Momofuku German Chocolate Espresso Cake

A version of momofuku’s German Chocolate cake with espresso frosting

Ingredients

Fudge sauce (need just over half of this for the chocolate cake recipe)

• 15 g 72% dark chocolate , chopped
• 1 tablespoon cocoa powder (9g)
• pinch of salt
• 2 tablespoons glucose (50g)
• 1 tablespoon sugar (12g)
• 2 tablespoons cream (26g)

Chocolate Cake

• Chocolate cake: 9 x 13 inch slice tin (20 x 30 cm)
• 110 g butter , room temperature
• 300 g caster sugar (1 1/2 cups)
• 3 eggs
• 110 g buttermilk (1/2 cup)
• 40 g canola oil (1/4 cup)
• 3 tablespoons fudge sauce (see recipe above)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon instant coffee
• 155 g cake flour (1 1/4 cups) – if you don’t have cake flour, substitute with 1 cup + 2 tablespoons plain flour + 2 tablespoons cornflour (155g total)
• 70 g good quality cocoa (1/2 cup)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt

Crack Coconut Filling

• 75 g caster sugar (2/3 cup)
• 45 g brown sugar (3 tablespoons tightly packed)
• 1 tablespoon milk powder
• 1 tablespoon corn powder (I couldn’t find any so used 2 teaspoons of cornflour – but if you can source corn powder that would be much better)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 56 g butter , melted (4 tablespoons)
• 40 g cream (3 tablespoons)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 cup shredded coconut

Pecan Crunch

• 125 g chopped pecans or walnuts (or both) (3/4 cup)
• splash canola oil (1-3 tablespoons)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 60 g feuilletine or broken up wafer cookies (3/4 cup) ( I used this type in chocolate http://shop.countdown.co.nz/Shop/ProductDetails?Stockcode=18307&name=homebrand-creme-wafers-vanilla)

Espresso Chocolate Frosting

• 113 g butter , room temperature
• 162 g icing sugar (1 cup)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 20 g cocoa powder (1/4 cup)
• 1 teaspoon instant coffee (you can add more to taste)
• 2 tablespoons full-fat milk

Chocolate Espresso Cake Soak

• 1/4 cup milk
• 2 tablespoons ovaltine or other hot chocolate powder
• 1 shot espresso

Instructions

Fudge Sauce

1. In a small mixing bowl, combine the chocolate, cocoa, and salt.
2. Heat the glucose, sugar, and cream in a small saucepan over high heat, stirring constantly. Pour it into the dish with the chocolate as soon as it boils. Allow for 1 minute of resting time.
3. Combine the ingredients in a mixing bowl and whisk until the mixture is glossy and velvety smooth (2-4 minutes). Use the sauce right away in the cake, or preserve it in an airtight jar in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.

Chocolate Cake

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C and oil and paper a 20 x 30 cm slice tin.
2. In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar for 2-3 minutes on medium high. Mix on medium-high for 2-3 minutes after adding the eggs. Scrape the bowl’s sides clean.
3. Combine the buttermilk, oil, fudge sauce, vanilla, and coffee in a separate basin. Slowly pour in the buttermilk mixture while the stand mixer is running. Increase the speed to medium-high for 4-6 minutes, or until the butter-sugar mixture is entirely homogeneous and has grown in size. There should be no fat or liquid streaks.
4. Sift together the cake flour, baking powder, salt, and cocoa (or a combination of plain flour and cornflour – see substitutions in ingredients). Just until the batter comes together, mix on low.
5. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the center has firmed up and is no longer jiggly. A skewer put into the meat may come out with a few crumbs attached.
6. Allow to cool on a wire rack.

Crack Coconut Filling

1. Preheat the oven to 165°C and line a small baking sheet with baking paper on the bottom and edges (I used a 9 x 5 inch loaf tin but anything similar will work)
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the sugar, brown sugar, milk powder, corn powder (or cornflour), and salt and beat on low until uniformly combined.
3. Stir in the melted butter for 1 minute, or until all of the dry ingredients are moistened.
4. Mix on low for 1 minute, or until any white streaks from the cream have fully vanished into the liquid. With a spatula, scrape down the edges of the bowl.
5. Paddle the egg yolks into the mixture only to include them; be careful not to aerate the mixture, but make sure it is glossy and homogeneous. Mix on low speed till it’s completely smooth.
6. Fill the prepared baking pan halfway with batter and bake for 8-10 minutes. Shake the pan gently. The crack pie filling should be firmer and more set around the edges of the baking pan, but jiggly and loose in the middle. Allow 2-3 minutes if the crack pie filling is jiggly all over.
7. Once the crack pie filling has cooled, combine it with the sweetened coconut. This filling may be used right away or kept in the fridge for a few days in an airtight container.

Pecan Crunch

1. Preheat the oven to 165 degrees Celsius.
2. Toast the chopped pecans/walnuts for 10-15 minutes, or until aromatic, on a baking pan coated with parchment paper.
3. In a food processor, puree heated pecans with a splash of oil, salt, and light brown sugar. You don’t want a crumbly nut mixture, therefore the mixture should become smooth and nearly fluid, like nut butter. Just keep cooking, and if required, add a bit more oil. It might take up to 5 minutes.
4. Combine the pecan purée and feuilletine or broken up wafer biscuits in a small dish.

Espresso Chocolate Frosting

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the butter, sugar, salt, cocoa, and coffee on medium-high for 5 to 7 minutes, until light and fluffy. Scrape the bowl’s sides clean.
2. Slowly pour in the milk with the mixer set at the lowest speed. Increase the speed to medium-high and continue to beat for 2 to 3 minutes, or until the mixture is silky smooth and glossy. Use the icing right away.

Chocolate Espresso Cake Soak

1. In a small bowl, whisk together all of the ingredients in preparation for cake construction.

Cake Assembly (step by step layering photos above)

1. First, watch this slideshow to learn how to cut out the 6 inch circles.
   http://sweets.seriouseats.com/2014/02/behind-the-scenes-in-momofuku-milk-bars-kitchen-strawberry-lemon-layer-cake-slideshow.html
2. To decorate, you’ll need edible flowers and toasted coconut chips.
3. On a chopping board or directly on the kitchen surface, place a sheet of baking paper. Remove the baking paper off the bottom of the cake and invert it onto it. If you’re using a 6 inch cake ring with a sharp edge, use it to stamp out two circles from the cake (see pictures). If your cake pan has a round edge like mine, place the cake ring on top of the cake and use a sharp knife to sketch out the circles. Carefully cut the circles out with the knife.
4. For the first layer, cut two semicircles from the leftover cake.
5. Clean the cake tin/ring and line the base (or a small baking tray, if using a cake ring) with baking paper for the first layer. Tape together a piece of acetate 9 cm wide and 55 cm long to line the sides.
6. Inside the ring, join the two semicircles of cake together, filling in the gaps with leftover cake scraps. Tamp down the fragments into an equal layer using your hand.
7. Dip a pastry brush into the espresso-chocolate soak and brush the soak all over the cake layer. (Be kind; you’ll have plenty left over; don’t attempt to use half of it or it’ll be soggy!)
8. Half of the crack-coconut filling should be spread evenly over the cake.
9. Half of the pecan crunk should be evenly distributed.
10. Spread 1/3 of the chocolate-espresso frosting over the pecan crunch with the back of a spoon or a tiny offset spatula.
11. To expand the height of your cake tin, gently insert the second strip of acetate between the cake ring/tin and the top centimeter of the first piece of acetate. Place the tape at the desired location.
12. Repeat the espresso-chocolate soak, the rest of the crack-coconut filling, the rest of the pecan crunch, and another third of the chocolate espresso frosting with another cake round on top of the chocolate frosting.
13. Place the final cake round on top of the icing. Spread the remaining frosting over the top of the cake in an equal layer.
14. Place the cake in the freezer for at least 12 hours to allow the cake and contents to firm together.
15. Remove the frozen food from the freezer at least 3 hours before serving. Remove the cake from the cake ring or the tin and carefully peel off the base. Remove the acetate carefully and place the cake on a dish or cake stand. Allow at least 3 hours for defrosting in the refrigerator.
16. Decorate the cake with edible flowers and toasted coconut chips before serving.
17. Any leftover cake (which may or may not exist!) may be wrapped in plastic wrap and preserved in the fridge for a few days.

Source: The Brick Kitchen

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