Super Yummy Cake!

Well it was my friend Jackie's birthday once again, if you remember last year I made the fabulous 14 layer cake! So I asked her what she would like for dinner and what kind of cake she would like. Her response, "Anything, but not another 14 layer cake. It was good, just too much.", and it was! It is just so sweet and rich that it can be a bit much. She was having a rough month also because her mom had gotten really sick and she was helping tons to take care of her, so I really wanted to make it special. I started to scroll through my recipes that I have stored on the computer and I came across this one. It is a sour cream chocolate cake, with a peanut butter frosting and a chocolate peanut butter glaze. One word, AMAZING! It was perfect for her, her two favorite sweet flavors together. This cake was super easy to make, and very delicious. We ended up eating almost half of it that night, and I forced her to take the rest to share with her family.

This recipe came from the book Sky High: Irresistable triple-layer cakes
by Alisa Huntsman and Peter Wynne

Sour cream-chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting
and chocolate-peanut butter glaze

2 cups all purpose flour
2 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 cup vegetable oil
1 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cup warm water
2 tbsp distilled white vinegar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
Peanut butter frosting
chocolate-peanut butter glaze
1/2 cup chopped peanut brittle

1. preheat the oven to 350. Butter the bottom and sides of the 3 8” round cake pans. Line the bottom of each with a round of parchment or waxed paper and grease the paper.
Sift in the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl. Whisk to combine them well. Add the oil and sour cream and whisk to blend. Gradually beat in the water. Blend the vinegar and vanilla. Whisk in the eggs and beat until well blended. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and be sure the batter is well mixed. Divide among the 3 prepared pans.
Bake for 30-35 min. or until a cake tester comes out clean. Let cool in the pan for about 20 min. Invert onto wire racks, carefully peel off the paper liners, and let cool completely.
To frost the cake, place one layer, flat side up on a cake stand. Spread 2/3 cup of the peanut butter frosting evenly over the top. Repeat with the next layer. Place the last layer on top and frost the top and sides of the cake with the remaining frosting.
To decorate with the chocolate glaze, put the cake plate on a large baking sheet to catch any drips. Simply pour the glaze over the top of the cake, and using an offset spatula, spread it evenly over the top just to the edges so that it runs down the sides of the cake in long drips. Refrigerate, uncovered, for at least 30 min to allow the glaze and frosting to set completely. Remove about 1 hour before serving. Decorate the top with chopped peanut brittle.


peanut butter frosting

10 ounces softened cream cheese
1 stick unsalted butter, room temp
5 cups confectioner’s sugar
2/3 cup smooth peanut butter
In a large bowl with an electric mixer beat the cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy. Gradually add the sugar 1 cup at a time, mixing thoroughly after each addition and scrapping down the sides of the bowl often. Continue to beat on med speed until light and fluffy 3-4 min.
Add the peanut butter and beat until thoroughly blended.

chocolate-peanut butter glaze

8 ounce semisweet chocolate, coursely chopped
3 tbsp smooth peanut butter
2 tbsp light corn syrup
1/2 cup half-half

In the top of a double boiler combine the chocolate, peanut butter, and corn syrup. Cook whisking often, until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth.
Remove from the heat and whisk in the half-half beating until smooth. Use while still warm.