Shelly's Recipe

Chocolate Therapy Cake

Category: Recipes

Yield: 12-14 servings, one 9-inch triple layer cake

It is especially important to line the pans with circles of parchment because the fudge coating on the cookies will melt as it bakes. This creates pockets of chocolate in the cake, and those near the bottom of the pan could stick if left unlined.

Cake Layers
3 ounces fine-quality semisweet chocolate
1 1/2 cups hot brewed coffee or hot water
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch process)
2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
3 large eggs
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups full fat sour cream
3/4 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups (about 6 oz.) chocolate-dipped cookies such as Keebler Fudge Stripe, roughly chopped


Chocolate pudding buttercream
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 cup hot (almost boiling) water
4 oz. semisweet chocolate
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 cups confectioners sugar, sifted
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (preferably dark), sifted
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Assembly
3/4 cup chocolate sprinkles
14 chocolate-dipped cookies such as Keebler Fudge Stripe

Preheat oven to 300. Grease three 9-inch round pans with shortening. Line bottoms with rounds of parchment paper and grease paper.
Finely chop chocolate combine it in a bowl with hot coffee or hot water. Let mixture stand, stirring occasionally, until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth.

Sift together flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl. In another large bowl with an electric mixer beat eggs until thickened slightly and lemon colored (about 3 minutes with a standing mixer or 5 minutes with a hand-held mixer). Add oil, sour cream, vanilla, and melted chocolate mixture to eggs, beating until combined well. Add flour mixture and beat on medium speed until just combined. Fold in chopped cookie pieces with a rubber spatula. Divide batter between 3 9 inch pans and bake in middle of oven until cake springs back when pressed in the center, approximately 40-50 minutes.

Cool layers in pans for 15 minutes on racks. Run a thin knife around edges of pans and invert layers onto wire racks. Carefully remove parchment paper and cool layers completely. Cake layers may be made 1 day ahead and kept, wrapped well in plastic wrap, at room temperature.

For the frosting, whisk together sugar and cornstarch in a medium saucepan. Add the chocolate and hot water, let stand a moment, then whisk until chocolate is melted. Place the saucepan over medium-high heat and whisk constantly until mixture boils.

Let cook until thickened to a pudding-like consistency. Remove pan from heat and transfer pudding to a metal bowl. Place metal bowl in a larger bowl filled 1/3 full with ice water. Beat pudding on high speed with a hand mixer until cooled.

Beat in butter and confectioners sugar. Add in salt and vanilla extract. Beat on high speed until fluffy.

To assemble, place a cake layer on a cake stand or serving platter; cover top evenly with about 1/3 cup of frosting. Stack on another cake layer and top with another 1/3 cup frosting. Stack last layer on top. Transfer about 1/3 cup of frosting to a piping bag fitted with a large star tip; set aside. Coat entire cake with the remaining icing. Set the frosted cake (still on the cake stand) in a clean, dry, empty kitchen sink and toss sprinkles onto the sides of the cake. Brush away excess sprinkles around the bottom of the cake with a dry pastry brush. Using the reserved piping bag of frosting, pipe small stars around the top edge of the cake. Place whole cookies standing upright into the top edge of the cake between piped stars. Sprinkle top with additional chocolate sprinkles, if desired.