CHOCOLATE CHEVRON CAKE
Here’s a cake that looks impressive without a lot of extra effort. Garten’s secret: “I add a touch of coffee in my chocolate dishes,” she says. “It makes the chocolate taste better.” Preheat oven to 325°F. Butter an 8-by-2-inch round cake pan. Line bottom with parchment paper, then butter and flour pan, tapping out excess flour.
Cream 8 Tbsp (1 stick) unsalted butter (at room temperature) and 1 cup granulated sugar in bowl of electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment until light and fluffy. With mixer on low, add 4 extra-large eggs (at room temperature), 1 at a time. Mix in 1 (16-oz) can
chocolate syrup (like Hershey’s) and 1 Tbsp vanilla extract. Add 1 cup all-purpose flour; mix until just
combined. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake 40–45 minutes, until just set in middle. Cool in pan 30 minutes. Turn cake upside down on a wire rack set over a sheet pan and remove pan. Cool completely.
To make icing, whisk together 1 cup powdered sugar and 1 Tbsp water until smooth, thick and just barely pourable. When you lift icing from the bowl with the whisk, it should slowly fall back on itself in a ribbon. (You may need to add a few more drops water.) Fit a pastry bag with a small, round pastry tip and fill it with icing. Set aside.
Go to Parade.com/garten to find out what’s always in Garten’s pantry, her favorite kitchen tools and for her recipe for Autumn Sangria.
To make ganache, place ½ cup heavy cream , 8 oz semisweet
chocolate chips and 1 tsp instant coffee granules in a bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Heat mixture until smooth, stirring occasionally. Pour ganache evenly over top and sides of cake; tilt rack until ganache is smooth all over. Immediately, before ganache sets, pipe parallel lines of icing 1 inch apart on entire cake, stopping just short of edge of cake. Lightly drag the back of a small paring knife through ganache perpendicular to white lines also 1 inch apart, alternating directions (first left to right, then right to left, and so on) and covering the whole cake. Allow the ganache and icing to set. Cut in wedges; serve at room temperature. Makes 1 (8-inch) cake.