Coffee Layer Cake

I love a traditional coffee cake baked in a 9x13 pan, covered with streusel, and served with a cup of coffee but sometimes I simply want a cake that tastes like coffee. This recipe is perfect: two layers of fluffy coffee infused cake covered with a light espresso swiss meringue buttercream.

And the best part? It counts as breakfast.

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Coffee Layer Cake
from Liv for Cake

Cake Layers
2 ½ cups all purpose flour
2 ½ tsp baking powder
¾ tsp salt
1 cup milk, room temperature
1 Tbsp espresso powder
¾ cup unsalted butter room temperature
1 ½ cups granulated sugar
3 large eggs room temperature
1 tsp vanilla bean paste

Coffee Buttercream
6 large egg whites
1 ½ cups granulated sugar
1 ½ cups unsalted butter room temperature
1 tsp vanilla bean paste
2 Tbsp espresso powder not granules

Make the cake: Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease three 6" round cake pans and line with parchment.

In a medium bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, and salt until well combined. In a separate measuring cup, combine milk & espresso powder and stir until dissolved.

Using a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar on med-high until it is light and fluffy (~3mins). Reduce speed and add eggs one at a time fully incorporating after each addition. Add vanilla bean paste and mix to combine.

Alternate adding flour mixture and espresso milk mixture, beginning and ending with flour (3 additions of flour and 2 of milk). Make sure everything is fully incorporated before the next addition.

Evenly split the batter among the three cake pans, tap on the counter to release any air bubbles, and then bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes our mostly clean.

Place cakes on wire rack to cool for 10mins then turn out onto wire rack to cool completely.

Make the frosting: Place a completely clean bowl from your stand mixer over a saucepan filled with simmering water ensuring that the bowl doesn't touch the water.

Add the egg whites and sugar to the bowl, whisking constantly but gently, until temperature reaches 160°F, or until the sugar has completely dissolved and the egg whites are hot.

Attach the bowl to the mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and begin to whip until the meringue is thick, glossy, and the bottom of the bowl no longer feels warm, about 7 to 10 minutes.

Switch over to paddle attachment and, with mixer on low speed, add the butter cubes, one at a time, until incorporated. Continue beating until it has reached a silky smooth texture (this can take 7-10 minutes and almost always goes through a curdled stage).

Add vanilla and espresso powder. Whip until smooth.

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Brownie Cookie Cake

This cake is not a cake. It is heaven. Or better yet, it is a salted brown sugar chocolate chip cookie layered with a black cocoa brownie and covered with an espresso buttercream.

This cake is not pretending to be anything other than what it is: the richest, most decadent, gut wrenching dessert you’ve had in a long time.

Note: this recipe makes enough for two, three layer cakes. One for now and one for when you polish off the first cake and wish you had a second :).

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Brownie Cookie Cake
adapted from Bake from Scratch and yours truly

Brownie Layers
397g (2⅓ cups) dark chocolate morsels/chips, divided
227g (1 cup) unsalted butter, cubed
300g (1½ cups) granulated sugar
220g (1 cup, packed) brown sugar
188g (1½ cups) all purpose flour
64g (¾ cup) black cocoa powder
2 tsp salt
5 large eggs
1 tbsp vanilla extract

Cookie Layers
113g (½ cup) butter, at room temperature
48g (4 tbsp) granulated sugar
184g (¾ cup + 2 tbsp packed) brown sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
¾ tsp baking soda
Heaped 1/4 tsp salt
215g (1 ¾ cups) all purpose flour
225g (8 oz) dark chocolate morsels/chips

Coffee Buttercream
6 large egg whites
300g (1½ cups) granulated sugar
340g (1½ cups) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 tsp vanilla bean paste
2 tbsp espresso powder, not granules

Make the brownie layers: Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray three 6” cake pans and line with parchment paper (you can also make bake this in a 13x9 baking pan for traditional brownies).

In the top of a double boiler, add 1⅓ cups (227 grams) of the chocolate morsels and butter. Stir occasionally until the mixture is smooth. Turn off heat and whisk in sugars. Remove from heat, and let cool slightly.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, and salt.

In a small bowl, lightly whisk eggs. Add half of beaten eggs to chocolate mixture, whisking until combined. Add remaining eggs and whisk until combined. Whisk in vanilla. Gently mix in flour mixture with a spatula until just combined. Fold in remaining chocolate chips and spread batter into prepared pans.

Bake until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out with a few crumbs, about 18 minutes.

Make the cookie layers: Heat oven to 360°F. Spray three 6” cake pans and line with parchment paper. In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugars together with an electric mixer until very light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add egg and vanilla, beating until incorporated, and scraping down the bowl as needed.

Beat in salt fine sea or table salt and baking soda until combined, then the flour on a low speed until just mixed. Fold/stir in the chocolate chunks.

Evenly divide the dough into the three cake pans. Bake for 18-20 minutes, until just golden on the outside but still soft inside.

Make the buttercream: Place egg whites and sugar into the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk until combined.

Place bowl over a double boiler on the stove and whisk constantly until the mixture is hot and no longer grainy to the touch (approx. 3mins). Or registers 160F on a candy thermometer.

Place bowl on your stand mixer and whisk on med-high until the meringue is stiff and cooled (the bowl is no longer warm to the touch (approx. 5-10mins)).

Switch to paddle attachment. Slowly add cubed butter and mix until smooth. Add vanilla bean paste and espresso powder. Whip until smooth.

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Express Chocolate Espresso Bundt

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I love to bake from scratch. I love to decorate a cake with flowers and sprinkles. But I also love to eat cake right now/five minutes ago. This is not a new realization but what is new is my decision to [gasp] use boxed cake mixes every once in a while. 

My new non-judgey feelings toward cake mixes led me to this recipe: Express Chocolate Espresso Bundt. The recipe drew me in with "express" (because I want cake now), started to get interesting at "chocolate" (because chocolate). The recipe got real at "espresso" (because caffeine holds a special place in my heart) and then the ingredients were already measured and on the counter by the time I read the word "Bundt" (beautiful cake that requires zero decoration).

Add these things together, bake for less than an hour and voila, instantly beautiful cake that can be eaten immediately.

And if you are trying to figure out what to do while the cake is baking, whip up a batch of salted caramel sauce and dip the pieces of the cake directly into the warm caramel. Just a thought...

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Express Espresso Chocolate Bundt
from Bundt Cake Bliss

1 box devil's food cake mix (15.25 oz)
1 small box instant chocolate pudding mix
4 eggs
1/2 cups strongly brewed coffee
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup sour cream
1/4 cup cocoa powder
2 tsp instant espresso powder

Make the cake: Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare a 10-12 cup Bundt pan using butter or Pam baking spray. 

Place the cake mix and pudding mix in the bowl of a stand mixer and mix for 30 seconds on low. Add the remaining ingredients and mix at medium speed for 4 minutes. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.

Bake for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
 

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This post was done in partnership with Nordic Ware who sponsored this recipe by providing the Bundt pan that was used in this recipe. As always, all thoughts and opinions are my own.