One of the best chocolate cakes out there. Make it using the Two-Stage Method for melting tenderness. For a bit more structure, use The Creaming Method.
2.25ozDutch process cocoa powder(the best you can find. I used Pernigotti)
8.25ozboiling water
3large eggs
1Tablespoonvanilla
8.25ozsifted cake flour
10.5ozgranulated sugar
1Tablespoonbaking powder
¾teaspoonsalt
8oz2 sticks unsalted butter, very soft but not greasy
For the Whipped Ganache
2cupsheavy cream
8ozbittersweet chocolatechopped (by weight)
⅛teaspoonsalt
½teaspoonvanilla extract
Instructions
For the Cake
I made the layers in 9″x2″ cake pans using RLB’s formula for Perfect All-American Chocolate Butter Cake in The Cake Bible (p 54 in my edition).
Yes, I boiled the water and “steeped” the cocoa powder in it, cooling it to room temperature before mixing the batter.
Once the batter is mixed. Bake in 9″ pans at 350F for about 25 min.
For the Frosting
Heat cream and salt to a high simmer then remove from heat.
Pour over the chopped chocolate and let sit for a minute or two to melt the chocolate.
Whisk slowly to emulsify until you have a dark and shiny ganache. Slowly whisk in the vanilla.
Cover with plastic wrap, and chill until cold and then whip by hand. I know, but it doesn’t take too long, and this stuff will break if you whisk even 1 second too long. If you look at mine, you can see that I almost crossed the line, and I knew what to expect. So, do yourself a favor and whip by hand.
Once it is thick and holds its shape, stop whisking, or you’ll have grainy ganache. This amount of ganache was enough to generously fill and frost just the top of my cake.