If you ever thought making a cake from scratch was impossible, I’m here to prove you wrong.
We made a cake tonight IN UNDER AN HOUR!
Homemade Chocolate cake layers are sandwiched with coffee-soaked ladyfingers and tiramisu cream for a swoon-worthy Valentine’s dessert. Actually, the cake is so simple to make that you can serve it with just a dusting of powdered sugar or even layer it with your favorite flavor for a custom ice cream cake.
Tonight we paired our cake with a classic White Russian. This cocktail mixes equal parts vodka and kahlua with a float of heavy cream. Use light cream or milk if you prefer. Stir together 1 oz each of the liquor and about 1/2 oz of cream over ice. Enjoy!
Tiramisu Chocolate Cake
1 stick (8T) unsalted butter
3 oz cocoa powder
1/2 t kosher salt (not fine)
1/2 c coffee or water
1 c flour
3/4 c sugar
3/4 t baking soda
1 egg
1/4 c sour cream or full fat yogurt
1/2 t vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
To assemble:
Cream Filling
8 ladyfingers (hard)
1/3 c coffee
2 T Kahlua or rum
Cocoa Powder for garnish
Cream Filling
8 oz mascarpone
1 1/4 c heavy cream
3-4 T sugar
1 t vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
Cake:
Preheat oven to 350°. Butter the sides of a 1/4-sheet pan (9×13) and line the bottom with parchment paper. Set aside.
In a small saucepan, combine butter, cocoa powder, salt, and coffee. Cook, stirring, until melted and combined. Set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, and baking soda. Add half of the butter mixture and whisk until combined. The mixture will be very thick. Add in the remaining butter mixture and combine well. Add the egg and whisk well. Whisk in the sour cream and vanilla.
Pour batter into the prepared pan and bake for 15 minutes or until a toothpick comes out dry when poked into the middle of the cake. Let the cake cool on a rack for about 15 minutes, then turn it out carefully. Remove parchment and cool completely.
Cream Filling:
Add mascarpone to a medium bowl and beat with a hand mixer for a minute or so to soften. Gradually add half of the cream. Scrape the sides of the bowl with a spatula, then add in sugar and vanilla. Add in remaining cream and beat until soft peaks form.
To assemble the cake:
Cut the cake in half crosswise and put one half on a serving plate. Reserve about 1/4 of the cream for garnish IF DESIRED. Put the rest of the cream into a piping bag fitted with a large star tip. Pipe the cream onto the cake. Alternatively, spread the cream onto the bottom half of the cake but don’t push it over the edges.
Combine coffee and kahlua in a small shallow dish. One at a time, dip each ladyfinger BRIEFLY into the coffee mixture and immediately place it on top of the cream. You will have 2 rows of 4 ladyfingers each.
Place the second half of cake on top and press down gently. Decorate the top of the cake with reserved cream and a dusting of cocoa powder.
