Double Chocolate Layer Cake

For my birthday, I made the incredibly depressing decision to make my own cake. Whatever. As a humongous chocolate lover, after hours of searching, I settled on Sydney's Double Chocolate Layer Cake. I try my best to stay away from over-decoration, but I wanted to make a nice cake to show off how I spend my free time. I thought I'd feel a little weird making "HAPPY BIRTHDAY LILY!" out of fondant, so I stuck with a black cat made out of marzipan (I love cats...a little too much) and lavender sugar pearls. But anyway, the cake was delicious, although very rich. And as it was in the week leading up to fashion week, I only ate one piece.
Just a note: As with the Dark Chocolate Meringue Cookies, I would HIGHLY recommend using nicer chocolate. I did not use Valhrona or Callebaut, but Belgian chocolate from NY Cake. Any other high end chocolate will work, though.

Also, the messiness of the cake is due to my own poor construction, I was in a hurry.

Cutting the cake


Ingredients (cake):

• 3 oz. semisweet chocolate
• 1 1/2 cups hot brewed coffee
• 3 cups sugar
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch process)
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
• 3 large eggs
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 cups well-shaken buttermilk
• 3/4 teaspoon vanilla

Ingredients (ganache frosting):

• 1 lb. semisweet chocolate
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 2 tbsp. sugar
• 2 tbsp. light corn syrup
• 1/2 unsalted butter (chopped)

Preparation (cake):

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit and grease the bottoms and sides of two 10-inch round cake pans. Place parchment paper, wax paper, or foil inside the pans and grease.
2. Chop chocolate and place in a small bowl with coffee. Stir until chocolate melts.
3. Combine all dry ingredients (sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt) in a medium sized bowl.
4. Beat eggs with hand mixer in a large bowl until lemon colored, then add oil, buttermilk, vanilla, and melted chocolate-coffee mixture and beat. 
5. Slowly add dry ingredients and beat until well-mixed.
6. Divide batter between two pans (there is a lot of batter, so make sure you don't fill the pans too high. I made this mistake so my layers were uneven.)
7. Bake 60 to 70 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
8. Let cakes cool, then move to a rack to continue cooling until it's time to ice.

Preparation (frosting):

1. Place cream, sugar, and corn syrup in a saucepan on low heat and stir until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat. 
2. Chop chocolate in saucepan, along with chopped butter and stir until smooth.
3. Cool in a covered bowl in refrigerator, or until spreadable. (I kept mine in the refrigerator for several hours, stirring periodically).
4. When cake is cooled and frosting is spreadable, frost cake as desired and assemble. Decorate as desired.

Note:

The cat on my cake was made with marzipan and black gel paste.

Decadent Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Hey y'all! These rich and delicious peanut butter chocolate chip cookies are an absolute all-time favorite of mine. However, they are by no means healthy! They are very simple to make, and are so decadent you'll only want one!
Here is the original recipe. Enjoy!
Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup softened, salted butter
• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1/2 cup white granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 1/4 cup white all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 cup chocolate chips

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. DO NOT grease cookie sheet.
2. Cream butter and peanut butter along with sugar in a large bowl and beat with hand mixer until light and fluffy. Add egg and beat.
3. Combine all dry ingredients (brown sugar, white sugar, flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt)  in a medium sized bowl  and add to large bowl, about a cup at a time, and beat.
4. Add chocolate chips and mix. (You might want to wash your hands, and mix the chocolate chips with your hands, since the dough is tough to stir.)
5. Bake 8-12 minutes or until light brown. 

Rich, Low-Calorie Dark Chocolate Meringue Cookies

As I go through phases of healthy and unhealthy baking, my sweet tooth never subsides. These cookies are a rich, low-calorie indulgence that I always have around my apartment. If you're not an experienced baker, don't let this recipe intimidate you--it looks time consuming, but once you become familiar with some of the techniques, it will be a piece of cake (or cookie. ha ha).

As for the chocolate in this recipe, I do NOT recommend using cheap chocolate, like Nestle. I know that chocolate such as Callebaut and Valhrona can be a little pricey, but even a high-end chocolate sold at your grocery store will work for this. (I've used this from NY Cake and this from my local grocery store. The latter is less pricey.

Here is the original recipe.

Ingredients

• 5 oz. semisweet chocolate
• 2 tbsp. cocoa powder (not Dutch-process)
• 3 large room temperature egg whites (yes, this makes a difference)
• 1/2 tsp. cream of tartar
• 1/2 cup white granulated sugar
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (177 degrees Celsius)
2. Place parchment paper over two baking sheets
3. Melt three ounces of chocolate, either in a microwave-safe bowl, or in a saucepan over a pan of boiling water.
4. Place two remaining ounces of unmelted chocolate and cocoa powder in a medium-sized bowl.
5. Combine egg whites with cream of tartar in a large bowl. Beat on low-speed with a hand mixer for 30 seconds, and then on medium speed until soft peaks form. 
6. Add 2 tbsp. sugar and beat for one minute.
7. Add remaining sugar, 1 tbsp. at a time, along with vanilla extract, beating until smooth and glossy.
8. Fold in melted chocolate and cocoa and unmelted mixture.
9. Drop rounded 3 cm. drops, on parchment sheet.
10. Bake 8-12 minutes, or until firm on top. 

Nutrition

Calories: 28 per cookie

Fat: 1 g

Carbohydrates: 5 g

Potassium: 10 mg

Protein: 0 g

Fiber: 0 g

Sodium: 4 mg