Beatty's Chocolate Cake

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The secret to Ina Garten's decadent yet delicate cake is a cup of brewed coffee whisked into the batter. It intensifies the chocolate flavor without tasting exactly of coffee.

Ina Garten's Beatty's Chocolate Cake blue background
Photo: Photo: Carson Downing
Hands On Time:
25 mins
Total Time:
1 hrs
Servings:
8
Yield:
1 2-layer 8-inch cake

Ingredients

  • Butter for greasing the pans

  • 1 ¾ cup all-purpose flour, plus more for pans

  • 2 cup granulated sugar

  • ¾ cup good cocoa powder

  • 2 teaspoon baking soda

  • 1 teaspoon baking powder

  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt

  • 1 cup buttermilk, shaken

  • ½ cup vegetable oil

  • 2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature

  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

  • 1 cup freshly brewed hot coffee

  • 6 ounce good semisweet chocolate, such as Callebaut

  • ½ pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

  • 1 extra-large egg yolk at room temperature

  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

  • 1 ¼ cup sifted confectioners' sugar

  • 1 tablespoon instant coffee powder

Directions

  1. For cake, preheat oven to 350°F. Butter two 8-inch round cake pans. Line with parchment paper, then butter and flour pans.

  2. Sift the flour, granulated sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and mix on low speed until combined. In another bowl, combine the buttermilk, oil, eggs, and 1 tsp. vanilla. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients.

  3. With the mixer still on low, add the coffee and stir just to combine, scraping bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Pour batter into the prepared pans and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool in the pans for 30 minutes, then turn them out onto a cooling rack and cool completely.

  4. For frosting, chop the chocolate and place it in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Stir until just melted and set aside until cooled to room temperature.

  5. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium-high speed until light yellow and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the egg yolk and 1 tsp. vanilla and continue beating for 3 minutes. Turn the mixer to low, gradually add the confectioners' sugar, then beat at medium speed, scraping down the bowl as necessary, until smooth and creamy. Dissolve the coffee powder in 2 tsp. of the hottest tap water. On low speed, add the chocolate and coffee to the butter mixture and mix until blended. Don't whip! Spread immediately on cooled cake.

  6. Place one layer, flat side up, on a plate or cake pedestal. With a knife or offset spatula, spread top with frosting. Place second layer on top, rounded side up, and spread frosting evenly on top and sides of the cake. To create the dramatic swoops and swirls on the cover, double the frosting recipe.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)

842 Calories
46g Fat
108g Carbs
9g Protein
Nutrition Facts
Servings Per Recipe 8
Calories 842
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 46g 59%
Saturated Fat 21g 105%
Cholesterol 132mg 44%
Sodium 574mg 25%
Total Carbohydrate 108g 39%
Total Sugars 79g
Protein 9g
Vitamin C 0.3mg 2%
Calcium 118mg 9%
Iron 3.5mg 19%
Potassium 344mg 7%
Fatty acids, total trans 1g
Folate, total 67.3mcg
Vitamin B-12 0.3mcg
Vitamin B-6 0.1mg

*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

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