Description
Luxurious raspberry decadence cake blends French pastry techniques with rich chocolate layers. Elegant dessert promises sweet indulgence for special celebrations, delighting palates with complex flavors and sophisticated presentation.
Ingredients
Scale
- 3 cups (375 grams) cake flour
- 2 ¼ cups (450 grams) light brown sugar
- 1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
- 2 cups (480 ml/16 fl oz) hot water
- 1.5 cups (360 ml/12 fl oz) full-fat sour cream
- 4 large eggs
- ½ cup (120 ml/4 fl oz) vegetable oil
- ¼ cup (60 ml/2 fl oz) milk
- 2 tbsps (15 grams) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 3 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp espresso powder
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ⅕ tsp baking powder
- ¾ tsp salt
Instructions
- Preparation Setup: Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C) and meticulously coat three 9-inch cake pans with grease and flour to ensure effortless cake release.
- Cocoa Integration: Whisk hot water and cocoa powder into a silky mixture. Simultaneously, sift together cake flour, sugars, leavening agents, salt, and espresso powder in a separate bowl to eliminate potential clumps.
- Batter Composition: Introduce sour cream, milk, eggs, oil, and vanilla to dry ingredients, blending gently until a uniform, velvety batter emerges. Distribute evenly across prepared pans.
- Baking Process: Position pans in preheated oven and bake for 23-27 minutes. Validate doneness by inserting a toothpick that comes out clean, indicating perfectly cooked layers.
- Cooling Stage: Allow cakes to rest in pans for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack for complete temperature reduction.
- Frosting Creation: Whip butter until airy, gradually incorporating powdered sugar, milk, vanilla, and salt. Fold in freeze-dried raspberries and preserves to intensify flavor profile.
- Frosting Refinement: Gently integrate cream cheese, ensuring a smooth, luxurious texture without any lingering lumps.
- Cake Assembly: Layer cake with raspberry preserves and frosting, constructing a stable and sumptuous tower.
- Finishing Touch: Apply a delicate crumb coat, chill briefly, then enrobe the entire cake in a luscious frosting layer.
- Chocolate Drizzle: Heat cream until steaming, pour over dark chocolate, stirring to create a glossy ganache. Enhance with a hint of oil for additional sheen.
- Decorative Finale: Artfully cascade chocolate ganache down cake edges, embellish with frosting swirls, fresh raspberries, and chocolate chips for a visually stunning presentation.
Notes
- Prevent Cake Sticking: Thoroughly grease and flour cake pans to ensure easy cake removal and prevent breaking.
- Avoid Overmixing Batter: Gently blend ingredients until just combined to maintain a tender, light cake texture and prevent tough results.
- Temperature Precision: Allow ingredients like eggs and dairy to reach room temperature for smoother batter and more consistent cake texture.
- Crumb Coat Technique: Refrigerate cake after initial thin frosting layer to set crumbs, creating a smoother final decoration and preventing loose cake particles in final frosting.
- Prep Time: 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 27 minutes
- Category: Desserts, Snacks
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 13
- Calories: 357
- Sugar: 34 g
- Sodium: 175 mg
- Fat: 14 g
- Saturated Fat: 3 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 11 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 53 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 5 g
- Cholesterol: 75 mg