Best Devils Food Cake With Black Pepper Boiled Icing Recipes

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DEVIL'S FOOD CAKE WITH BLACK PEPPER BUTTERCREAM



Devil's Food Cake With Black Pepper Buttercream image

Like all the best devil's food cakes, this six-layer beauty has a deeply fudgy flavor and a light and feathery texture. In between the tender cake layers, a black pepper and vanilla buttercream creates a soft and creamy contrast to the dense fudge frosting on the top and sides. With six layers and two frostings, this cake is definitely a project, but one well worth making if you want to impress. And you can make it in stages. The frostings can be made up to a week ahead and stored in the refrigerator. Bring them to room temperature and briefly beat with an electric mixer before assembling the cake. The cake layers themselves can be baked a day ahead. Store them, well-wrapped, at room temperature.

Provided by Melissa Clark

Categories     project, dessert

Time 2h30m

Yield 10 servings

Number Of Ingredients 22

10 tablespoons/140 grams unsalted butter, softened, more for greasing pans
2/3 cup/70 grams unsweetened natural (not Dutch-processed) cocoa powder, more for pans
3/4 cup/180 milliliters whole milk
2 cups/200 grams cake flour
1 1/2 teaspoons/10 grams baking soda
1/2 teaspoon/3 grams baking powder
1/2 teaspoon/3 grams kosher salt, more as needed
1 3/4 cups/350 grams granulated sugar
3 large eggs
2 teaspoons/10 milliliters vanilla extract
5 large egg whites
1 cup/200 grams granulated sugar
Large pinch kosher salt
3 sticks plus 2 tablespoons/365 grams unsalted butter, softened
1 vanilla bean pod, split lengthwise, seeds scraped
1 teaspoon/5 grams coarsely ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups/300 grams granulated sugar
1 cup/240 milliliters heavy cream
Pinch kosher salt
6 ounces/170 grams unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
8 tablespoons/112 grams unsalted butter, diced
2 teaspoons/10 milliliters vanilla extract

Steps:

  • Make the cake: Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 3 8-inch round baking pans, line the bottoms of each with a round of parchment paper and grease the paper. Use a little cocoa powder to coat the insides of the pans, rotating pans so the cocoa comes up the sides, then tap out excess.
  • In a small bowl, whisk together cocoa powder and 2/3 cup boiling water. Whisk in milk. In a separate bowl, whisk together cake flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
  • In a large mixing bowl fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in eggs 1 at a time, until incorporated. Beat in vanilla. With the mixer running on low speed, beat in a third of the dry ingredients, followed by half the cocoa mixture. Add remaining portions, alternating between two mixtures. Beat until smooth.
  • Divide batter evenly among prepared pans. Bake until the centers of the cakes are firm to the touch, 30 to 40 minutes. Cool cakes in their pans on a wire rack for 10 minutes; turn them out onto the rack to cool completely. (Peel off parchment paper if it sticks to the cakes.)
  • Make the buttercream: Fill a medium pot halfway with water (or use a double-boiler) and bring to a simmer. In a heatproof bowl that fits over pot, whisk together egg whites, sugar and salt. Cook, whisking constantly, until the sugar dissolves and mixture reaches 140 degrees on a candy or instant-read thermometer, about 5 minutes.
  • Using an electric mixer, whip until completely cooled and thick, about 5 minutes. Beat in butter a little at a time, until the frosting is smooth and spreadable. Beat in vanilla bean seeds and pepper.
  • Using a serrated knife, slice each cake in half horizontally. Place one bottom layer on a large platter or cake stand. Top evenly with a thin layer of buttercream. Repeat, alternating between cake and frosting, ending with a layer of cake. Cover cake loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate while you prepare fudge frosting. (Cake can rest in the refrigerator for up to 1 day.)
  • Make the frosting: In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine sugar, heavy cream and salt. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until sugar completely dissolves, about 5 minutes. Scrape mixture into a bowl. Stir in chocolate, butter and vanilla until smooth. Set bowl over a larger bowl filled with ice. Use a hand mixer or an immersion blender with the whisk attachment to whip until mixture is thick and cool, about 5 minutes. Spread frosting over the top and sides of the cake.

THE ULTIMATE DEVIL'S FOOD CAKE



The Ultimate Devil's Food Cake image

Not for the faint of heart, our version of devil's food cake is infused with melted chocolate (in addition to the usual cocoa powder) and sour cream to create a richer chocolate flavor and help it stay moist. Get our step-by-step guide here.

Provided by Martha Stewart

Categories     Food & Cooking     Dessert & Treats Recipes     Cake Recipes

Number Of Ingredients 13

3 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pans
1 cup boiling water
3/4 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped (3/4 cup)
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
2 cups packed light-brown sugar
4 large eggs, room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 cup sour cream
6 1/4 cups Chocolate Swiss Meringue Buttercream Frosting

Steps:

  • Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Butter two 9-inch round cake pans. Line bottoms with parchment rounds; butter parchment. Stir together boiling water, cocoa, and chocolate in a bowl. Let cool 10 minutes. Whisk together flour, baking powder and soda, and salt in another bowl.
  • In a mixing bowl, beat butter with sugar on medium-high until fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Beat in eggs, one at a time, scraping down sides of bowl. Beat in vanilla, then chocolate mixture. Reduce speed to low; beat in flour mixture in two additions, alternating with sour cream, until just combined.
  • Divide batter evenly between prepared pans, smoothing tops with an offset spatula. Bake until a tester inserted in centers comes out with moist crumbs attached, 35 to 40 minutes.
  • Let cakes cool in pans on a wire rack 20 minutes. Turn out onto rack, top-sides up; let cool completely. With a serrated knife, trim tops of cakes so they're level.
  • Line the edges of a cake stand or plate with strips of parchment. Place one cake layer on stand, trimmed-side up, and spread 1 1/2 cups buttercream evenly over top. Top with remaining cake layer, trimmed-side down.
  • Spread a thin layer of buttercream over top and sides. Refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes (this ensures a crumb-free finish). Spread remaining frosting evenly over top and sides. Cake can be stored in refrigerator up to 1 day; bring to room temperature before serving.

OLD-FASHIONED DEVIL'S FOOD CAKE



Old-Fashioned Devil's Food Cake image

Provided by Food Network

Categories     dessert

Time 1h20m

Yield 10 to 12 servings

Number Of Ingredients 15

2 1/2 cups cake flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
2 1/2 cups dark brown sugar
3 1/2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled
3 large eggs
1/2 cup sour cream
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water
3 large egg whites
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup light corn syrup
Pinch salt
1 (10-inch) springform pan, buttered and the bottom lined with parchment or waxed paper

Steps:

  • Set a rack at the middle level of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees.
  • Sift flour, baking soda and salt, once then set aside. With an electric mixer set at medium speed, beat butter until soft and light. Add sugar and continue beating until very light, about 5 minutes. Beat in chocolate, then eggs, 1 at a time. Continue beating until light and smooth.
  • Beat in half the sour cream, then half the flour mixture, scraping bowl and beater(s). Repeat with remaining sour cream and flour mixture, scraping again. Combine vanilla and boiling water and gently beat into batter. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for about 45 minutes, until firm and well risen. Cool in pan on rack for 5 minutes, then unmold and cool on a rack. For the frosting, combine all ingredients in bowl of mixer. Whisk to combine then place over a pan of simmering water, gently whisking until mixture is hot and sugar is dissolved. Use electric mixer on medium speed to beat until cooled, but not dry. To finish, cover top and side of cake with frosting, swirling it from the center outward.

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