The Birthday Cake. I don’t make cake unless there’s a special occasion. I was itching to start thinking about Kevin’s cake about a month before his birthday. He was allowed to choose any cake he wanted under one condition: I haven’t made it before. He’s not a big cake eater, and my one little rule became some what of a problem because the two cakes he wanted, carrot cake and angel food cake, I had already made for him. I started suggesting a ton of different options, and kept mentioning a Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake that I had recently seen in on Emily’s blog and that’s what Kevin ended up choosing.
Emily’s original recipe was for a Chocolate Peanut Butter Marble Cake, but I opted to do separate layers so each slice had the same amount of chocolate and peanut butter. The flavors were good, they were mild the first day we cut into it, but came out a little more the next day. The chocolate smell was not very intense while it was cooling, but the peanut butter cake smelled like warm peanut butter cookies. Yum! My only complaints are that the cake was dry and that the flavors could have been a bit more intense. The cake was dry enough that it definitely needed ice cream to help moisten it. The frosting was sort of like a rich chocolate pudding. This was my first experience making “cooked” frosting, and I’d say it was a success. After the cake was frosted, I enjoyed the occasional spoonful of leftover frosting. I made the cake and the pudding part of the frosting on Thursday night. I assembled and finished the frosting on the day of the BBQ (Saturday). I stored it in the fridge, but after you cut your slices, let them sit for a few minutes to take the chill off.
Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake (From Sugar Plum)
Serves 16
Cake
2 1/4 cups cake flour (or use all-purpose flour, simply subtract two level tablespoons of AP flour for each cup of cake flour called for)
2 1/4 teaspoons baking power
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
2/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted
To make the cake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour two (9-inch) round cake pans.
In medium mixing bowl, sift together cake flour, baking powder and salt.
In a large mixing bowl, using a mixer on medium speed, beat together butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar until creamy, about 1-2 minutes. Beat in eggs and vanilla until combined, about 1 minute. Reduce mixer speed to low and beat in flour mixture, alternating with milk, until combined, about 2 minutes; remove half of the batter and place in medium mixing bowl. Beat peanut butter into one of the bowls filled with batter until combined. Beat melted chocolate into the other bowl filled with batter until combined.
Divide peanut butter batter into each cake pan, placing only on one side. Divide chocolate batter into each cake pan, on the opposite side; swirl batters together using a butter knife. Bake for 35 minutes or until well risen and a toothpick inserted into cake comes out with moist crumbs attached. Cool for 12 minutes, on a wire rack, before running a knife around outside edges and inverting onto wire racks to cool completely.
Frosting:
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted
To make the frosting: In a small saucepan, whisk together sugar, flour, cocoa, salt and milk; bring to a boil, whisking frequently. Boil 1 minute or until thickened; remove pan from heat and strain mixture into a small bowl. Cool completely in the refrigerator or freezer.
Beat the butter until creamy, about 1 minute, in a large mixing bowl, using a mixer on medium speed. Beat in "chocolate pudding" mixture until well combined, about 1 minute. Beat in melted chocolate until well combined and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
Spread frosting onto cake layers.
Emily’s original recipe was for a Chocolate Peanut Butter Marble Cake, but I opted to do separate layers so each slice had the same amount of chocolate and peanut butter. The flavors were good, they were mild the first day we cut into it, but came out a little more the next day. The chocolate smell was not very intense while it was cooling, but the peanut butter cake smelled like warm peanut butter cookies. Yum! My only complaints are that the cake was dry and that the flavors could have been a bit more intense. The cake was dry enough that it definitely needed ice cream to help moisten it. The frosting was sort of like a rich chocolate pudding. This was my first experience making “cooked” frosting, and I’d say it was a success. After the cake was frosted, I enjoyed the occasional spoonful of leftover frosting. I made the cake and the pudding part of the frosting on Thursday night. I assembled and finished the frosting on the day of the BBQ (Saturday). I stored it in the fridge, but after you cut your slices, let them sit for a few minutes to take the chill off.
Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake (From Sugar Plum)
Serves 16
Cake
2 1/4 cups cake flour (or use all-purpose flour, simply subtract two level tablespoons of AP flour for each cup of cake flour called for)
2 1/4 teaspoons baking power
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
2/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted
To make the cake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour two (9-inch) round cake pans.
In medium mixing bowl, sift together cake flour, baking powder and salt.
In a large mixing bowl, using a mixer on medium speed, beat together butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar until creamy, about 1-2 minutes. Beat in eggs and vanilla until combined, about 1 minute. Reduce mixer speed to low and beat in flour mixture, alternating with milk, until combined, about 2 minutes; remove half of the batter and place in medium mixing bowl. Beat peanut butter into one of the bowls filled with batter until combined. Beat melted chocolate into the other bowl filled with batter until combined.
Divide peanut butter batter into each cake pan, placing only on one side. Divide chocolate batter into each cake pan, on the opposite side; swirl batters together using a butter knife. Bake for 35 minutes or until well risen and a toothpick inserted into cake comes out with moist crumbs attached. Cool for 12 minutes, on a wire rack, before running a knife around outside edges and inverting onto wire racks to cool completely.
Frosting:
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted
To make the frosting: In a small saucepan, whisk together sugar, flour, cocoa, salt and milk; bring to a boil, whisking frequently. Boil 1 minute or until thickened; remove pan from heat and strain mixture into a small bowl. Cool completely in the refrigerator or freezer.
Beat the butter until creamy, about 1 minute, in a large mixing bowl, using a mixer on medium speed. Beat in "chocolate pudding" mixture until well combined, about 1 minute. Beat in melted chocolate until well combined and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
Spread frosting onto cake layers.
I'm going to have to bookmark this for next April. My hubby is a PB freak and I come up with some new PB baked good every year. This might be the selection for 2010.
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