Salted chocolate & mascarpone frosting
If you like the crisp edges of lasagne, the soaked croutons, the whipped cream that gets icy around the chocolate scoop - you’re in the right place.
Hello! I should start by saying that I’m not an authority on frosted celebration cakes (see Claire Safftiz, Natasha Picowictz). I'm writing to you strictly in my capacity as a mum playing out a fantasy of motherhood. And this chocolate cake has given it to me thick: I tasted frosting late at night, provoked hops and squeals of delight, received a thank you hug from the head of my son's school, and enjoyed multiple helpings of the ambrosial cake myself.
Two of our boys had birthdays last week, and there were 3 occasions for cake and candles between school and home. We had this same cake in different forms each time - to streamline production, but also because everyone wants more of it.
The cake is Odette Williams’ unimprovable wet into dry, oil-based recipe that tastes as familiar as Coco Pops, but the frosting - which looks and acts like buttercream - is totally grown up. Instead of cloying, it’s balanced and silky thanks to mascarpone, salt and quality cocoa. The combo tastes like childhood through rose-tinted glasses.
The day before Abe’s birthday I made a quadruple batch of the sheet cake in two big roasting tins and a five-times batch of icing (see below for note on ratios). For his school cake, I cobbled together a Boeing 747 by cutting a drawing of an airplane into parts and stenciling them onto two cakes. Frosting glued the parts together, and little finger dips of the stuff carried me through the project. I didn’t bother giving it a crumb coat, but happily, the result upheld my belief that everything should taste better than it looks.
ABE & BOB’S BIRTHDAY CAKE
Makes one 10” round or 8” square. Double this recipe to make the 12” x 18” cake in the photo.
I make this chocolate cake with salted chocolate and mascarpone frosting for the kids' birthdays, but no palate should be so refined that it won't delight.
The recipe multiplies, divides, and keeps. It can be used to construct whatever shape, character or vehicle your kid asks for, or eaten in old-fashioned squares, with or without sprinkles (I like to use Deruyter). The mascarpone makes the frosting less stable than a buttercream, so make sure not to overbeat it or let it get warm. Make extra if you plan to use it to assemble shapes or frost the edges of the cake.
For the cake
1¾ cups (225g) AP flour
1⁄2 cup (45g) unsweetened Dutch-processed cocoa powder (I used Valrhona)
11⁄2 tsp baking powder
11⁄2 tsp baking soda
1⁄2 tsp salt
11⁄2 cups (300g) granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 cup (240ml) whole milk
1⁄2 cup (120ml) canola oil
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup (240ml) boiling water
For the frosting
2 1⁄2 (270g) cups confectioners’ sugar
6 1⁄4 tbsp (35g) unsweetened Dutch-processed cocoa powder
4 tbsp (55g) butter, room temperature
1 cup (220g) mascarpone
1⁄2 tsp salt
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
3 tbsp whole milk
For the cake Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter a cake pan and line it with parchment paper. Sift the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl. Add the sugar and stir everything together.
In another large bowl, whisk the eggs, milk, oil, and vanilla. Pour this wet mixture into the dry ingredients and stir to combine - it’ll be pretty stiff at this point so don’t worry about lumps. Pour in the boiling water and whisk until everything is glossy and smooth.
Pour the batter into the lined pan and bake for around 50 minutes, or until the cake bounces back when lightly pressed in the center. If you’re scaling up it may take 5-10 minutes longer to bake. Take it out of the oven and let it cool slightly before inverting it onto a wire rack, removing the parchment and letting it cool fully. (Wrapped in cling film and stored in the fridge, the cake can keep for up to 3 days.) If you’re going to frost it the same day, flip it onto a plate to decorate.
For the frosting Using an electric beater with the whisk or paddle attachment, combine the mascarpone and butter. Sieve the confectioners’ sugar and cocoa powder into the mascarpone-butter mixture and beat slowly to combine so that the powders don’t poof out. Turn the mixer off, add the salt, vanilla, and milk, then beat on a high speed for about 30 seconds until everything is smooth. Taste, and adjust it if you want it a little sweeter or saltier. The frosting can be stored in the fridge for up to three days - just bring it up to room temperature and beat it to restore a silky texture before putting it on the cake.
To frost Scoop the room-temperature frosting out of the bowl and onto the cooled cake. Use the back of a spoon to paddle and wave it to the edges of the cake. The frosted cake can be held in the fridge for a few days, but make sure you take it out and let it come to room temperature before lighting candles, singing, and slicing.
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