Chocolate Hazelnut Decadence Cake Pop Recipes

CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT CELEBRATION CAKE

Steps:

• For the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Grease four 6-inch-round, 3-inch-tall cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment.
• Put the hazelnuts in a food processor and grind them until you have small crumbs. Measure out 1/4 cup of the hazelnut crumbs and set them aside for the frosting.
• Pour the remaining hazelnut crumbs into a large bowl and whisk in the flour, granulated sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, salt and baking soda. In a medium bowl, whisk together the milk, oil, vanilla and eggs. Whisk the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and then stir in the hot coffee. It will be a very thin batter.
• Pour into the prepared cake pans and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Begin checking for doneness at 25 minutes. Let the cakes cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then turn them onto a greased cooling rack.
• For the frosting: While the cakes are cooling, use an electric mixer to beat together the powdered sugar, butter, vanilla and salt until smooth. Mix in the heavy cream until smooth. Scoop out a tiny amount of frosting for the mustard-colored dollops, add the mustard yellow food coloring and mix until combined. Transfer the yellow frosting to a piping bag with a small round tip. To the remaining frosting, add the dusty rose pink food coloring and mix until the desired shade of pink. Measure out 1 cup of the pink frosting and transfer it to a small bowl. Fold in the reserved 1/4 cup ground hazelnuts.
• Level your cake layers and spread the top of one of them with the hazelnutty frosting. Place a second layer on top, then frost the top with more of the hazelnutty frosting. Continue with the remaining 2 layers. Frost the top and sides with the remaining pink frosting without nuts.
• For the decorations: Decorate with mustard dollops of frosting around the edge. Add marzipan house cutouts of white houses with green shutters, crushed hazelnuts, green grass sprinkles, orange sun sprinkles or whatever else you'd like!

CHEF JOHN'S CHOCOLATE DECADENCE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Butter and flour a 9-inch cake pan.
• Melt semisweet chocolate and unsalted butter together in the top of a double boiler over simmering water, stirring frequently and scraping down the sides with a rubber spatula, until chocolate and butter are completely melted and combined. Remove from heat.
• Beat eggs and sugar together in a bowl with a whisk or an electric mixer until pale and very thick, 5 to 10 minutes. Sift in flour, cayenne, and salt; whisk to combine.
• Pour 1/4 of the egg mixture into chocolate mixture; stir to combine. Pour chocolate mixture into remaining egg mixture and stir until cake batter is combined. Pour batter into prepared cake pan.
• Bake in the preheated oven until just barely set, with a jiggle below the surface, 14 to 15 minutes. Cool to room temperature, wrap in aluminum foil, and refrigerate until chilled, at least 1 hour.

CHOCOLATE DECADENCE CAKE I

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 10 inch round pan and line bottom with parchment paper.
• Chop chocolate squares and place in a large bowl with chocolate chips. Add melted butter. Heat water and 1 1/2 cups sugar in a saucepan until boiling, then pour over chocolate. Stir until smooth.
• In a separate bowl, whip eggs with remaining 1/4 cup sugar until thick. Fold into chocolate mixture. Pour batter into 10 inch pan.
• Place 10 inch pan on a cookie sheet in the oven and fill the cookie sheet with water.
• Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 40 to 50 minutes. Remove from oven. Cool and refrigerate for several hours. Be extremely careful not to burn yourself on the hot water when removing the sheet pan from the oven.
• Dip the pan in hot water to remove cooled cake. Garnish with whipped cream and serve.

MY KIND OF CHOCOLATE BIRTHDAY CAKE

Steps:

• For cake:
• Preheat oven to 325°F. Line 13x9x1-inch baking sheet with parchment paper; butter parchment. Combine first 4 ingredients in medium metal bowl. Set bowl over saucepan of barely simmering water; stir until chocolate and butter melt. Remove bowl from over water; stir in salt (mixture will be grainy).
• Beat eggs and 2 tablespoons sugar in another medium bowl until pale, about 6 minutes; fold into chocolate mixture. Fold in flour, then hazelnuts. Spread batter evenly on baking sheet. Bake until tester inserted into center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, about 13 minutes (cake will be thin). Transfer pan to rack. Cool cake completely.
• For filling:
• Combine chocolates in medium metal bowl. Bring 1 cup cream to simmer in small saucepan; pour cream over chocolates and let stand 1 minute. Stir until melted and smooth. Chill mixture until firm, about 2 hours.
• Place bowl with chilled chocolate mixture over saucepan of barely simmering water until mixture is partially melted (do not stir), about 5 minutes. Remove bowl from over water; add butter to bowl. Using electric mixer, beat until filling is thick and glossy, about 3 minutes. Using clean dry beaters, beat 1/2 cup chilled whipping cream in another medium bowl until peaks form. Fold whipped cream into filling.
• Cover 14x5-inch cardboard rectangle with foil. Invert cake onto work surface; remove parchment. Cut cake lengthwise in half. Place 1 cake half on foil-covered cardboard. Spread 1/2 cup chocolate filling over. Top with second cake half. Spoon remaining filling into pastry bag fitted with large plain round tip. Pipe filling atop cake in side-by-side lengthwise rows, then smooth top. Chill until filling is firm, about 1 hour.
• For glaze:
• Bring cream and corn syrup to simmer in small saucepan. Remove from heat. Add chocolate; let stand 5 minutes. Stir until smooth. Add butter; stir until melted. Let stand until barely lukewarm but still pourable, about 20 minutes.
• Place cardboard base with cake on rack set over rimmed baking sheet. Spoon glaze over top of cake, allowing glaze to run down sides. Using offset spatula, smooth glaze over sides. Mound chocolate shards or curls over top and sides of cake. Garnish with hazelnuts and candied orange peel. Refrigerate until glaze is set, at least 2 hours. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and keep chilled.)