Mint Chocolate Chip Cake
Yield: 8 servings
You may alternate layers of green and white ice cream as we did in this striped cake, but using simply one or the other is just as delicious.
Cake
Yield: 2 8-inch square cakes
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more for pans
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pans
1 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 large whole egg, room temperature
1 large egg white, room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups strong, hot coffee
Heat oven to 325 degrees. Butter two 8-inch-square baking pans. Line with parchment, and butter again. Flour pans, tapping out excess; set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, combine all the ingredients except the hot coffee. Mix ingredients on low speed until combined, about 1 minute. Slowly add the coffee. Mix until smooth, about 1 minute. Pour batter into prepared pans; smooth tops with an offset spatula.
Bake until a cake tester inserted into the middle comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer the pans to wire rack to cool. Turn out the cakes, and wrap them in plastic wrap until ready to use.
Assemble cake:
Trim cake layers to 6-inch squares. Slice each layer in half horizontally, making a total of 4 layers. Cut a 6-inch square of cardboard or foam; set aside.
Microwave green ice cream until softened, about 20 seconds. Transfer ice cream to a medium mixing bowl, and stir with a rubber spatula. Place in the freezer. Microwave white ice cream until softened, about 20 seconds, and transfer to another mixing bowl. Stir with a rubber spatula.
Place one cake layer on the cardboard. Using an offset spatula, spread 2 cups white ice cream over the cake. Place another cake layer on top of ice cream. Place cake and bowl of white ice cream in the freezer for 20 minutes.
Remove the cake and the bowl of green ice cream from the freezer. Stir ice cream with the spatula to soften. With the spatula, evenly spread 2 cups green ice cream over cake. Place a third cake layer on top. Return the cake and the bowl of green ice cream to the freezer for 20 minutes more.
Remove the cake and the bowl of white ice cream from the freezer, and spread the remaining 2 cups white ice cream over the top; place the fourth cake layer on top of the white ice cream. Return the cake to the freezer for 20 minutes more.
Remove the cake and bowl of green ice cream from freezer, and spread 2 cups green ice cream over top. Return cake and ice cream to freezer, and chill the cake until firm, about 1 hour.
Remove the cake and remaining 2 cups green ice cream from freezer. Using a long serrated knife, trim 1/4 inch from all sides of the cake, making them even. Using an icing spatula, quickly spread the remaining green ice cream around the sides of the cake. Return the cake to freezer; freeze until completely hardened.
(Recipe from Martha Stewart Living.)
Chocolate Mint Layer Cake
Yield: 8 to 10 servings
3 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups cold water
2 cups sugar
1 cup corn oil
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups (about 10 ounces) mint-flavored chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour three 9-inch-diameter cake pans with
1 1/2-inch-high sides. Sift flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt into medium bowl. Mix 2 cups cold water and sugar in large bowl until sugar dissolves. Gradually mix in corn oil and vanilla extract. Whisk in dry ingredients. Divide cake batter among prepared pans. Sprinkle 1/2 cup mint-flavored chocolate chips over cake batter in each pan.
Bake cakes until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Cool cakes in pans on rack 15 minutes. Cut around pan sides. Turn cakes out onto racks and cool completely.
Frosting
5 cups powdered sugar
3/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
8 tablespoons (about) milk
1 1/2 teaspoons peppermint extract
1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup (about 6 ounces) mint-flavored chocolate chips
1/4 cup red-and-white striped peppermint candies or candy canes (broken into pieces)
Combine powdered sugar, cocoa powder, unsalted butter, 6 tablespoons milk, peppermint extract and vanilla extract in large bowl. Using electric mixer, beat frosting until smooth. Thin with more milk by tablespoonfuls, if necessary.
Place 1 cake layer, chocolate-chip side up, on platter. Spread 2/3 cup frosting over. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup chocolate chips. Top with second cake layer, chocolate-chip side up. Spread 2/3 cup frosting over. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup chocolate chips. Top with remaining cake layer, chocolate-chip side down. Spread remaining frosting over sides and top of cake. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover with cake dome; let stand at room temperature.)
Place striped peppermint candies in heavy plastic bag. Crush with hammer. Sprinkle candies over cake.
(Recipe from Bon Appétit.)
Frozen Mint Chocolate Checkerboard
Yield: 4 to 6 servings
For mint ice cream
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 cup milk
2/3 cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
1/3 cup green crème de menthe
Bring cream, milk, sugar, and salt to a boil in a 2-quart heavy saucepan, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Whisk eggs in a bowl until blended, then add hot cream mixture in a slow stream, whisking. Transfer custard back to saucepan and cook over moderately low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until thick enough to coat back of spoon and registers 175 to 180°F on thermometer (do not let boil).
Immediately pour through a fine-mesh sieve into cleaned bowl, then stir in liqueur. Cool custard to room temperature, stirring occasionally, then chill, its surface covered with a round of wax paper, until cold, about 3 hours.
For cake (make while custard chills)
7 oz fine-quality bittersweet chocolate (not unsweetened), chopped
1/4 cup water
6 large eggs, separated and at room temperature for 30 minutes
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line bottom of square baking pan with wax or parchment paper.
Melt chocolate with water in a small heavy saucepan over very low heat, stirring, then cool to lukewarm.
Beat yolks, 1/3 cup sugar, and salt in a large bowl with an electric mixer at high speed until thick and pale, about 5 minutes in a standing mixer or about 8 minutes with a handheld. Fold in melted chocolate.
Beat egg whites with cleaned beaters until they hold soft peaks. Beat in remaining 1/3 cup sugar 1 tablespoon at a time and continue to beat until whites just hold stiff peaks, about 5 minutes. Fold one third of whites into chocolate mixture to lighten, then fold in remaining whites gently but thoroughly.
Spread batter evenly in baking pan and bake in middle of oven until puffed and a wooden pick or skewer inserted in center comes out with crumbs adhering, 30 to 35 minutes. Transfer pan to a rack, then cover top of cake with 2 layers of dampened paper towels and let stand 5 minutes. Remove towels and cool cake completely in pan (cake will deflate as it cools). Sift 1 1/2 tablespoons cocoa over cake, then loosen edges with a sharp knife. Invert a wax-paper-lined baking sheet over cake and invert cake onto it, then gently peel off wax paper now on top.
Freeze custard while cake cools:
Freeze custard in ice cream maker. Transfer ice cream to an airtight container and freeze until firm but still spreadable, about 30 minutes.
Assemble checkerboards:
Oil milk carton, then line bottom and long sides with a sheet of plastic wrap, leaving at least a 2-inch overhang.
Trim cake to form a 7 1/2- by 6 1/4-inch rectangle (reserve trimmings for another use), then cut rectangle lengthwise into 5 (7 1/2- by 1 1/4-inch) strips. Using thin metal spatula, arrange 2 strips on bottom of carton, flush against each long side. Fill space between strips with ice cream (preferably using a small offset metal spatula). Arrange 1 cake strip down center of carton (on top of ice cream) and fill spaces on both sides of cake with ice cream. Arrange remaining 2 cake strips against long sides of carton (on top of ice cream) and fill space between them with ice cream. (There will be some leftover ice cream.) If ice cream becomes too soft during assembly, freeze until just firm enough to work with, about 15 minutes. Cover top with plastic wrap overhang, then freeze until dessert is hardened, at least 8 hours.
To serve, unwrap overhang and invert carton onto a chilled platter, using plastic wrap to help pull cake from carton. Trim sides evenly to neaten loaf if necessary (ice cream may ooze a bit on sides), then sift remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons cocoa over top. Cut into slices with a sharp knife.
Cooks' notes:
Ice cream can be made 2 days ahead of assembling checkerboard. Soften in refrigerator before using.
Assembled checkerboard can be frozen up to 4 days.
(Recipe from Gourmet magazine.)
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