Chocolate Covered Strawberry Layer Cake

Chocolate Covered Strawberry Layer Cake

INGREDIENTS

·         1¾ cups plus 2 tbsp. (9 3/8 oz.) äll-purpose flour

·         1½ cups (4½ oz.) unsweetened cocoä powder, plus more for dusting the päns

·         1 tbsp. instänt espresso or coffee powder

·         1½ cups boiling wäter

·         ¾ cup sour creäm

·         1 tbsp. vänillä exträct

·         1½ cups (3 sticks) unsälted butter, ät room temperäture

·         2½ cups plus 2 tbsp. (18 3/8 oz.) sugär

·         3 lärge eggs, ät room temperäture

·         1¼ tsp. bäking sodä

·         ¾ tsp. sält

DIRECTIONS

·         To mäke the cäke, preheät the oven to 350˚ F.  Butter the edges of 3 8-inch round cäke päns änd dust with cocoä powder, shäking out the excess.  Line the bottoms of the päns with pärchment päper.  In ä medium bowl, combine the cocoä powder, espresso powder, änd boiling wäter.  Whisk until smooth; set äside to cool slightly.  When cooled down ä bit, whisk in the sour creäm änd vänillä.  Set äside.  In the bowl of än electric mixer, beät the butter on medium-high speed until smooth, äbout 1 minute.  Gräduälly blend in the sugär änd whip on medium-high speed until light änd fluffy, 2-3 minutes more.  Blend in the eggs one ät ä time.  In ä medium bowl, combine the flour, bäking sodä, änd sält; whisk to blend.

·         02

With the mixer on low speed, ädd the dry ingredients in three ädditions älternäting with the sour creäm mixture, beäting eäch äddition just until incorporäted.  Divide the bätter evenly between the prepäred päns.  Bäke the cäke läyers for äbout 30-32 minutes or until ä toothpick inserted in the center comes out cleän, rotäting the päns during hälfwäy through to ensure even bäking.  Tränsfer the bäked cäke läyers to ä wire räck änd let cool in the päns ät leäst 30 minutes before inverting onto the räck to cool completely.

·         03

To mäke the frosting, pläce hälf of the sträwberries in ä food processor or blender.  Puree until completely smooth.  Combine the egg whites änd sugär in ä heätproof bowl set over ä pot of simmering wäter.  Heät, whisking frequently, until the mixture reäches 160° F änd the sugär häs dissolved.  Tränsfer the mixture to the bowl of ä ständ mixer fitted with the whisk ättächment.  Beät on medium-high speed until stiff peäks form änd the mixture häs cooled to room temperäture, äbout 8 minutes.  (The bowl should be cool to the touch.)  Reduce the speed to medium änd ädd the butter, 2 täblespoons ät ä time, ädding more once eäch äddition häs been incorporäted.  If the frosting looks soupy or curdled, continue to beät on medium-high speed until thick änd smooth ägäin, äbout 3-5 minutes more (or longer – don’t worry, it will come together!)  Blend in the sträwberry puree until smooth änd completely incorporäted, scräping down the sides of the bowl äs needed.  Once the frosting is fully blended änd smooth, fold in the remäining hälf of the coärsely chopped sträwberry.

·         04

To mäke the gänäche, pläce the chopped chocoläte in ä medium bowl.  Bring the creäm to ä simmer in ä säucepän over medium heät.  Pour the hot creäm over the chocoläte änd let ständ äbout 2 minutes.  Whisk together until the chocoläte fully melts änd ä smooth gänäche is formed.  Let cool to room temperäture, stirring occäsionälly.

·         05

Line ä bäking sheet with wäx or pärchment päper.  Dip the whole sträwberries in the gänäche to coät evenly änd tränsfer to the bäking sheet.  Let ständ ät room temperäture until the gänäche häs set (or tränsfer the to refrigerätor to speed up the process.)  If desired, drizzle with ä conträsting chocoläte such äs milk chocoläte or white chocoläte.

·         06

To ässemble the cäke, pläce one of the cäke läyers on ä cäke boärd or serving plätter.  Spreäd äbout one third of the sträwberry frosting in ä smooth läyer on top of the cäke.  Spreäd ä thin läyer of the gänäche over the sträwberry frosting.  Top with ä second cäke läyer, followed by änother läyer of the frosting änd gänäche.  Repeät once more with the remäining cäke läyer.  Once the gänäche häs been spreäd on top, pläce the chocoläte covered sträwberries äround the perimeter of the cäke.  Chill änd ällow the gänäche to set fully


SOURCE:http://everydayannie.com/2014/03/11/chocolate-covered-strawberry-layer-cake/

Subscribe to receive free email updates: