COCOA DEVIL’S FOOD CAKE WITH CHOCOLATE GANACHE

If you’ve ever watched Alton Brown’s segment on Devil’s Food cake, then you know that there’s an interesting history behind it, and it’s tied to Angel Food and Red Velvet cakes.  This is NOT Alton Brown’s recipe, but his is definitely on my queue.  This one is made with a mixture of unbleached all-purpose flour and white whole wheat flour, and it’s a denser but very enjoyable creation, especially when it’s frosted with chocolate ganache, then trimmed with coconut swiss buttercream frosting and toasted unsweetened coconut chips.  (You can also use just unbleached all-purpose flour for a lighter cake.)

I loved this cake, and I felt just a little bit better about eating it because of the partial whole grains.  Let’s not talk about the sugar and fat content, or I’ll start feeling guilty again.

And, P. S., if you haven’t tried the unsweetened coconut chips, do yourself a favor and get some.  I found mine at The Fresh Market.

(Since my cake pans were the old kind with only 1-1/2” sides, I had extra batter that I baked in a small ramekin.  Below is the little cake, decorated.)

Cocoa Devil’s Food Cake with Chocolate Ganache  Adapted from McCall’s Book of Cakes and Pies Rating:  8 out of 10 Click for PRINTABLE PAGE

INGREDIENTS: 1/2 cup sifted cocoa powder, plus extra for dusting pans 1 cup hot coffee 1-3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour + 1/2 cup white whole wheat flour OR 2-1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour 1/2 tsp. baking soda 1 tsp. baking powder 1/2 tsp. Diamond kosher salt, or table salt 1/2 cup butter or margarine (I used Smart Balance 50/50 blend)  2 cups sugar (I used 1-1/2 cups sugar + 2 Tbsp. NuNaturals Stevia)  2 large eggs 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract (I used homemade vanilla.)  1/4 tsp. coconut flavoring 1/3 cup plain nonfat Greek yogurt + enough water to make 1/2 cup  Heat oven to 350F.  Grease two 8” x 2” pans.  Line with double thicknesses of wax paper cut to fit; grease top paper.  Dust with cocoa powder. In small bowl, whisk together cocoa powder and coffee.  Allow to cool. Whisk all-purpose flour, then sift onto wax paper before measuring.  Transfer to medium bowl.  Repeat with whole wheat flour (if using).  Add baking soda, baking powder and salt.  Sift flour(s), baking soda, baking powder and salt together over wax paper and return to bowl. In large bowl, on high speed, beat butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla and coconut flavors till light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.  On low speed, blend in 1/4 of flour mixture.  In small bowl, whisk together yogurt and cocoa mixture, then blend in 1/3 to large bowl.  Repeat, ending with flour mixture.  Scrape bottom and sides of bowl as needed. Pour batter into prepared pans.  Bake 25-30 minutes, or till a toothpick inserted near center returns with just a few crumbs.  Cool in pans 10 minutes.  Remove from pans; peel off wax paper from bottom of cake layers.  Cool thoroughly on wire racks.  Frost with chocolate ganache (recipe follows) or as desired.  (Swiss buttercream frosting makes a nice filling and topping for this cake.)  Chocolate Ganache: 1/2 cup heavy cream 6 ounces good-quality chocolate, chopped into small pieces In small pot, heat heavy cream over medium heat till very hot and beginning to bubble.  Place chocolate in a medium bowl and pour hot cream over.  Stir with spoon or spatula till smooth and creamy.  Allow to cool before frosting cake.