Gorgeous Chocolate Hazelnut Cake Recipes

THE BEST CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT CAKE

Steps:

• Bake two chocolate sponge cakes. Once cooled, slice each cake into two even pieces for a total of 4 layers.
• Toast the hazelnuts in the oven for about 10 minutes at 350°F.
• Whip the dulce de leche, cream cheese, butter, and Nutella together until smooth.
• Cover a plate with foil. Place the first cake layer on the plate and apply a layer of frosting on top of it.
• Sprinkle on some chopped hazelnuts on top of the cream. Repeat the process with the remaining cake layers, leaving the top layer unfrosted.
• Frost the outside of the cake with the remaining cake cream. Pop the cake in the refrigerator to set.
• Bring the heavy whipping cream to a boil. Pour it over the chocolate chips in a medium bowl and let it sit for a few minutes. Stir the mixture until smooth and creamy and let it cool to room temperature.
• Using a pastry bag or a plastic bag with the tip cut off, pipe the chocolate along the edge of the cake, allowing the chocolate to drizzle down the sides. Pipe some of the chocolate in the center of the cake and spread it evenly with a spatula.
• Scatter some hazelnuts on the outer edges of the cake. Place the cake in the refrigerator overnight or at least for 2-3 hours. Slice and enjoy!

CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT CAKES WITH FENNEL CONFIT

Steps:

• To make the fennel confit, heat oven to 300 degrees. In a pot over high heat, combine 1 1/2 cups sugar with 1 1/2 cups water; bring to simmer and lower heat. Stir until sugar dissolves, about 5 minutes. Turn heat to high, bring to boil, then lower heat to simmer, until liquid has thickened, 7 minutes.
• Arrange fennel pieces in small baking pan. Pour sugar syrup over them. Cut square of parchment or waxed paper to fit pan and place on fennel. Bake until fennel is soft and candied, and sugar syrup has reduced, about 2 hours.
• Strain fennel, reserving it and 1/3 cup sugar syrup. Stir in Strega, if using. (Syrup and fennel can be prepared 3 days ahead.)
• To prepare the chocolate sauce, put milk chocolate in large bowl. Put 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons cream and rosemary in saucepan and bring to simmer over medium heat. Turn off heat, cover pan with aluminum foil or plastic wrap, and let cream infuse for 15 minutes.
• Return pan to medium heat. Stir in corn syrup and honey. Bring to simmer and stir for 2 minutes. Strain cream into bowl of chocolate; whisk until chocolate melts. Cover with plastic wrap placed on surface of sauce until ready to use (up to 2 days).
• To make the fior di latte cream, simmer milk in saucepan over low heat, stirring frequently, until it is reduced by half, 20 to 25 minutes. Strain well. You will need 1 1/4 cups (add some unreduced milk if necessary). Return reduced milk to saucepan on stove, add vanilla pulp, and bring to a simmer.
• In bowl, lightly whisk together 1/4 cup granulated sugar, egg whites and cornstarch. Whisking constantly, pour a little hot milk into egg mixture, gradually adding more milk until half of it has been incorporated. Pour mixture back into saucepan. Bring to simmer, whisking constantly, and let simmer until it has thickened to a pudding consistency, about 5 minutes. Strain into a stainless steel bowl and put plastic wrap on the surface of the cream. Transfer to refrigerator for at least 20 minutes and up to 2 days.
• To make the cakes, heat oven to 400 degrees. Grease 6 3-ounce rectangular molds or muffin cups.
• Pulse nuts and 2 tablespoons of the confectioners' sugar in food processor until finely ground and powdery (don't overprocess). Transfer hazelnut flour to bowl and wipe out food processor.
• Place semisweet chocolate in food processor and pulse until finely chopped but not ground.
• Beat butter and remaining confectioners' sugar with electric mixer until light and creamy. Beat in eggs, then hazelnut flour. Sift cocoa powder over batter and mix well. Fold in chocolate pieces.
• Divide batter among prepared molds. Lightly sift confectioners' sugar over each cake. Bake until centers are dry and slightly firm to the touch, 12 to 15 minutes.
• Before serving, finish the fior di latte cream. In electric mixer, whip heavy cream until very thick and firm. Beat cooled pastry cream with a whisk until creamy. Fold a spoonful of whipped cream into pastry cream to lighten it. Fold in remaining whipped cream.
• To serve, spoon some chocolate sauce onto serving plates. With a pastry brush, dab fennel syrup on each cake and place cake on sauce. Arrange several pieces of fennel confit next to cake. Garnish with a dollop of fior di latte cream, and sprinkle plate with fresh raspberries and additional rosemary leaves.

HAZELNUT CHOCOLATE CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Prepare the springform pan by coating it in a thin layer with 2 tablespoons of the softened butter. Add the cocoa powder to the pan and tap the sides to coat the bottom and sides evenly. Discard any excess cocoa powder. Put the hazelnuts on a baking sheet and toast in the oven on the center rack until just fragrant, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer immediately to a kitchen towel to stop them from cooking. Use the towel to rub off the skins. Set aside to cool. Lower the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Fill a 1- to 2-quart pot with about 1 inch of water and bring it to a bare simmer over medium heat. Place the dark chocolate pieces into a heatproof bowl and set it over the pot and simmering water (this is a bain-marie). The water should not touch the bottom of the bowl. Let the chocolate melt, and then stir gently. Remove from the heat when melted.
• Chop the hazelnuts into small pieces using a chef's knife or a food processor. Make sure you don't turn them into powder. Whip the egg whites with an electric mixer with the salt until they are almost at stiff peaks. Try not to over-whip. Mix together the remaining 5 tablespoons butter with the chocolate hazelnut spread in a large bowl with a wooden spoon. Stir in the espresso. Add the yolks and stir briskly to combine. Stir in the chopped hazelnuts and melted chocolate. Add one-fourth of the whipped egg whites to the chocolate hazelnut mixture and stir to lighten the batter. Then gently fold the rest of the egg whites into the batter in 3 additions. Don't over-fold. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan.
• Bake on the center rack of the oven until the sides of the cake start releasing from edges of the pan, 40 minutes. This cake is almost a hazelnut fudge, so no need to poke with a toothpick to check if the inside is ready or not. The cake will come out of the oven nice and fluffy and souffled, but it will deflate to half the size during its cool-off period. Serve garnished with some powdered sugar and whipped or cream or gelato, if using.

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!

RICH HAZELNUT CHOCOLATE CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Butter and flour a 10-inch springform pan. Place butter and chocolate in a bowl over barely simmering water until melted, stirring often. Whisk egg yolks with 3/4 cup of sugar. Whisk in the chocolate mixture, hazelnuts and liqueur.
• Using an electric mixer, whip the egg whites until soft peaks form. Gradually add the remaining sugar and whip to firm peaks. Stir 1/3 of the whites into the chocolate mixture. Fold in the remaining whites. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and bake until a tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out slightly moist, about 55 minutes. Let cool; cake will fall. Remove the sides of the pan and sift confectioners' sugar over the top. Cut into wedges and serve.

CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Combine first 6 ingredients in mixing bowland beat together with electric mixer.
• Combine remaining ingredients excepts the hazelnuts in another bowl.
• Sprinkle hazelnuts into the wet mixture a bit at a time and beat in with the mixer until smooth.
• Pour in half of the batter in a greased 9 inch cake pan,
• Sprinkle with some hazelnut.
• Pour in the remaining batter and top with the remaning hazelnuts.
• In the preheated oven, bake for about 25 to 30 minutes, or until tests run clean.
• To test, dip a knife into the cake .
• If it comes out clean, the cake is ready.
• Let cool.
• Sprinkle top with some powdered sugar and cut into wedges.

GORGEOUS CHOCOLATE-HAZELNUT-CAKE

Steps:

• 1. pre-heat the oven to 175°C, line a cake tin with baking paper or grease it well.
• 2. Chopp the dark and the nut chocolate into chunky pieces.
• 3. Cream the butter, sugar and a pinch of salt. Add the eggs one by one.
• 4. In a second bowl mix nuts, flour and baking powder. Bit by bit add the egg-butter-mixture and stirr until well combinded. Then add the chocolate.
• 5. Pour the dough into the tin and bake for 70-75 minutes. Cover the cake after 20 minutes to prevent it from getting burned.
• 6. For the icing melt the milk chocolate using a hot water bath (or your microwave if you have one) and spread this over the slightly cooled cake. Sprinkle with whatever garnish you like (I use nut brittle or sugar granules) or simply leave it plain.
• 7. ENJOY! =).