Chocolate + Chocolate Chip Cookie Layer Cake
We. Love. This. Cake.
From the perfectly dense and moist and light and chocolatey cake, to the layer of a huge chocolate chip cookie right in the middle, to the thick and rich brown sugar buttercream – this cake has it all. Now it does have its downfalls (besides just the calories) as well though. Because the texture of the chocolate chip cookie layer is much thicker than that of the cake, cutting is not the easiest (but totally do-able). Another fault of this cake is that there should be more frosting, especially surrounding the chocolate chip cookie layer (so if I were you and I was making this cake [again], I would make at least 2 sticks of butters worth of frosting, instead of 1.5 sticks).
If you are a frequent visitor, you may be thinking to yourself that this is not the first Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cake you have seen around here – and you would be correct, but this one is a totally different version! About a Month before we got engaged, I made Rich a Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cake for Valentines Day (the cake which will be forever referred to around here as “Engagement Cake”). Since Rich is such a huge fan of Cookie Dough (who isn’t) and I am such a lover of Chocolate – that is exactly what our wedding cake will be. One of my co-workers is an amazingly talented baker (in addition to just being an amazing person and friend) and she will be making our Cake.
After I made the Double Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcakes a few weeks ago, Rich suggested that a huge Chocolate Chip Cookie could be stuffed inside a Chocolate Cake – so that is how this cake came to be! A huge cookie stuffed inside of a layer cake, come on… how could I resist that challenge!?!?
I am not sure if Deb will stuff a cookie in the middle of our cake or not (that is up to you, Deb, FYI) but I know that her Chocolate Cake will be out of this world and that she will make this Brown Sugar Buttercream taste even more amazing than I ever could. With our Wedding just 2 months away, I am trying to avoid making too make delicious desserts like this (because I just can’t resist the temptation) – but everyone needs to splurge a bit, and this cake is totally worth it!
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Enjoy it – and let us know what you think!!!
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (I use a mix of Dark & Regular)
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 cup strong black coffee (regular OR decaf)
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Heat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans or one 13x9x2-inch baking pan. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment or in a large bowl with an electric mixer, combine the sugar, flour, cocoa(s), baking soda, baking powder. Mix on low until dry ingredients are thoroughly combined. Add eggs, buttermilk, coffee, oil and vanilla. Beat on medium speed for about two minutes; the batter will be thin. Pour batter evenly into prepared pans.
- Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes for round pans, 35 to 40 minutes for rectangular pan or until wooden toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely.
- 1/4 c. milk
- 2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 2 c. AP unbleached flour
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- 1/2 tsp. sea salt
- 1/2 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 10 tbsp. unsalted butter, room temp
- 1 1/4 c. sugar
- 3/4 c. lightly packed brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 egg yolk
- Preheat oven to 325° and place rack in middle position. Line the bottom of two 9-inch round pans with parchment paper.
- Combine wet ingredients in a bowl. Combine dry ingredients, except the chocolate chips, in separate bowl. Set aside.
- Using a spatula, toss 1 Tablespoons of the wet ingredients with the chocolate chips in a small bowl. Add about 1/4 cup of the dry ingredients. Toss again to coat evenly. This will keep the chocolate chips from sinking to the bottom of the cake.
- Mix butter and sugars in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with paddle attachment until well creamed, about 3 minutes.
- Add egg and egg yolk one at a time. Alternately add dry and wet mixtures about a quarter at a time without pausing between additions.
- Removed the bowl and fold in the chocolate chips with a spatula. The dough will be thick—more like cookie dough than cake batter.
- Divide dough into prepared pans, spread a little bit. It will be too thick to fill the pan to the edges, but will spread under the heat of the oven. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until edges crown and surface is browned.
- Cool the cakes in pans to room temperature, then invert them using a small offset spatula to release edges.
- 3/4 cup (1.5 sticks) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 cup + 1 Tablespoon light brown sugar (or dark brown)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1/4 cup flour
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 6 Tablespoons milk (I used vanilla almond milk, but soy or regular would be fine)
- 1 and 1/2 cups mini chocolate chips
- With an electric or stand mixer using a paddle attachment, cream together the butter and brown sugar at medium speed. Add the vanilla and beat well. Stir in the flour and salt until doughy. Beat in the milk until fluffy. Gently fold in chocolate chips.
Hershey’s Black Magic Cake as found on My Baking Addiction
Chocolate Chip Cookie Layer Cake as found on The Faux Martha from United Cakes of America
Cookie Dough frosting originally from Sally’s Baking Addiction & first used by Teacher-Chef *here*
And I leave you with this, Today’s Question of the Day… What other things should we try to stuff in the middle of cakes or cupcakes or something??