At least once a year, I can count on Quinn taking over the baking in the BoB kitchen. That occasion is my birthday. This year, there was much deliberation on what would be my birthday cake. The final decision was pieced together from a few different recipes and Quinn’s insistence that there be frosting involved.
As I didn’t assist in the baking process, I will keep this brief. Quinn says that it was a relatively simple endeavor, although the two different frostings were a bit daunting for him. He chose to make three square cake layers, using 9-inch square baking pans. For that reason, the original recipe from Buttercup Bakes at Home was adjusted to accommodate, thus explaining the odd amounts of some of the ingredients.
Now, about this cake. Honestly, this was perhaps the best chocolate cake I’ve ever had. It is dense and moist and just plain wonderful. I am on record as saying that I don’t like plain chocolate cake much. This is anything but plain. I think it is definitely my new go-to chocolate cake.
On top of (and in between) the cake, there are not one but two frostings. The layers have cream cheese frosting with a touch of Frangelico. We agreed that the flavor of the liqueur didn’t come through very strongly, but it was still delicious. The top and sides are covered with a chocolate cream cheese frosting that I could have eaten all by itself.
This is definitely a special occasion cake. No one could eat this frequently and survive it. It did, however, make a perfect, decadent treat for my day. Thanks, Quinn!
72 responses so far ↓
1 Jodie // Sep 8, 2008 at 8:50 pm
That looks SO good. My bday’s tomorrow- you think I can get my husband to make me a cake?
Happy Birthday to you!
2 HayleyB // Sep 8, 2008 at 8:59 pm
This looks wonderful. I must try it! Happy birthday, hope it was as spectacular as the cake! - H
3 Smitteniche // Sep 8, 2008 at 9:09 pm
Decadent, indulgent, amazing! This one is sooooooo going in my “must bake post haste” file!
4 Nick // Sep 8, 2008 at 9:40 pm
It takes a lot for chocolate cake to impress me, I generally find it unappealing especially when compared to a vanilla cake with chocolate frosting. I am a chocolate fanatic though, I’ll need to try baking it and the best one you’ve ever had? Certainly can’t be bad.
5 Anita // Sep 8, 2008 at 10:28 pm
The frosting looks so oozy and yummy! And the rest of cake looks just as scrumptious! Beautiful photos!
6 Page // Sep 8, 2008 at 10:49 pm
That cake looks wonderful. He did a great job! I’m going to bake that cake during the holidays. Happy Birthday!!
7 Jessica // Sep 8, 2008 at 11:19 pm
That first picture took my breath away. This looks knee-bucklingly good.
8 the caked crusader // Sep 9, 2008 at 1:20 am
That frosting looks the perfect consistency - smooth and slightly sticky. Good job!
9 Lauren // Sep 9, 2008 at 4:21 am
Wow! What Jessica said…
10 Nan (and Jim) // Sep 9, 2008 at 5:03 am
Speak for yourself. I could eat this cake as often as you would like!
This is, hands down…THE BEST chocolate cake I have ever had! I don’t know what was better…the actual cake or the frosting(s).
The best part was helping Q cut the cake when it was time to serve. I think we both consumed about a pound of the frosting just from scraping it off the cake plate! Yum!
11 Amy // Sep 9, 2008 at 7:00 am
YUM. That looks awesome! Happy Birthday!! That cake is making me wish that my birthday was soon, I’d gladly take on an extra year for that!
12 Patricia Scarpin // Sep 9, 2008 at 8:39 am
Happy birthday, beautiful!
An amazing cake for an amazing baker. Kudos to Quinn!
xoxo
13 Rachel // Sep 9, 2008 at 9:13 am
Two frostings?! That is seriously decadent. Wish I could think of an excuse to bake it soon.
14 dawn // Sep 9, 2008 at 9:17 am
Wow or rather Whoa! What a masterpiece.
15 Katrina // Sep 9, 2008 at 9:51 am
That looks AMAZINGLY delicious! Great job, Quinn and lucky you!
16 RecipeGirl // Sep 9, 2008 at 11:12 am
I disagree. I could eat this frequently (easily!)
Happy bday!
17 Hannah // Sep 9, 2008 at 11:33 am
OH MY GOODNESS! Yum Yum Yum! You are so lucky! HAPPY B DAY!
18 Tim // Sep 9, 2008 at 12:32 pm
So glad you had a scrumptious birthday. Mine is week after next and I’m closer than I’ve ever been to making the cake that mom always made for me. It was just Devils Food Cake with Seven Minute Frosting but I just haven’t been able to get up the emotional stamina to pull it together. Brandt’s planning an assigned dish dinner party and asked what kind of cake I wanted him to order from Mis Muff’n. I told him to give me another week to see if I can muster the strength. Looking at Quinn’s great photos I think I have to have chocolate and if it’s going to be chocolate I might as well go for it. Maybe a few tears will act as the pinch of salt. Thanks for virtually sharing your bday with us.
19 Cindy // Sep 9, 2008 at 12:47 pm
Oh My Goodness!!! That cake looks amazing! Quinn did a great job! It does’nt look homemade it looks store bought! Got to come up with a reason to bake it BEFORE the holidays. Happy Birthday and God bless!!
20 My Sweet & Saucy // Sep 9, 2008 at 12:56 pm
Oh my!!! This looks so deadly delicious! Great photos!
21 ashley // Sep 9, 2008 at 1:22 pm
looks absolutely decadent!
22 Michelle // Sep 9, 2008 at 2:03 pm
Happy Birthday! That cake looks divine! I love the chocolate shavings on top of the chocolate frosting . . . on top of the chocolate cake! My kind of cake
I don’t have square pans, but I think I’ll try it in my round 9″ pans — yum!
23 Culinarywannabe // Sep 9, 2008 at 2:13 pm
Oh your pictures say it all!! The cake looks amazing, I can’t even imagine how good it tasted! What a lucky girl - hope you had a wonderful birthday!
24 brilynn // Sep 9, 2008 at 2:14 pm
Wow that’s one awesome cake!
Happy Birthday!
25 gingela5 // Sep 9, 2008 at 2:39 pm
Will you PLEASE stop making recipes that get me off my diet. hehe…Looks SO GOOD!
26 Nate // Sep 9, 2008 at 2:47 pm
Woo! I want Annie to make this for me!
27 Deb Schiff // Sep 9, 2008 at 3:23 pm
That is truly the most gorgeous cake I’ve ever seen. Glad it was lovely for your birthday!
28 jennifer // Sep 9, 2008 at 6:06 pm
Wow! Thanks to everyone of you for making my birthday even better!
Michelle, if you’re using 9-inch round pans, you probably can use the original recipe. Send me an email if you want it. bakeorbreak@gmail.com
29 Monica H // Sep 9, 2008 at 6:17 pm
Happy Birthday - that cake looks wonderful. My two favorite ingredients- chocolate and cream cheese
30 Judy K // Sep 9, 2008 at 7:20 pm
I would really like to make this but I only have 9″ round pans. How would I adjust the recipe?
31 Mandy // Sep 9, 2008 at 8:05 pm
Quinn is so sweet! The cake looks sinfully decadent, and what is not to love about chocolate + cream cheese? Hope you had a wonderful birthday!
32 giz // Sep 9, 2008 at 8:38 pm
You can so see the work that went into making it. It does mean so much more than a gift card from Best Buy.
33 marilyn // Sep 9, 2008 at 10:05 pm
Gorgeous. This may be my next birthday cake!
34 maria // Sep 9, 2008 at 10:27 pm
OMG…this blog is the sweetest torture…
Happy Birthday!
35 diva // Sep 10, 2008 at 4:02 am
awesome cream cheese filling and the top decoration is so gorgeous! like how simple the whole cake is and yet how wonderful it all looks..mmm. happy birthday!
x
36 Kim // Sep 10, 2008 at 5:12 am
Happy Birthday Jennifer! Wishing you much happiness in the year ahead….Mine was last week and I failed to make my favorite- a 7 layer Coconut Cake; now I wish I did. Though I am not a Chocolate Cake fan this looks like the best I have ever seen. Simply wonderful!
37 Lorie // Sep 10, 2008 at 10:12 am
I love your blog! I can’t wait to explore it more. I am a Mississippi girl, too.
38 Deborah // Sep 10, 2008 at 12:53 pm
Will he come and make me this cake for my birthday in a week and a half? Delicious!!
Hope your birthday was great!
39 Dani // Sep 10, 2008 at 1:36 pm
OMG!!!!!!! My mouth is watering!
40 Colleen // Sep 10, 2008 at 2:39 pm
WOW!! That is an amazing looking cake. Happy birthday to you and well done to Quinn for this fantastic cake
I always have to bake my own xx
41 Maria // Sep 10, 2008 at 3:18 pm
Oh my goodness! Your photos are amazing! I want to reach in and grab that slice of cake! It looks so good!
42 Debbie // Sep 10, 2008 at 6:14 pm
What a gorgeous cake….and it looks so delicious!
43 lori // Sep 10, 2008 at 6:50 pm
All I can say is WOW! I must’ve stared at the cover photo for a good 10 seconds. It’s mesmerizing. Happy Birthday! I enjoy reading this blog for the recipes.
44 Megan // Sep 10, 2008 at 10:22 pm
the frosting oozing out of the cake layers looks absolutely amazing! I would definitely be the one sticking my finger in the frosting
45 Amber // Sep 10, 2008 at 11:17 pm
Oooohhhhh!
I can’t get much more out.
Ooooohhhh!
46 jennifer // Sep 11, 2008 at 10:04 am
Thanks again! I think Quinn really did an outstanding job. Maybe I should encourage him to take over?
Judy K, I have posted the original recipe using 9-inch round pans on the recipes page. Enjoy!
47 CookiePie // Sep 11, 2008 at 2:58 pm
Happy birthday! Now THAT’s a birthday cake - gorgeous!
48 Sarah // Sep 11, 2008 at 7:58 pm
Wow this DOES look amazing! I wish I could get my significant other to make something this delicious.
Both the frostings look delicious, I love that there are 2! And I’ve never been a huge fan of plain chocolate cake either, so I’ll really have to try this recipe!
Happy Birthday!
49 angel // Sep 11, 2008 at 9:05 pm
Ohmygod this looks amazing! 2 frosting? You’re quite the overachiever
50 Kristen // Sep 13, 2008 at 1:51 pm
Happy birthday! This cake has me craving a slice. YUM!
51 Katelyn // Sep 13, 2008 at 4:55 pm
Oh my, that looks like the holy grail of chocolate cake.
52 dannyjay // Sep 13, 2008 at 7:17 pm
wow. that looks amazing! I’m thinking adding some sort of coffee something would make it even better! I love chocolate, creamcheese and coffee together!
53 Ros // Sep 15, 2008 at 3:21 am
I have been looking for a great chocolate cake recipe for ages and this had me hooked from the first photo. I made it for my son’s 11th birthday on Saturday (I left out the Frangelico), and the whole family LOVED it, there’s no doubt I’ll be making this again. Thanks so much for posting this.
54 Holly // Sep 15, 2008 at 12:36 pm
Oh my Lord…this is decadent!!!!
Since you seem like a true foodie, I want to share the following with you…I’m promoting a new website that’s about to launch in a month–it’s called http://www.behindtheburner.com
It’s going to provide tips and tricks about anything and everything in the culinary world. Please check it out! Tell your friends.
Thanks!
55 jennifer // Sep 15, 2008 at 5:49 pm
Thanks, y’all!
Ros, I’m glad you enjoyed the cake. Isn’t it just fantastic?!?
56 Indigo // Sep 17, 2008 at 5:42 am
Did you say… chocolate… cream cheese… frosting?
Ohhhyes.
57 Mónica // Sep 17, 2008 at 8:29 am
I love chocolate cakes and desserts, so i must tell you just one thing.
DELICIOUS!
58 Catherine // Sep 18, 2008 at 5:13 pm
This sounds so great! My wedding cake was a dark chocolate cake with a thick cream cheese frosting - best cake I’ve ever had (the day didn’t hurt :). I’ll have to try this recipe on my own now to try to re-create it. Thanks!
59 Lisa magicsprinkles // Sep 18, 2008 at 7:04 pm
Happy Birthday to a very, very lucky girl. This looks divine and you are so fortunate to have someone make this for you (and do it so well!)
60 jennifer // Sep 18, 2008 at 7:30 pm
Indigo, that is exactly right. Almost too good to be true!
Thanks, Monica & Lisa!
Catherine, I wish sometimes that I had deviated from the norm for our wedding cake, but I went traditional all the way. Sounds like yours was delicious!
61 Lindsay // Sep 20, 2008 at 8:14 am
Jennifer –
I am pretty sure I can’t get my hands on Dutch -process cocoa powder. Do you think an “average” cocoa powder would work? I have regular and dark, and I was leaning toward trying the dark … but I thought I’d get your expert opinion.
62 Lindsay // Sep 20, 2008 at 1:32 pm
Quick follow up … I found a “premium cocoa” by SACO, which is “a special blend of natural and Dutched cocoa.” Maybe that will suffice? http://www.sacofoods.com/premiumcocoa.html
63 jennifer // Sep 20, 2008 at 3:33 pm
Lindsay, Dutch process cocoa will react differently in a recipe, so they are usually not interchangeable. I’ve never used a blend of the two. I’m not really sure what that would do. There is some helpful explanation at Joy of Baking.
64 Lindsay // Sep 20, 2008 at 5:45 pm
The main reason I was wondering if the experimenting might be okay is because the cocoa isn’t in the actual cake — it sounds like the main issue with using Dutch-process versus regular cocoa has to do with leavening agents, which wouldn’t apply to frosting. I’m leaning toward trying the SACO blend but am, of course, a little nervous about it …
65 jennifer // Sep 21, 2008 at 11:24 am
Lindsay, you’re right. I was thinking that there was cocoa powder in the cake. I’m sure you could use whichever kind you like for the frosting. Enjoy!
66 morgana // Sep 22, 2008 at 3:26 am
I’m just impressed. Not only for the delicious look of the cake itself (so black… Mmmmm) but also for the cream cheese frostenings. I must try tis recipe, that’s for sure.
67 zestycook // Sep 29, 2008 at 11:41 am
This looks amazing!!!! I had to stumble it.. the whole world needs to see this. Great work. I cant wait to try it
68 jennifer // Sep 29, 2008 at 6:07 pm
Thanks, morgana & zestycook!
69 kimberleyblue // Oct 2, 2008 at 8:47 am
oh my! someone better have a birthday fast, ’cause i want to make this cake!
looks stunning, too.
70 Banginfood // Nov 21, 2008 at 9:44 pm
Aww man! I want to comment on everything on this blog! Everything looks good! But, this cake looks soo good I love chocolate.
71 Kelly // Dec 14, 2008 at 2:05 pm
I baked this cake for my boyfriend’s birthday in 3 9″ round pans. Neither of us care for frangelico, so I flavored the filling frosting with one of our favorite liquors, Amarula (a proven winner with our palates when mixed with chocolate!). I could have just eaten that frosting and stoppe there. Since I couldn’t find the Dutch processed cocoa, and didn’t have time to mail order, I used Ghirardelli’s unsweetened cocoa powder. Topped with mini-chocolate chips, this cake looks wonderful (and the scraps I tasted from leveling the layers taste yummy, too!) if not like Jennifer/Quinn’s pictures. Next time tho, I think I am ditching the chocolate cream cheese frosting and just doing the Amarula flavor. It is just that delicious. Happy baking, y’all! Thanks for the recipe, BorB!
72 Ales // Dec 15, 2008 at 2:39 pm
wow,this looks amazing Lindsay ,i was trying to make it now but i couldn’t find the ingredients,could u help me out
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