Chocolate Mint Loaf Cake Food

MINI CHOCOLATE LOAF CAKES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter the insides of an 8-cup mini loaf baking pan.
• Put the butter, cocoa, coffee and milk in a small microwave-safe bowl. Cover and microwave until the butter melts, about 3 minutes. Whisk to combine and set aside.
• Whisk the flour, granulated sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. Whisk the sour cream, vanilla and eggs until blended in a small bowl. Whisk the hot cocoa mixture into the flour mixture and then stir in the sour cream mixture until just combined. Divide the batter equally among the loaf cups.
• Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Cool the loaves in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes and then remove from the pan and cool completely on a rack. Dust the tops of the loaves with confectioners? sugar.

MINT CHOCOLATE CAKE

Steps:

• Prepare cake batter according to package directions, using a greased 15x10x1-in. baking pan. , Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack., In a large bowl, combine the frosting ingredients until smooth. Spread over cooled cake. , For topping, in a microwave, melt chocolate chips and butter; stir until smooth. Stir in extract. Spread over frosting. Refrigerate until set.

MINT-CHOCOLATE CHIP CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x13-inch baking dish.
• Combine sugar, flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Add eggs, milk, oil, vanilla extract, and peppermint extract; mix using an electric mixer until smooth. Whisk in boiling water. Pour batter into the prepared baking dish.
• Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes. Let cake cool 10 to 15 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
• While cake is cooling, combine milk and peppermint extract in a small bowl and set aside. Cream butter in a separate bowl using an electric mixer until smooth. Pour in confectioners' sugar and peppermint-milk mixture alternately while continuing to beat. Add green food coloring until frosting reaches desired color. Whip frosting on high until fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Divide between two bowls. Stir chocolate chips into 1/2 the frosting using a spoon. Set mint-chocolate chip frosting aside.
• Frost cooled cake with pure mint frosting without chocolate chips. Place cake in the refrigerator to set.
• Meanwhile, combine chocolate squares and butter in a double boiler; stir until thoroughly melted. Remove from heat. Stir ganache vigorously to a smooth consistency.
• Remove cake from the refrigerator. Cover entire cake with ganache; return to the refrigerator and allow to completely set, about 30 minutes.
• Remove set cake from the refrigerator. Frost sides of cake with mint chocolate chip frosting.

MINT CHOCOLATE LAYER CAKE

Steps:

• For the chocolate cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter two 8-by-2-inch round cake pans. Line the bottom of each pan with parchment paper, then butter and flour the pans.
• Sift the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and mix on low speed until combined.
• Whisk together the buttermilk, oil, vanilla and eggs in a medium bowl. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the buttermilk mixture to the flour mixture. With the mixer still on low, add the coffee and mix until just combined, scraping the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula.
• Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake until a cake tester comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Cool in the pans for 30 minutes, then turn the cakes out onto cooling racks and cool completely.
• When the cakes are completely cool, level each cake and then cut each layer in half to make four cake rounds. Chill until ready to assemble.
• For the mint buttercream: In the bowl of stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat together the confectioners' sugar and butter until creamy.
• Beat in the peppermint extract, salt and 2 tablespoons of the milk until well combined. Gradually stir in the remaining 2 tablespoons milk until the desired spreading consistency is reached. Set aside until ready to assemble the cake.
• For the chocolate buttercream: Chop the chocolate and place in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Stir until just melted and set aside until cooled to room temperature.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium-high speed until light yellow and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the vanilla and egg yolk and continue beating for 3 minutes. Turn the mixer to low, gradually add the confectioners' sugar, then beat at medium speed until smooth and creamy, scraping down the bowl as necessary.
• Dissolve the coffee powder in 2 teaspoons of the hottest tap water. With the mixer on low speed, add the melted chocolate and the coffee to the butter mixture and mix until blended. Do not whip! Set aside until ready to assemble the cake.
• For the mint curls: Put the melting wafers and shortening in a large microwave-safe bowl. Heat in the microwave in 1-minute increments, then in 15-second increments, stirring after each heating. When the wafers are melted, add the peppermint oil and stir until incorporated.
• Flip over a large, clean baking sheet. Pour half of the melted candy onto the back of the baking sheet and spread evenly with an offset spatula. (This is important, as you want the layer to be as even and level as possible. Thin is good, but translucent is not.)
• Place the baking sheet in the fridge to set for 1 to 2 minutes or leave it on the counter for about 10 minutes. The mixture needs to be at the perfect temperature for curls to form. If it's too cold, they will just break. If it's too warm, they will just be blobs. Press your finger into the mixture; if it leaves a mark, the mixture is too soft.
• Press a very clean flathead screwdriver into the mixture at a 45-degree angle and then slide it forward slowly. Curls should form. Immediately transfer the curls to a plate and place in the refrigerator so that they hold their shape. Repeat the process with the remaining half of the melted candy. Chill all the mint curls until ready to assemble the cake.
• To assemble the cake: Place 1 layer of cake on a cake stand or cake plate. Spread one-third of the mint buttercream over the top of the cake. Top with a second layer of cake and spread another third of the mint buttercream over the top. Repeat with a third layer of cake and the remaining mint buttercream. Top with the remaining layer of cake.
• Coat the top and sides of the assembled cake with the chocolate buttercream. Smooth the surfaces of the cake as much as possible. Place the remaining chocolate buttercream into a piping bag or resealable plastic bag fitted with a large round tip, such as a 2A tip.
• Pipe dollops of frosting around the top of the cake. Sprinkle the mint curls over the top. Chill the cake until ready to serve.

CHOCOLATE-MINT LEAVES

Steps:

• Using paintbrush, coat underside of 1 leaf with a thick layer of chocolate. Drape leaf, chocolate side up, over a skewer set on a parchment-lined baking sheet, top. Repeat. Refrigerate until set, about 10 minutes.
• Gently grasp each leaf with tweezers, and peel from chocolate. Use chocolate leaves to decorate as desired, or store, refrigerated, in an airtight container for up to 2 days.

DOUBLE CHOCOLATE LOAF CAKE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3. Grease and line a 2lb/900g loaf tin with a long strip of baking parchment. To make the loaf cake batter, beat the butter and sugar with an electric whisk until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, flour, almonds, baking powder, milk and cocoa until smooth. Stir in the chocolate chips, then scrape into the tin. Bake for 45-50 mins until golden, risen and a skewer poked in the centre comes out clean.
• Cool in the tin, then lift out onto a wire rack over some kitchen paper. Melt the extra chocolate chunks separately in pans over barely simmering water, or in bowls in the microwave, then use a spoon to drizzle each in turn over the cake. Leave to set before slicing.