Mint Chocolate Chip Cookie Crunch Cake
I will admit that December has pretty much been kicking my ass so far. In the balance of work/blog/life/sleep, blogging has been coming in last place. Not to mention the fact that I’m married to a non-Indian person now so I have to think about Christmas and presents and all that stuff more than I normally would. I did, however, have a few minutes to throw together this little cake. And by throw together, I mean I had 2 failed attempts because I tried to rush and ended up leaving out some important ingredients (like eggs). Remember that whole post about having a relaxed holiday? Yeah, that totally didn’t work. But enough grumbling, let’s talk cake!
The cake recipe is from The Brown Betty Cookbook
Aaron loves mint chocolate cake, but he requires that it be paired with mini chocolate chips, so I threw some of those in between the layers. I also had a few Peppermint Jo Jos on hand so I crushed them up and threw some of those in along with some crushed meringue cookies because, why not? It’s a total smorgasbord of minty chocolate chippy cookie crunchy goodness. I didn’t measure how much of each topping I used, but after I tasted the finished product, I wish I had added more. You can add anything you want- crushed candy canes, peppermint bark, etc. And don’t be afraid to use a heavy hand. Texture = good.
If you don’t have 7-inch cake pans, you can get 3 shorter 8-inch layers out of this recipe or 2 9-inch layers. Keep in mind that if you use different sized baking pans, you will need to adjust the baking time.
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Yield: One 3 layer 7-inch cake
Ingredients
- For the Buttermilk Chocolate Cake:
- 2¼ cups (260 grams) all-purpose flour
- 2 cups (400 grams) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (60 grams) plus 3 tablespoons unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
- ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup (180 ml) buttermilk, at room temperature
- 1 cup (240 ml) vegetable oil unsalted butter, melted
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 2 large egg yolks
- 1½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- ¾ (180 ml) cup boiling water
- For the Mint Meringues:
- 2 large egg whites
- 1/2 cup (100 grams) superfine sugar (I took granulated sugar and put it through the food processor)
- ¼ tsp. cream of tartar
- 1/4 tsp mint extract
- a few drops of green gel food coloring
- For the Mint Swiss Meringue Buttercream Frosting:
- 8 large egg whites or 8 ounces (227 grams) liquid egg whites
- 8 ounces (227 grams) granulated sugar
- pinch of salt
- 1 pound (454 grams) unsalted butter, softened but still cool and cut into chunks
- 2-3 teaspoons mint extract
- a few drops of green gel food coloring (I used Americolor brand)
- Toppings:
- Mini Chocolate Chips
- Peppermint Jo Jos or Mint Oreos
- Leftover mint meringues
- For the Chocolate Glaze:
- 1/2 cup (90 grams) semisweet chocolate chips
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon light corn syrup
- 1 1/2 tablespoons hot milk
Instructions
- For the Chocolate Buttermilk Cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit and grease and line 3 7-inch cake pans with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer) mix together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt on low speed.
- In a separate bowl, mix together the buttermilk, oil, eggs, egg yolks, and vanilla extract until blended.
- Add the buttermilk mixture to the flour mixture in 2 additions and beat on low speed until blended. Turn the mixer up to medium high and beat until smooth.
- With the mixer on low speed, slowly pour in ¾ cup boiling water and beat until blended.
- Divide the batter equally between the cake pans and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 25-28 minutes.
- Cool the cakes in the pans on wire racks for 15 minutes.
- Turn the cakes out onto wire racks to cool completely. For the Meringues:
- Preheat the oven to 225 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Whip the egg whites with an electric mixer on medium low speed until they are frothy (about 60 seconds).
- Add the cream of tartar and turn the mixer up to medium high.
- Beat the mixture until it becomes stiff and shiny. (about 90 seconds).
- Add about ½ of the sugar, and beat until stiff peaks form. Add the remaining sugar, mint extract, and a few drops of the food coloring and beat until incorporated.
- Place a round pastry tip in a decorating bag and fill the bag with the meringue mixture and pipe onto the parchment paper (I made a few in different sizes).
- Bake for 1 1/2 hours, or until the cookies are firm, smooth and dry.
- Turn the oven off and let the meringues sit the oven for a few more hours or overnight.
- After the meringues are completely cooled and dry, use the edible pens to decorate them. For the Mint Swiss Meringue Buttercream:
- Combine the egg whites, sugar, and salt in a bowl (I used the bowl of my stand mixer).
- Place the bowl over a pan of simmering water. The bowl should not touch the water, nor should the water be at a rolling boil. It's the steam that's going to heat the egg whites, since we don't want scrambled eggs.
- Heat the egg white mixture until it reaches 150 degrees fahrenheit (140 is ok for liquid egg whites), whisking frequently so as not to get scrambled eggs.
- Remove the bowl from the heat, and whip the egg whites on medium high using the whisk attachment of your stand mixer.
- Whip the egg whites until they become fluffy and double in volume. The bowl should be cool to the touch (this will usually take several minutes).
- Turn the mixer down to medium low, and add the butter in one chunk at a time, until it has all been incorporated.
- If the mixture looks curdled at this point, this is normal. Just keep whipping for a few more minutes until it comes together. If the mixture looks soupy, you can add a few cubes of chilled butter, or stick the whole bowl in the refrigerator for about 15 minutes and then continue beating.
- Once the buttercream has become smooth, and the mint extract and food coloring and beat until incorporated. To Assemble the Cake:
- Place one layer of the cake on a7 or 8-inch cake board.
- With an offset spatula, spread half of the buttercream filling on top of the first layer.
- Top with mini chocolate chips, crushed oreos, and crushed meringue cookies.
- Repeat this process with the second layer, spreading the remainder of the filling on top.
- Place the 3rd layer on top.
- Place the cake on a turntable, and apply a thin layer of the chocolate frosting on the sides and the top of the cake to lock in the crumbs.
- Let the frosting set up in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes.
- Apply the remainder of the frosting to the sides and top of the cake.
- Refrigerate the cake while preparing the glaze. For the Chocolate Glaze:
- In a microwave safe bowl, combine the chocolate chips, butter, and corn syrup.
- Microwave on medium power for 30 second intervals and stir after each interval until the mixture is smooth.
- Drizzle in the hot milk a little bit at a time until you reach a pourable consistency.
- Pour the warm glaze over the top of the cake (the frosting should be cold) and use an offset spatula to even it out.
- Top the cake with additional mini chocolate chips, crushed oreos, and meringue cookies.
- Serve at room temperature.
-Coconut whipped cream recipe adapted from Oh She Glows.
-I’ve tried several brands of coconut milk, and some separate better than others. I’ve had the best luck with the Thai Kitchen brand.
-If you don’t want to use the carrot juice, you can add an additional 1/4 cup of nut milk to the filling
-I recently swapped out my broken springform pan for a cheesecake pan
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