Blackout Cake
Recipe courtesy Karen Barker, Sweet Stuff: Karen Barker's American
Desserts, University of North Carolina Press, 2004
"The Blackout Cake was the creation of Ebinger's, a famous New York-
based neighborhood bakery chain. An indecently rich, dark tower of
chocolate, this cake has become something of a Holy Grail for many
bakers. Cult-like fans went through Blackout withdrawal when the
bakeries closed down and The Cake disappeared. Many have tried to
recreate this cake; I feel this version comes close. It is a multi-
stepped process (remember...this was a bakery specialty) but it can
easily be broken down into components."
Chocolate Pudding:
1 1/2 cups milk
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons cocoa (preferably Dutch processed)
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 egg
1 egg yolk
4 ounces semi sweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 1/2 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
Cake:
1 1/2 cups plus 1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3/4 cup cocoa (preferable Dutch processed)
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
2 eggs
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup brewed coffee, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Icing:
8 ounces semi sweet chocolate
2 1/2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup hot brewed coffee
2 teaspoons corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 dozen chocolate wafer cookies
To make the Chocolate Pudding: Combine 1 cup milk with 2 tablespoons
sugar in a small saucepan and bring to just under a boil.
In a mixing bowl, combine remaining sugar with salt, cocoa, and
cornstarch. Whisk in remaining 1/2 cup unheated milk. Gradually whisk
in hot milk and place entire mixture back into the saucepan. Heat,
over medium heat, stirring, until mixture thickens and just starts to
bubble.
Whisk in egg and egg yolk and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Remove
from the heat and whisk in chopped chocolate and butter. When both
are melted, strain pudding through a fine-mesh strainer, and cool.
Cover with plastic and reserve in refrigerator.
To make the Cake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly butter 2 (8-
inch) cake pans and line with parchment. Butter the parchment and
flour pans, shaking out the excess.
Sift together flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
Reserve.
In a mixer with a whip attachment, beat eggs and sugar until thick
and lemon-colored. Beat in vegetable oil. Alternately add dry
ingredients with buttermilk, scraping the bowl once or twice. Add the
coffee and vanilla to form a thin batter. Divide between prepared
cake pans.
Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of a cake comes out
clean, about 40 to 45 minutes. Cool in pan for 15 minutes. Invert
onto cooling racks, peel off paper and cool completely.
When cool, split each cake in half with a serrated slicing knife.
Reserve 1 layer for another use. Spread bottom layer with half of the
reserved Chocolate Pudding. Place second layer on top and spread with
remaining pudding. Top with last cake layer.
To make the Icing: Over a double boiler, melt chocolate with butter.
Remove from heat, whisk in brewed coffee, corn syrup, and vanilla.
Place icing over an ice bath and chill, whisking often until the
mixture is of soft but a spreadable consistency. Working quickly, ice
the sides and top of cake.
In a food processor, pulse the cookies into crumbs. Press the crumbs
onto sides and top of cake.
Serve cake at room temperature. If holding for more than 2 hours,
store in refrigerator for up to 48 hours, but bring to room
temperature before serving.
Serving Suggestion: Blackout cake is meant to be served simply, on
its own. If you want to dress individual plates, perhaps add a
drizzle of fudge sauce and a sprinkle of cocoa powder.
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