A Great Birthday Cake

Ingredients:

Cake:

3 2/3 Cups Cake Flour

1 Tsp. Kosher Salt

1 Tsp. Baking Powder

3/4 Tsp. Baking Soda

1 1/2 Cups Unsalted Butter, softened

2 Cups Granulated Sugar

3 Large Eggs, at room temperature

2 Egg Whites, (from large eggs)

1 Tbsp. Vanilla Extract or Paste

1 1/2 Cups Buttermilk, room temperature

Chocolate Ganache:

16 oz. Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

2 Cups Heavy Whipping Cream

Chocolate Frosting:

6 Tbsp. Unsalted Butter

2 1/3 Cups Confectioners Sugar

3/4 Cup Cocoa Powder

1/3 Cup Milk, whole recommended

2 Tsp. Vanilla Extract

Pinch of Kosher Salt

Steps

Cake:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F, adjusting the racks to the top and lower third positions, and grease three 9” cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment paper circles.

2. Sift together dry ingredients, (Flour, Salt, Baking Powder + Soda), and set aside.

3. In the bowl of a stand mixer using a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar together at medium-high to high speed until creamy and slightly fluffy, scraping down the sides when needed, approximately 2-4 minutes.

4. Continuing to mix at high speed, beat in the eggs and vanilla by slowly incorporating the eggs, (pouring in from a separate bowl), until combined. Yes, it will look curdled. Relax.

5. Now, with the mixer at low speed, in four additions, mix in the dry ingredients until fully combined, again scraping down the sides when needed.

6. Keeping the mixer on a low speed, slowly pour in the buttermilk until fully combined and the batter appears consistent.

7. Remove the bowl from the mixer and stir a few more times by hands to be sure everything is thoroughly mixed, chances are there will still be dry clumps at the bottom of the bowl.

8. Evenly pour the batter into the three pans and slam each against the counter a few times to knock out any air bubbles.

9. Place either two pans on the top rack and one on the bottom or one on top and two on the bottom rack and bake for 22-28 minutes, swapping the positions of the cakes once halfway through baking. Cakes will be ready to remove when the tops are set and golden brown and an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

10. Remove from oven and cool in pans for 30 minutes, then remove and transfer to a wire rack to cool further before assembly.

Ganache:

1. Pour chocolate chips in a large glass mixing bowl.

2. In a saucepan over medium heat, bring the heavy cream to a simmer, stirring occasionally. As soon as you see small bubbles around the outer edge, remove from heat and pour over the chocolate chips.

3. Swirl the bowl around very briefly to ensure all of the chocolate is covered, then completely cover the bowl and let it sit for 5 minutes. (Don’t use cling wrap here. My bowls don’t have lids, so I always place a cutting board or baking tray on top of the bowl to trap the heat!)

4. Remove the cover and start whisking the chocolate and cream together continuously until fully combined.

5. Let sit for 45-90 minutes before adding to cake layers to ensure the proper consistency. (You don’t want it too liquid-y!)

Frosting:

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, again with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium to medium-high speed until smooth and slightly fluffy, approximately 2-3 minutes.

2. Add sugar, cocoa powder, and salt, then continue to beat together until fully combined, (you know what I’m about to say: yes, scrape down the sides, as needed), approximately 2-4 minutes.

3. Turn the mixer speed to low and slowly pour in the milk and vanilla and continue to beat until well combined.

4. Once fully combined, turn the speed up to high and beat frosting for another 2 minutes to make it lighter and fluffier. It is now ready for the cake.

Assembly:

Here’s the fun part!

1. Slice the tops off of each of the cakes to ensure they are level. (Don’t throw those scraps out, make cake truffles with them. There’s a recipe on this site for that!)

2. Place a small amount of frosting in the center of the board or cake stand where you will be decorating the cake and place the first layer down on top of it.

3. Using a piping bag, make a border at the edges of the top of the cake to keep the ganache contained.

4. Pour or scoop a third of the ganache onto the center of the cake and spread to the border of frosting you created, then place the next cake layer on top.

5. Repeat steps 3&4 twice.

6. With the cake now assembled, coat the outside with a thin layer of frosting, (this is the crumb coat), and place the cake in the fridge for 20-30 minutes to chill.

7. Once chilled, remove the cake from the fridge and continue to coat the outside with the remaining frosting.

8. Decorate the top however you like for the occasion, (as you can tell, I’m a fan of stenciling numbers and using sprinkles).

9. Store in fridge, but let the cake sit out at room temperature for 20-30 minutes before slicing and serving for the ideal taste and texture.

10. Enjoy! (And also Happy Birthday!)