Is this chocolate cake anything special?

Oli, I haven't made that particular cake, but it seems...a bit over the top unless it's

for a special, special occasion. I've made many recipes from Food52, but have to say the dinners were more to my taste than their dessert collection. The few desserts that worked were ones I'd already made from the original source (like Yotam Ottolenghi).

Let us know if you make it and what you thought of it.

PS: If you paste the website path text in the box below titled
LINK URL, it will provide a clickable link for us.

 
Good video hint: I learned why my puddings sometimes get thin AFTER being thick.

I must not have cooked it long enough to kill the enzyme in the eggs because it was thick going into the refrigerator and thin and watery the next day.

Love learning stuff when it clears up prior problems.

 
Looked very good but that doesn't mean any thing that's why I come here to ask the experts.

I sure hate to try something like this and find out it wasn't anything special, not like SueB's recipe. I am always on the look out for wow factor cakes.

 
Not sure that's in anything special.

Oli, of course this is only my opinion but I like a chocolate cake that includes both cocoa and bar chocolate (well - chips, discs, etc.) Also - one that has oil in it; makes it superbly moist.

If you do decide to try it might I suggest swapping at least half of the boiling water with boiling coffee?

 
oli, where would I find SueB's choc cake REC U mentioned in order to compare it to the food52 REC?

 
The Sue B cake is very close to a Texas sheet cake recipe which to me is the best

chocolate cake around especially made with all butter.

 
I think it is the wayit is finished that is supposedly "special"--custard, ganache

frosting, etc. It's a devel's food cake dressed up.

 
Another dark chocolate cake I haven't made - and with peanut butter frosting

- that sounds rich and tasty. Colleen

BITTERSWEET CHOCOLATE AND PEANUT BUTTER LAYER CAKE
FOR CAKE LAYERS:
3 ounces fine-quality bittersweet chocolate such as Vahlrona
1 1/2 cups hot brewed coffee
3 cups sugar
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch process)
2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
3 large eggs
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups well-shaken buttermilk
3/4 teaspoon vanilla
FOR THE FROSTING:
2 cups creamy peanut butter
4 sticks unsalted butter, softened
6-7 cups powdered sugar (depending on what consistency you want)
2 tablespoons milk (or more if needed)
2 cups dry roasted peanuts, blitzed in a food processor to finely chop them (optional)
INSTRUCTIONS
FOR THE CAKE LAYERS:
Preheat oven to 300°F. and grease pans. Line bottoms with rounds of wax paper and grease paper.
Finely chop chocolate and in a bowl combine with hot coffee. Let mixture stand, stirring occasionally, until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth.
Into a large bowl sift together sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In another large bowl with an electric mixer beat eggs until thickened slightly and lemon colored (about 3 minutes with a standing mixer or 5 minutes with a hand-held mixer). Slowly add oil, buttermilk, vanilla, and melted chocolate mixture to eggs, beating until combined well. Add sugar mixture and beat on medium speed until just combined well. Divide batter between pans and bake in middle of oven until a tester inserted in center comes out clean, 1 hour to 1 hour and 10 minutes.
Cool layers completely in pans on racks. Run a thin knife around edges of pans and invert layers onto racks. Carefully remove wax paper and cool layers completely. Cake layers may be made 1 day ahead and kept, wrapped well in plastic wrap, at room temperature.
FOR THE FROSTING:
In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and peanut butter with a paddle attachment until creamy and smooth. Add 3 cups of the powdered sugar and beat on low to incorporate. Add the milk and beat on medium-high until light and fluffy. Check for taste and consistency, adding more sugar to thicken the frosting for spreading on the cakes with a spatula, or thinning it with a little more milk if needed to achieve a loose enough consistency to pipe the frosting onto the cakes. You make the call!
ASSEMBLY:
To frost your cake as I have above, you'll need a cardboard cake round to set under the bottom layer so that you can lift and tilt the cake while frosting.
Frost the cake as you normally would, evenly coating the top of the first cake layer, placing the second on top, and then coating that one. You can stop there, or continue by spreading an even layer of the frosting around the outside of the cake as well. Once you have a nice, smooth layer of frosting on the whole cake, you can create the zig-zag decoration on top by skimming the surface of the cake with the blade of a serrated knife, while gently moving it side to side. It will take a few passes to cover the entire top of the cake.
To coat the side with chopped nuts, lift the cake in one hand (you have to have a cardboard cake circle in place to do this), and while tilting it gently over the bowl of chopped nuts, lift the nuts with your free hand and press them into the frosting on the sides of the cake. After each handful, rotate the cake gently, then bring up another handful of nuts. Continue until the whole side of the cake is evenly coated.
As a final flourish, you can pipe little dots with a star tip at the join where the zig-zag and nuts meet to create a more finished look.

http://www.ouichefnetwork.com/2012/06/deep-dark-chocolate-and-peanut-butter-layer-cake.html

http://www.ouichefnetwork.com/images/old/6a01156ed76240970c0168ec004422970c-pi.jpg

 
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