Monday, April 13, 2009

Sour Cream-Chocolate Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting and Chocolate-Peanut Butter Glaze


I immediately fell in love with this chocolate peanut butter cake when I saw it on Smitten Kitchen. Serious drool. I had to make the cake and I had to get Sky High: Irresistible Triple-Layer Cakes! This is the only cake I've made from this cookbook so far but check out The Cake Slice Bakers who are working their way through it, one cake a month.


So is this cake as good as it looks? For the most part, yes. It's a very rich cake, as even my sugar/chocolate addicted sister in law (who I made this cake for) admits. Overall people liked it, but it wasn't a personal favourite of mine. The cake was extremely moist and soft, and really easy to make - though I like my cakes more dense. Both the amount of peanut butter frosting and chocolate-peanut butter glaze might have been a bit too much (as you can see by the mass amounts of chocolate on the top and sides of the cake!) I'd use less next time. And I preferred eating this cake cold.

I'm looking forward to trying other cakes from this cookbook, particularly the triple lemon chiffon cake, maple walnut cake, cappuccino chiffon cake, chai cake with honey-ginger cream, dulce de leche cake, and the Halloween sweet potato cake. And those are just my top picks!

If this sounds good, you might also like:
German Chocolate Cake
Rich Chocolate Cheesecake
Elvis Fluffernutter Cake
Tiramisu Cake


Sour Cream-Chocolate Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting and Chocolate-Peanut Butter Glaze
Adapted from Sky High: Irresistible Triple-Layer Cakes

Makes an 8-inch triple-layer cake; serves 12 to 16

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, preferably Dutch process
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup canola oil
1 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cups water
2 tablespoons distilled white vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs

Peanut Butter Frosting (recipe follows)
Chocolate-Peanut Butter Glaze (recipe follows)

1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Butter the bottoms and sides of three 8-inch round cake pans. Line the bottom of each pan with a round of parchment paper.

2. Whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Whisk to combine them well. Add the oil and sour cream and whisk to blend. Gradually beat in the water. Blend in the vinegar and vanilla. Whisk in the eggs and beat until well blended. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and be sure the batter is well mixed. Divide among the 3 prepared cake pans.

3. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a cake tester or wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out almost clean. Let cool in the pans for about 20 minutes. Invert onto wire racks, carefully peel off the paper liners, and let cool completely.

4. To frost the cake, place one layer, flat side up, on a cake stand or large serving plate. Spread 2/3 cup cup of the Peanut Butter Frosting evenly over the top. Repeat with the next layer. Place the last layer on top and frost the top and sides of the cake with the remaining frosting.

5. To decorate with the Chocolate–Peanut Butter Glaze, put the cake plate on a large baking sheet to catch any drips. Pour the glaze over the top of the cake, and using an offset spatula or knife, spread it evenly over the top just to the edges so that it runs down the sides of the cake in long drips. Refrigerate, uncovered, for at least 30 minutes to allow the glaze and frosting to set completely. Remove about 1 hour before serving. Decorate the top with chopped peanut brittle.

Peanut Butter Frosting
Makes about 5 cups

10 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
5 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
2/3 cup smooth peanut butter, preferably a commercial brand (because oil doesn’t separate out)

1. In a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy. Gradually add the confectioners’ sugar 1 cup at a time, mixing thoroughly after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl often. Continue to beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes.

2. Add the peanut butter and beat until thoroughly blended.

Chocolate-Peanut Butter Glaze
Makes about 1 1/2 cups

8 ounces semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
3 tablespoons smooth peanut butter
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1/2 cup half-and-half

1. In the top of d double boiler or in a bowl set over simmering water, combine the chocolate, peanut butter, and corn syrup. While whisking, heat until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth.

2. Remove from the heat and whisk in the half-and-half, beating until smooth. Use while still warm.

39 comments:

Pearl said...

oh my gosh - that piece of cake looks like it'd be good with a huge glass of milk!

LizNoVeggieGirl said...

That is so "love at first sight"-worthy!!

jd said...

Ooooo...

That cake is really drool-worthy!

Snooky doodle said...

oh it looks delicious. that flowing chocolate glaze looks awesome. and the peanut butter frosting is to die for :)

Cakespy said...

I want some! This looks so ridiculously good!

Dana said...

Beautiful job on a beautiful cake. I've only made one thing out of that book (the ice cream cake) but was really happy with how it turned out.

Jacqueline Meldrum said...

Love, I am in lust!

Alisa - Frugal Foodie said...

I saw the pictures on flickr and jumped right over! The chocolate cake looks a bit rich for me, but I could seriously eat that peanut butter frosting by the spoonful, yum!

Erin said...

This has been on my list to make for a long time! It looks delicious!

Erin said...

Peanut butter icing is so underused. I adore it! This cake looks like heaven on a plate.

Steph said...

Wow, that looks soo good! Smitten Kitchen inspired me to make this cake too. It's definitely not my favourite, but it was a lot of fun to make.

kickpleat said...

I've heard various things about this cake...I think I'd feel the same way that you did, but it does look amazing. I think I could eat a spoonful of the frosting every now and then.

Karly said...

I made that cake this weekend as well! It was delicious, but you're right...very rich!

Jannett said...

This cake looks really good... :)

Ricki said...

Can there really be such a thing as "too rich"? I mean, especially where chocolate and peanut butter are concerned? Looks fabulous!

La Cuisine d'Helene said...

Oh wow, I think I would love it. Beautiful cake.

Maris said...

Sour cream is basically a secret ingredient in any chocolate cake - this looks amazing (aside from the fact that I don't love peanut butter...it still LOOKS amazing!)

Unknown said...

So fancy...great job!

Anonymous said...

This looks so sinful and delicious!

Deborah said...

There are some great cakes in that book - this one certainly looks like a show-stopper!

grace said...

the oozing ganache greatly resembles the drool on the verge of running down my chin--this is stunning and would be SCRUMPTIOUS.

Maria said...

That is a mighty cake! Looks amazing!

Lisa Turner said...

Chocolate and peanut butter are pretty difficult to resist, even for a savory girl like me. Beautiful presentation Ashley.

jenny said...

Oh yum!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

WOW! This is beyond the beyonds of impressive baking feats. All of that pb and chocolate! Delish.

Johanna GGG said...

I love your decadent layer cakes - and I am a big fan of cakes with sour cream in them - am sure I would love this - thought maybe just a small piece - for a start :-)

Justin said...

who, that looks amazing

The Food Librarian said...

Looks great! I love love this book and everything I make from it is wonderful. Your cake looks fantastic.

Hannah said...

That looks unbelievably, ridiculously good... Man, I had better leave this page quickly before I try to eat the screen..!

Unknown said...

I made this cake after seeing it on Smitten Kitchen and it's one of the desserts I've baked that my husband and others STILL talk about. It was a bit hit!

Stephanie said...

this looks amazing!

Kelly said...

I made this cake too and WOW, it is RICH! I've never been satisfied with just a thin sliver before... made it for my boyfriend's birthday and decimated everyone in his office.

Elyse said...

Wow, just wow. This cake looks divine. I'm always up for a moist and chocolatey cake (although I love a dense cake, like you do). Plus, your complaint about too much frosting and glaze is MY DREAM!! We might be perfect cake companions: you eat mostly cake with some frosting, and I clean up the remaining bits of cake with all the gloppy remaining frosting. Deal?

apparentlyjessy said...

woah, that cake looks so delicious and decadent! I love tall cakes, and this one looks really special, I must bookmark it to try one day.

test it comm said...

That chocolate frosting looks so good running down the side of that cake!

Anonymous said...

WOW! this cake looks amazing! My mouth waters just saying the title!
Thanks for the recipe!

Anonymous said...

oh my gosh! i made this cake, and it didnt turn out near as pretty as hers, but it is delicious!!!!!!!!!!!!!! my husband is in love! my topping was NOT pretty, and basically ran all over the place, and my icing(my fault, i refridgerated) was the opposite of pretty, but the cake tastes good enough to over look that! :) thanks for the recipe

Anonymous said...

What are you supposed to do with the 1/2 cup of Half and half in the glaze recipe?

Anonymous said...

never mind lol I am a bad reader! I know what to do with the half and half! I am in the process of making it right now for my family and its smelling GREAT!!