"A four-layer cake in candy-corn-colored stripes inside and out, topped with ganache and plenty of Halloween candy"
Striped Halloween Candy Cake
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Prep time 1hr
Cook time 20mins
Serves or Makes: 10-15
Recipe Card
Chocolate Cake
ingredients
- 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup dark brown sugar, lightly packed
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup unsweetened, special dark cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon espresso powder or instant coffee powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon coarse Kosher salt
- 1 large egg
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup boiling water
Chocolate Cake
Method
Step 1
Before you get scared off by the idea of baking four cakes and mixing up four batches of buttercream, you only have to make two. There's a chocolate layer, of course, with chocolate buttercream. But the other three all begin with a basic vanilla cake batter and buttercream, that you divide up to color and flavor.
Step 2
Preheat the oven to 350 and grease four 8-inch pans with non-stick spray.
Step 3
In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients. Add the wet ingredients and whisk vigorously until smooth. Pour into one pan and bake for 18-20 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.
Cake for Orange, Yellow and White Layers.
ingredients
- 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
- 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon coarse Kosher salt
- 2 large eggs
- 2 egg whites (reserve yolks for another use)
- 1 3/4 cups whole buttermilk
- 3/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 1 teaspoon coconut extract
- 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup natural or sweetened coconut
- 2-3 drops orange and yellow gel food coloring
Cake for Orange, Yellow and White Layers.
Step 1
In a large bowl, sift together the dry ingredients. Add the eggs, egg whites, milk, vinegar and oil and whisk until smooth. Divide equally between three bowls.
Step 2
Add 1 teaspoon vanilla extract to one bowl of batter, 1 teaspoon almond extract to another, and 1 teaspoon coconut extract to the third.
Step 3
To the vanilla batter, add a few drops of yellow food coloring and the chocolate chips. To the almond batter, add a few drops of orange food coloring. To the coconut batter, add the natural coconut.
Step 4
Pour into the remaining three pans and bake for 18-20 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.
Step 5
Cool the cakes on wire racks, covered with clean kitchen towels, until completely cool.
Chocolate Buttercream
ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 1/2 powdered sugar
- 1/2 cup unsweetened special dark cocoa powder
- 1/8 teaspoon coarse Kosher salt
- 1/2 tablespoon meringue powder, optional
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons milk or cream, if needed
Vanilla Buttercream
ingredients
- 3 cups unsalted butter, room temperature
- 6 cups powdered sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon coarse Kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon meringue powder (optional)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 6 tablespoons milk or cream, if needed
- 2-3 drops orange and yellow gel food coloring
Buttercream
Step 1
In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, mix up the chocolate buttercream by slowly mixing the dry ingredients into the butter until combined. Add the vanilla and milk (a tablespoon at a time) and whip on medium high for 4-5 minutes until light and fluffy.
Step 2
Repeat the mixing process for the vanilla buttercream. For the vanilla buttercream, remove half and keep it white. For the other half, divide that in half again, and tint one portion orange and the other portion yellow with the gel food coloring. You should have twice as much white buttercream as you have of the yellow and orange.
Step 3
Now, you will need four piping bags fitted with a coupler and a medium-sized round piping tip (such as Wilton #12). Fill each bag separately with the chocolate, white vanilla, yellow vanilla and orange vanilla buttercream. You will still have more white buttercream left in the bowl, which you'll use to fill and frost the cake first, before piping on the stripes.
Step 4
Remove the cooled cakes from the pans, leveling the domed tops with a sharp knife, if necessary. Place the chocolate cake on a cake board or cake pedestal. Frost with a thin layer of the white buttercream. Repeat stacking and filling the cakes, in order of chocolate, orange, yellow and white. Frost all over with a very thin crumb coat of the white buttecream. Chill for about 20 minutes.
Step 5
Now, you'll pipe on the stripes. Starting with the chocolate, pipe the buttercream around the bottom edge of the cake and about 1/4 of the way up, trying to keep your lines as straight and neat as possible. Repeat with the orange, then yellow, then white.
Step 6
Use a bench scraper to lightly sweep around the sides of the cake, blending and smoothing out the stripes. Wipe the excess buttercream off the bench scraper and continue smoothing until you're happy with how it looks. You can fill in any little gaps with more frosting and smooth out again as needed. Chill the cake for about 20 minutes while you make the ganache.
Ganache and Decorations
ingredients
- 2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
- 2 ounces heavy whipping cream
- 1 1/2 cups assorted chocolate and Halloween candy
Ganache
Step 1
For the ganache, place the chopped chocolate in a bowl. Warm the cream in a saucepan over medium low heat, just until simmering around the edges, the pour over the chocolate. Stir until smooth and pour over the cake, letting it drip over the edges.
Step 2
Let the ganache set for a few minutes, then garnish the cake with candy and sprinkles.