This hot chocolate layer cake is the cake you need to bake in the cold, chilly, winter months. It is made with two layers of light, fluffy and delicate chocolate sponge cake that gets together in minutes. It is then crumb coated with a marshmallow fluff and frosted with marshmallow buttercream finally. To decorate it, we’ve used some chocolate ganache to create that gradient effect and added some more in spirals on top. It is truly so delicious and will be loved by friends and family on any occasion at all!
INGREDIENTS YOU’LL NEED:
- Eggs: Use large eggs and bring them to room temperature before mixing in. Eggs strengthen the binding of your cake and also add moisture. Having your eggs at room temperature makes it easier to incorporate them and allow them to mix thoroughly in your cake batter. A good way of doing this is by letting them sit in a bowl filled with room temperature water for around 10 minutes or until they come down to room temperature.
- Sugar: Fine granulated sugar or caster sugar is ideal for this recipe, as they dissolve quicker.
- All-purpose flour: I highly recommend weighing all your ingredients using a kitchen scale for accurate recipe results. If you’re using cups, don’t scoop your cup into the flour. Spoon the flour into your cup and level it off with the back of a knife.
- Cocoa Powder: A good quality dutch processed, natural and unsweetened cocoa powder is the best (I use Van Houten and I love it). This can make a huge difference in the taste of your baked goods. I highly recommend you use a cocoa powder which is natural and unsweetened.
- Espresso: I use an instant espresso powder, because it’s so convenient and easy to use. This helps to enhance the flavour of chocolate in the cake.
- Leavener: You will need baking powder to help the cake rise and turn out light and fluffy.
- Chocolate: I highly recommend using good quality couverture baking chocolate chips or chocolate bars (I use callebaut) to ensure the best flavor. Couverture chocolates are made of cocoa butter as compared to regular compound chocolates which are made of saturated fats like oil.
- Heavy Cream: You will need some heavy cream to create a smooth and shiny chocolate ganache.
FAQ
Whether you’re making a layer cake or a single layer cake, flat tops are always desirable. The reason why cakes dome that your cake pan heats up much faster than the rest of the cake causing the edges to set before the cake has risen fully, and as the rest of the cake cooks the centre rises and creates a dome. To avoid this from happening you want to protect the edges of your cake pan. To do this, you can wrap cake strips, aluminium foil, or a damp cloth around the edges of your cake pan. Be careful with the damp cloth as it might start burning after it completely dries out. This trick will ensure you get flat tops always!
In order to evenly frost your cake, use a cookie scoop to add the prepared marshmallow fluff on top. Start by adding around 1 large scoop or ½ cup on top of the first layer. Using an offset spatula, spread it evenly on top of the cake. Repeat with the other cake layer. Add around another or ½ cup of marshmallow fluff around the cake using an offset spatula. This will be the crumb coat of the cake. Make sure not to put too much pressure and remove crumbs from the cake. Refrigerate for around 30 minutes to allow the crumb coat to set on your cake. Add around another ½ to 1 cup of marshmallow buttercream frosting around the cake using an offset spatula to form a thick layer along the edges of the cake. You can use a bench scraper or an icing scraper to smooth out the walls of the cake. Smooth the top and edges using an offset spatula to form sharp corners. Chill the cake in the refrigerator for another 20 minutes to let it set. Using an offset spatula, add dollops of chocolate ganache on the buttercream. Use the bench scraper to create the gradient effect. Pour some chocolate ganache on top in spirals if desired.
I don’t know everything but I’m pretty sure you’ll barely have a single crumb of this best ever hot chocolate layer cake left over. If you do, store any extra cake tightly covered in the refrigerator to keep the marshmallow cream frosting cold. A cake dome or plastic cake carrier will keep it fresh for up to 6 days. I don’t recommend freezing the frosted cake. You can also freeze the cake layers, individually wrapped, for up to 3 months. Be sure to add a date to your containers. Remove the layers from the freezer and whip up a fresh batch of the marshmallow fluff and frost the cake as you normally would.
TIPS TO MAKE THE BEST HOT CHOCOLATE LAYER CAKE:
- Use room temperature ingredients. You know the drill bakers: For a smooth, lump free batter be sure your eggs are all at room temperature. For best results, take your ingredients out of the fridge the night before you bake the cake. Cold ingredients do not emulsify well and can lead to a lumpy, bumpy batter and a cake that bakes unevenly. By beating together room temperature eggs with the sugar, you’ll create a fluffy, moist cake that is still sturdy enough to hold plenty of frosting but also will be light and fluffy like a sponge. For best results, leave your ingredients out the night before you bake the cake.
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Do not over mix your batter. This cake comes together with just one bowl and six ingredients only. Don’t be tempted to over mix your batter once you’ve added in the dry ingredients into the wet or you will end up deflating the batter leading to a dense crumb. Once you have added the dry ingredients, gently fold them together using a rubber spatula until no streaks of flour remain.
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Use high quality cocoa. This smore’s layer cake is pure heaven. Now is not the time to skimp on the good stuff so break out the high quality dutch process cocoa powder for maximum deliciousness. I use Van Houten (not sponsored, just a fan) and absolutely love it!
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Prep your pans. A little prep goes a long way. For perfectly baked layers, line the bottom of each pan with a circle of parchment paper and then grease the sides of the pan with nonstick baking spray. I like to use a baker’s spray that has a touch of flour in it for clean cake edges and a quick, easy release.
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Weigh your cake layers. To ensure your cake bakes up into two even layers, weigh your cake pans with the batter inside and adjust accordingly so that each layer contains an equal amount of batter. For flat, perfectly even layers, use cake strips or aluminium foil around the outside of each cake pan. They work like a charm every time.
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Do not over bake. No one likes a dry cake so keep an eye on your oven. Every oven runs differently but my cakes baked up in 20-25 minutes. The cake is done with the edges of the cake begin to pull away from the sides of the pan and a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out with just a few crumbs remaining. Cool the cakes completely on a wire rack before frosting.
HOW TO GET THE BEST RESULTS FROM THIS RECIPE?
All of the recipes on the blog are thoroughly tested multiple times and carefully designed so that anyone can reproduce these delicious baked good in their own kitchen and enjoy them to the fullest. The only way to make this possible is when anyone can exactly replicate the measurements and temperatures.
- In order to standardise the way ingredients are measured, I highly recommend that you weigh them in grams. Volume measurements are nearly not as accurate and have a lot of scope for errors. To precisely be able to replicate the recipes, all you will need is a kitchen scale!
- Every oven heats up differently. Your oven might be over heating or under heating by around 50 degrees or more and you might not even know. In order to ensure that you are baking at the right temperatures, I highly recommend investing in an oven thermometer!
If you would still like to bake using volume measurements, I mentioned those below. However, I primarily test my recipes in grams and cannot promise the best results if you do so. Trust me, once you’ll start using these tools you’d never want to go back!
I hope you’ll enjoy this Hot Chocolate Layer Cake and don’t forget to bookmark this recipe for the winters. These pretty & delicious layer cake would make the perfect delight to share with your friends & family!
Happy Baking! x
PrintHot Chocolate Layer Cake
- Total Time: 4 hours
- Yield: 10 servings 1x
Description
This hot chocolate layer cake is the cake you need to bake in the cold, chilly, winter months. It is made with two layers of light, fluffy and delicate chocolate sponge cake that gets together in minutes. It is then crumb coated with a marshmallow fluff and frosted with marshmallow buttercream.
Ingredients
SPONGE CAKE
- 6 large eggs, at room temperature
- 200g (1 cup) granulated or caster sugar
- 125g (1 cup) all-purpose flour
- 33g (⅓ cup) dutch process cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon espresso powder
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
MARSHMALLOW FROSTING
- 4 large egg whites, at room temperature
- 200g (1 cup) granulated or caster sugar
- ½ teaspoon cream of tartar
- 170g (¾ cup) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 80g (⅔ cup) confectioners’ or icing sugar
CHOCOLATE GANACHE
- 45g (¼ cup) semi sweet couverture chocolate, chopped
- 30ml (2 tablespoons) heavy cream
Instructions
SPONGE CAKE
- Preheat Oven to 350˚F. Line bottoms of two 8″ or 9″ cake pans with parchment paper.
- In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment (this is the one I have), beat 6 large eggs for 1 minute on high speed. With the mixer on, gradually add 1 cup sugar and continue beating 8-10 minutes until thick and fluffy.
- Whisk together flour, cocoa powder, espresso powder and baking powder. Sift this mixture into fluffy egg mixture one third at a time. Fold with a spatula with each addition just until incorporated. Scrape spatula from the bottom to catch any pockets of flour and stop mixing when no streaks of flour remain. Do not over-mix or you will deflate the batter.
- Divide evenly between prepared cake pans (it helps if you have a kitchen scale to weight the pans). Bake the cake for 25-30 minutes, or until inserted toothpick comes out clean. Don’t open the oven for at least the first 20 minutes.
- Let the cake cool for 5 minutes in the pan. Remove from pan by sliding a thin spatula around the edges then transfer to a wire rack and remove parchment backing. Then run a knife around the edges and invert onto a cooling rack. Cool completely.
MARSHMALLOW FROSTING
- Place egg whites, sugar, and cream of tartar in a heatproof bowl. Set bowl over a saucepan filled with two inches of simmering water. Do not let it touch the water. (You can use a double boiler if you have one.)
- Whisk constantly until sugar is dissolved and mixture has thinned out, about 4 minutes. The mixture will be thick and tacky at first, then thin out and appear frothy on top. To test that it’s ready, you can use your finger or an instant read thermometer. Lightly and quickly dip your finger (it’s very hot, be careful) and rub the mixture between your thumb and finger. You shouldn’t feel any sugar granules. If using a thermometer, the temperature should read 160°F (71°C).
- Remove from heat. (No need to let it cool down before continuing.) Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat on high speed until stiff glossy peaks form, about 5 minutes.
- Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment in another bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
- Divide the meringue into two equal portions. Add one half to the buttercream and fold gently making sure not to deflate the peaks. Set aside.
CHOCOLATE GANACHE
- In a heatproof bowl, add the heavy cream. Over medium heat, heat the cream. Allow to simmer until warm. Do not let it come to a boil. Pour warm cream over the chopped chocolate and stir using a spatula until the chocolate has completely melted. Set aside.
ASSEMBLY
- Put a dollop of filling on a cake board and place the first cake layer.
- Then spread a generous amount of marshmallow fluff (about 1 cup) over the cake layer.
- Place the next layer and repeat until all the layers are stacked.
- Cover the cake with the remaining marshmallow fluff to crumb coat the cake. Refrigerate it for at least 1 hour to firm up.
- Once firmed up, frost cake all over with marshmallow buttercream.
- Using an offset spatula touch some dollops of chocolate ganache all around the frosted cake. Move a bench scraper along the edges to create the gradient effect.
- Pour leftover chocolate ganache in the center to create a spiral effect. Chill until set before slicing and serving.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for upto 5 days or at room temperature for upto 3 days.
- Prep Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Layer cake, smores
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: hot chocolate layer cake, s’mores layer cake
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