
3 Large Eggs, at room temp.
2 ½ Teaspoons Vanilla Extract
4oz (½ cup) Vegetable Oil
8oz (1 cup) Whole Milk or Buttermilk, at room temp.
8oz(1 cup) Hot Coffee (I put 1 tbsp of instant coffee and pour hot water on top, let sit for 1 minute)
Macerated Strawberries
16oz Strawberries, all sliced but 5 saved for the top decoration
2 Tablespoons Granulated Sugar
Chocolate Ganache
8oz (⅔ cup) Heavy Whipping Cream
9oz Chocolate Finely Chopped/ Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
Whipped Cream & Assembly
24oz (3 cups) Heavy Whipping Cream
3 tbsp powdered sugar
1 tsp Dry Milk Powder
Instructions
Chocolate Cake
Preheat oven to 350F/180C and grease two 9 inch round pans. Set aside.
In a large bowl sift together the sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt, and baking powder. Mix to combine. Set aside.
n the bowl of an electric mixer combine eggs, vanilla, oil, and milk mix until fully combined. Slowly add in dry ingredients. Mix until fully incorporated. Add in hot coffee, the mixture will be very thin. Pour evenly into prepared pans.
Bake for 25-30 minutes. Or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Set aside to cool completely. I prefer to freeze the cake layers overnight I find it easier to decorate with chilled cake layers but you can proceed with the recipe once the cake layers are cooled. If freezing wrap in plastic wrap tightly, twice, and freeze overnight.
Macerated Strawberries
When ready to decorate pull the cake layers out of the freezer. Then make strawberries. In a bowl sprinkle some sugar on top of the sliced berries, mix them all together and let them sit for 30-45 minutes.
Chocolate Ganache
Heat heavy cream either in a saucepan or a microwave-safe bowl. Don't let the cream boil.
In a medium-sized bowl pour in chocolate pieces and pour heavy cream on top of chocolate. Let sit for 5 minutes then stir until completely combined and glossy.
Whipped Cream & Assembly
In a bowl of an electric mixer whisk heavy whipping cream, powdered sugar, and dry milk powder until stiff peaks form. Set in the fridge while preparing the cake.
Cut each cake layer in half, to create 4 layers. Place one piece on cake plate/serving dish then place a small spoonful of chocolate ganache on top and spread it evenly over the whole cake layer. Next place ⅓ of the whipped cream and strawberry slices. Making sure to keep the layers as flat as possible. Repeat until the final cake layer is on top. Place chocolate ganache on top of the final cake layer, let it drizzle down the sides of the cake. Store cake in the fridge, best eaten day of the assembly.
