Best Triple Decker Peanut Butter Cake Recipes

THE BEST PEANUT BUTTER CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350F (180C or 160C fan-forced).
• Line the bottom of two 8-inch round cake pans with baking paper. Lightly grease and flour the sides. Be sure that the sides of the pans are at least 2 inches (5 cm). See recipe notes for pan size options.
• Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl.
• Beat together the oil, light brown sugar and peanut butter in a very large bowl.
• Mix in the eggs and vanilla extract. Stop mixing once you no longer see pieces of egg.
• Using a hand-held metal whisk, whisk in the sour cream.
• Whisk in about 1/2 of the flour mixture (again, whisking by hand).
• Carefully whisk in the milk.
• Whisk in the rest of the flour mixture until combined. Stop mixing once combined.
• Divide the batter evenly between the 2 prepared pan. Bake both on the middle rack of the oven for about 28-33 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean and you see the edges starting to pull away from the pan.
• Cool the cakes fully.
• In a large bowl using an electric mixer, beat the butter until smooth.
• Mix in the cream cheese, followed by the peanut butter.
• Starting with the mixer on a low speed, beat in about 2 cups of powdered sugar.
• Mix in the rest of the powdered sugar about 1/2 cup at a time until the desired sweetness is reached. If the frosting seems too thick, beat in 1-2 tablespoons of cream, 1 tablespoon at a time.
• Ensure the cake layers are fully cooled before assembling the cake.
• If the tops of your cakes are domed, use a serrated knife to gently saw off the rounded tops.
• Place 1 cake layer bottom side up on the plate or cake stand that you plan to serve it on.
• Frost the top with about 1/3 of the frosting.
• Place the second cake layer on top, with the bottom facing up.
• Frost a thin layer of frosting around the sides to seal in any crumbs. Optionally, place the cake in the fridge for 20-30 minutes for the frosting to firm up.
• Frost the sides and top with swirls of peanut butter frosting. Optionally, top the cake with peanut butter cups.

TRIPLE CHOCOLATE & PEANUT BUTTER LAYER CAKE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Oil and line the base of three 19cm sandwich tins. Mix the flour, cocoa, bicarb and sugar in a bowl. Make a well in the centre and beat in the syrup, eggs, oil and milk with an electric whisk until smooth.
• Divide the mix between the tins, and bake for 25-30 mins until the cakes are risen and firm to the touch. Cool in the tins for 10 mins before turning out onto a cooling rack and cooling completely. At this stage, they can be frozen, well wrapped, for up to eight weeks.
• Make the bark while the cake is cooling. Melt the chocolate in short bursts in the microwave, stirring every 20 secs, until smooth. Spoon onto a parchment-lined baking tray and smooth over with a spatula to make a thinnish layer, around 35 x 20cm. Sprinkle over the chocolate chips along with the pieces of pretzel and honeycomb, then chill until solid. Remove the bark from the fridge and leave for a minute to come to room temperature before using a sharp knife to cut it into shards (if it's fridge cold, the chocolate will snap rather than cut). Chill again until you're ready to decorate the cake.
• To make the icing, melt the chocolate in the microwave, stirring between short blasts, then leave to cool a little. Meanwhile, beat the butter, icing sugar and 1 tbsp boiling water with an electric whisk or stand mixer, slowly at first, then turn up the speed and beat until you get a pale, fluffy icing. Spoon out a third of the mix into a separate bowl and stir in the peanut butter. Whisk the melted chocolate into the remainder of the icing, then beat in the cocoa if you want a darker, more chocolatey-coloured icing.
• Sandwich the three cakes together with the peanut butter icing. Use half the chocolate icing to coat the sides and top of the cake and fill in the edges between the layers, scraping off any excess. Chill for 20 mins. This is called a crumb coating, allowing you to get a really smooth finish when it comes to the final icing.
• Spread the remaining chocolate icing over the lightly chilled cake, smoothing over the sides and top so you get a neat finish. Chill again for 20 mins.
• To make the ganache, heat the cream in a small pan until steaming. Tip the dark chocolate into a bowl, then pour over the cream. Mix well until smooth and shiny. Transfer to a piping bag and leave to cool for a few mins at room temperature.
• Pipe the ganache on top of the cake, nudging it over the edge and allowing it to drip down neatly. Do this all the way round the cake, then fill in the centre with more ganache. Smooth the top with a knife. Chill for 1 hr for the ganache to set.
• Press the bark shards into the cake, sticking up. Add lots of chocolate eggs, popcorn and pretzels in and around the shards. Cut into slices to serve. Will keep for up to three days kept in a cool place in an airtight container.

CHOCOLATE RASPBERRY TRIPLE DECKER CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F.
• Generously grease and flour three 9-inch round cake pans. Set the pans aside.
• Strain the raspberries through a fine-mesh sieve if you don't want the seeds in your cake.
• Place the cake mix, raspberries and their juice, sour cream, oil, and eggs in a large mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer on low speed for 1 minute. Stop the machine and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat 2 minutes more, scraping down the sides again if needed. The batter should look well blended.
• Divide the batter evenly among the prepared pans, smoothing it out with the rubber spatula.
• Bake the cakes until they spring back when lightly pressed with your finger, 25 to 28 minutes.
• Remove the pans from the oven and place them on wire racks to cool for 10 minutes. Run a dinner knife around the edge of each layer and invert each onto a rack, then invert again onto another rack so that the cakes are right side up. Allow to cool completely, 30 minutes more.
• Meanwhile, prepare the Chocolate Ganache, adding the Chambord, if desired, after all the chocolate has melted.
• Place one cake layer, right side up, on a serving platter. Spread the top with ganache frosting. Place the second layer, right side up, on top of the first layer. Spread the top with ganache. Place the third layer, right side up, on top of the second layer and frost the top and sides of the cake. Work with clean, smooth strokes.
• Decorate the top attractively with the fresh raspberries, if desired. Place this cake, uncovered or in a cake saver, in the refrigerator until the frosting sets, 20 minutes. Store in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
• Ganache: Place the cream in a small heavy saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil, stirring. Meanwhile, place the chopped chocolate in a large stainless-steel mixing bowl. Remove the cream from the heat, and pour it over the chocolate. Stir with a wooden spoon until the chocolate is melted. Stir in the liqueur if desired.
• To use this ganache as a glaze, let it stand at room temperature for 10 minutes before spooning it over a cooled cake. To use the ganache as a frosting, let it stand for 30 minutes at room temperature, or chill it for 10 minutes, until it has thickened enough to spread with a metal spatula.
• Makes 1 3/4 C., enough to thinly frost a 2 - 3 layer cake.