Description
Brooklyn Blackout Cake delivers pure chocolate comfort straight from New York’s baking traditions. Deeply chocolatey layers wrapped in chocolate pudding crumbs will make your dessert dreams come true.
Ingredients
Scale
Main Ingredients:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 12 oz semisweet chocolate chips
- 1 cup milk
- 2 large eggs
Wet Ingredients:
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup hot water
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup heavy cream
Leavening and Thickening Ingredients:
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- ½ cup cold water
- ½ cup chocolate pudding mix
Instructions
- Arrange oven rack in center position and heat to 350°F. Coat two 9-inch round cake pans thoroughly with butter or nonstick cooking spray.
- Combine flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Sift ingredients together until completely blended.
- In a separate bowl, thoroughly whisk 2 large eggs, 1 cup milk, ½ cup vegetable oil, and 2 tsp vanilla extract until mixture looks smooth and uniform.
- Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients. Gently mix until just combined, avoiding overmixing.
- Gradually stream 1 cup hot water into batter, stirring constantly to create a silky, liquid consistency.
- Evenly distribute batter between prepared cake pans, ensuring equal volume in each pan.
- Bake at 350°F for 30-35 minutes. Check doneness by inserting a toothpick into cake center – it should emerge clean.
- Remove cakes from oven and allow them to rest in pans for 10 minutes to stabilize.
- Transfer cakes to wire cooling racks. Let them cool completely at room temperature.
- In a saucepan, whisk ¼ cup cornstarch with ½ cup cold water until perfectly smooth.
- Add ½ cup chocolate pudding mix and 1 cup heavy cream to cornstarch mixture.
- Cook over medium heat, stirring continuously for 5-7 minutes until pudding thickens substantially.
- Remove pudding from heat. Let it cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally.
- Melt 12 oz semisweet chocolate chips and ½ cup unsalted butter in double boiler until completely smooth.
- Crumble one entire cake layer into small, uniform pieces.
- Mix cake crumbs with a portion of chocolate pudding to create a dense, moist filling.
- Layer chocolate pudding between cake layers, spreading evenly to cover surface.
- Pour melted chocolate ganache over entire cake, ensuring complete and smooth coverage.
- Sprinkle reserved cake crumbs across top and sides of cake for textural contrast.
- Refrigerate cake for 1 hour to allow ganache to set and flavors to meld.
Notes
- Use room temperature ingredients to ensure a smooth, evenly mixed batter that creates a tender cake texture.
- Sift dry ingredients carefully to eliminate any lumps and create a lighter, more delicate crumb.
- When adding hot water, pour slowly and mix gently to prevent overmixing, which can make the cake tough.
- For a gluten-free version, swap all-purpose flour with a cup-for-cup gluten-free flour blend and add an extra egg for moisture.
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Category: Cakes
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 12
- Calories: 419 kcal
- Sugar: 37 g
- Sodium: 243 mg
- Fat: 22 g
- Saturated Fat: 10 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 11 g
- Trans Fat: 0.2 g
- Carbohydrates: 55 g
- Fiber: 4 g
- Protein: 5 g
- Cholesterol: 48 mg