Victorian Strawberry Chocolate Cake
This stunning and delicious cake is perfect for any romantic occasion. Its rich chocolate flavor is perfectly complemented by the sweetness of the strawberries, and the frosting is simply divine.
This stunning and delicious cake is perfect for any romantic occasion. Its rich chocolate flavor is perfectly complemented by the sweetness of the strawberries, and the frosting is simply divine.
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 4 eggs
- 1/2 cup water
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- frosting:
- icing:
- 2 cups water boiling
- 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- cake layers:
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened
- 2 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 3/4 cups all purpose flour
- 1 cup baking cocoa
- 2 cups shortening 3 cups if necessary
- 32 oz confectioners sugar (1 package)
- 1 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chip
- 1/3 cup heavy whipping cream
- decoration:
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips melted
- 2 packages strawberries fresh
- Carbohydrate 238.623345612732 g
- Cholesterol 403.88818 mg
- Fat 102.987422932518 g
- Fiber 7.80891872126215 g
- Protein 17.677455029505 g
- Saturated Fat 54.6430244774902 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (480g)
- Sodium 1793.7105519031 mg
- Sugar 230.81442689147 g
- Trans Fat 6.37224267925351 g
- Calories 1865 calories
Step-by-step
- In a small bowl, combine water and cocoa until blended and set aside
- In a large bowl, cream butter, sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla.
- Combine the flour, baking powder and baking soda; add to the creamed mixture alternately with cocoa mixture, beating well after each addition
- Preheat oven to 350°F
- Pour into two greased and floured 9-in cake rounds. Bake at 350° for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.
- Remove from oven and let cool in pan 10 minutes then turn out onto cooling racks
- While cakes are cooling, melt the chocolate for dipping and shavings. Dip about 20 strawberries into the melted chocolate and set onto a cookie sheet lined with wax paper. Place the tray in the fridge and allow chocolate to set.
- Take another 20 strawberries, hull, and slice long ways, about 1/8 inch thickness and set aside (this is for the filling)
- On a small plate, lay out wax paper, and make designs with the left over melted chocolate. Use a fork and drip the chocolate onto the wax paper, then place plate in the freezer and allow it to set
- To make the frosting, cream shortening and confectioners' sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy; gradually add water, beating until smooth
- Spread over bottom layer, then cover with the slice strawberries.
- Cover with top cake layer, and then frost the entire cake, Set aside to set, about 30 minutes.
- For icing, heat chocolate chips and cream in a small saucepan over medium heat until chocolate is melted, stirring occasionally. Spread over frosted cake until smooth. Refrigerate until set
- Before serving, arrange two rows of sliced strawberries on top of cake. Fill center with chocolate shavings and dust with confectioners' sugar if desired
- Place dipped strawberries around base. Store in the refrigerator
Replacing standard shortening with European-style butter containing at least 82 percent fat fundamentally shifts the density of this crumb, yielding a richer mouthfeel at the expense of structural height. Understanding how this pastry behaves across multiple days requires looking closely at moisture migration between the crumb and the sugar-heavy frosting.
Managing The Starch Retrogradation Over Time
Staling occurs primarily as gelatinized starches recrystallize inside the refrigerator. Containing significant amounts of sucrose and dairy fat, this specific cake resists rapid staling because sugar molecules bind free water molecules, effectively slowing down moisture loss. Wrapping individual leftover slices tightly in polyethylene film limits exposure to circulating refrigerator air, preserving the crumb softness for up to seventy-two hours.Structuring The Fat Phase For Stability
Creaming room-temperature butter with granulated sugar incorporates microscopic air cells that expand under the influence of baking powder and baking soda during baking. Over-beating introduces too much air, which collapses later, whereas under-beating yields a dense, compact crumb. Precise creaming relies on checking visual cues: the mixture should transition from a yellowish paste to a pale, voluminous ribbon that holds its shape against the side of the bowl.Handling Chocolate Ganache And Glazes
Melting semisweet chocolate chips alongside heavy cream requires indirect heat to prevent scorching the milk solids. Maintaining a gentle simmer on medium-low ensures the cocoa butter emulsifies smoothly with the dairy lipids. Letting this ganache cool to precisely ninety degrees Fahrenheit before pouring achieves a glossy coating that flows evenly without melting the underlying buttercream layer.
