Cake Recipes
Chocolate Fudge "Blackout" Cake
Ebinger's, a lost-but-not-forgotten Brooklyn bakery, made their original version of Chocolate Fudge Blackout Cake famous. Our recipe, based on the spirit of Blackout Cake, if not its exact ingredients, marries a moist chocolate layer cake with rich, pudding-like
filling and thick ganache icing — + Ebinger's trademark cake-crumb coating.
Prep: 30 to 45 min | Bake: 35 to 45 min | Yield: 1 cake, about 12 servings
Ingredients
Filling
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon espresso powder (optional); for enhanced chocolate flavor
- 1 large egg (room temperature)
- 1 cup heavy cream
Cake
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
- 2 tablespoons Cake Enhancer, Instant Clear Jel, or cornstarch
- 3/4 cup (2 1/4 ounces) Double Dutch Cocoa Blend, Cocoa Rouge, or Dutch-process cocoa
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon espresso powder (optional); for enhanced chocolate flavor
- 4 large eggs
- 3/4 cup vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1/4 cups water
Icing
- 1 1/2 cups chocolate chips or chopped semisweet or bittersweet chocolate
- 3/4 cup heavy cream
Instructions
Filling
- Place the chocolate chips, salt, sugar and espresso powder in a blender or food processor and pulse until finely ground.
- Add the egg and pulse just until the mixture is smooth.
- Heat the cream to just below a boil, with small bubbles forming around the edge of the saucepan (or microwave-safe bowl).
- Turn on the blender or processor, and slowly add the cream. Scrape down the sides of the container if necessary. Add the flavoring of your choice and pulse to blend.
- Pour the pudding into a shallow bowl, and refrigerate it until chilled and thickened, 2 hours to overnight.
- Heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease two 8 x 2-inch round cake pans. Line them with 8 inch parchment circles, if desired, and grease the parchment; this step will ensure your cake's crumble-free turnout from the pan.
Cake
- Whisk together the dry ingredients.
- Add the eggs, oil and vanilla extract; beat on medium speed for 2 minutes, scraping the bottom and sides of the bowl.
- Stir in the water; the batter will be thin.
- Pour the batter into the two prepared pans.
- Bake the cakes for 35 to 45 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Remove the cakes from the oven. Cool them for 15 minutes, then turn them out of the pans to cool completely on a rack.
Icing
- Combine the cream and chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl or in a saucepan. Heat until the cream is steaming and showing small bubbles around the edge.
- Remove the chocolate/cream from the microwave or burner, and stir until the chocolate is melted and the mixture becomes completely smooth, with no lighter areas remaining visible.
- Refrigerate the ganache for 30 minutes. Beat the chilled icing briefly, until it thickens a bit and becomes spreadable.
- To assemble the cake: Cut the domed tops off both cake layers; these will become your crumb coating.
- Place one layer on a serving plate. For best presentation, lay strips of parchment around the edge of the plate before laying the cake on top; these will catch the inevitable icing drips, and can be removed once you're done
icing the cake.
- Top the cake with the filling, spreading it evenly to the edges.
- Center the second layer of cake atop the filling.
- Spread the icing over the top and onto the sides of the cake.
- Crumble the reserved cake, and gently press it onto the top and sides of the assembled cake.
- Serve immediately, or within a couple of hours. For longer storage, refrigerate.
Notes
This cake is best served the same day it's made, or within 24 hours.
Freeze, well-wrapped, for longer storage. You may also choose to freeze individual slices — for those times when you HAVE to have a piece of chocolate cake!
Nutrition
Per serving: Calories: 650 Calories from Fat: 360 Total Fat: 40g Saturated Fat: 16g Trans Fat: 1g Cholesterol: 125mg Sodium: 430mg Total Carbohydrate: 79g Dietary Fiber: 5g Sugars: 54g Protein: 9g
Attribution
Recipe and photo used with permission from:
King Arthur Flour