Wasted Chocolate Cake

Yes! This happened! I saw a picture of this cake and needed to make it. The amount of chocolate used is both overwhelming and incredible! My friend and I brilliantly used a different cake recipe from the original (Art of Dessert) and followed the design. The best chocolate cake EVER is of course, Barefoot Contessa's Chocolate Cake. It's so good that to eat another chocolate cake seems like a waste of chewing energy and calories. To say the least, this was the BEST chocolate cake I have ever had. 

Barefoot Contessa's Buttercream Frosting is unbelievable BUT since we were covering it up with chocolate, chocolate and more chocolate, we decided to use store bought icing since it is mainly being used as a delicious glue. 

Recipe

Barefoot Contessa's Chocolate Cake

Ingredients 

Butter, for greasing the pans

1 ¾ cups All-purpose flour, plus more for pans

2 cups sugar

¾ cups good cocoa powder

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp kosher salt

1 cup buttermilk, shaken

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 cup freshly brewed hot coffee 

Ingredients (for the rest of the cake)

2 cans of chocolate frosting (store bought)

2 bags (600g) of semi sweet chocolate chips

2-3 tbsp heavy cream

assorted chocolate candies for the top of the cake (we used coffee crisp bites and maltesers)

Directions 

1) Preheat the oven to 350. Butter 2 (8-inch) round cake pans. Line with parchment paper, then butter and flour the pans.  

2) Sift the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and mix on low speed until combined.

3) In another bowl, combine the buttermilk, oil, eggs, and vanilla. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry. With mixer still on low, add the coffee and stir just to combine, scraping the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula.

4) Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool in the pans for 30 minutes, then turn them out onto a cooling rack and cool completely.

5) Place 1 layer, flat side up, on a flat plate or cake pedestal. With a knife or offset spatula, spread the top with frosting. Place the second layer on top, rounded side up, and spread the frosting evenly on the top and sides of the cake.

6) With your hands cover the sides of the chocolate cake with semi-sweet chocolate chips and cover the top with assorted chocolate candies. 

7) In a double boiler, melt 1 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips with 3 tbsp heavy cream and drizzle it over the top of the cake and let it drip down the sides.