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If you’re looking for something, say…less funfetti-pastel-swirl-sprinkle-coated for your next adult party, this deeply chocolatey and espresso gilded beauty might be exactly what you want. No baby-pink sparkles, here. Just an ultra rich and barely sweet cake with a whisper of luxurious frosting. Happy birthday, indeed.–Jenny Latreille
CAN I MAKE FROSTING IN A FOOD PROCESSOR?
Yes. In fact, don’t even think about using a stand mixer, handheld mixer, whisk, or spoon to make the espresso frosting. It needs to be a food processor. And make sure to keep it running for the required amount of time.
Sour Cream Mocha Cake
This sour cream mocha cake is a knockout. Made with unsweetened chocolate and instant espresso, it’s wicked dense, intense, chocolatey, and easy to toss together from ingredients you already have at home with an espresso frosting that’s as light as the cake is dense. A very “adult” dessert.
Ingredients
For the mocha cake
- 4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, grated
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for the pans
- 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 5 teaspoons instant espresso granules, dissolved in 1 cup of hot water
- 1/2 cup sour cream, not fat-free
- 1/4 cup (2 oz) unsalted butter, melted, plus more for the pans
- 1/4 cup mild vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon chocolate extract, or omit and up the vanilla to 1 tablespoon
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature, beaten
For the espresso frosting
- 1/4 cup instant espresso granules, dissolved in 5 tablespoons of cold water
- 1 stick (4 oz) stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 1/4 cups confectioners’ sugar
- 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons heavy cream
Instructions
Make the sour cream mocha cake
- Crank the oven to 350°F (175°C) and adjust the oven rack to the middle position. Butter two 8-inch (20-cm) cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment paper. Butter and flour the paper, tapping out any excess flour.
- Melt the chocolate, either in a microwave on medium or in a pot set over another pot filled with an inch of simmering water. (Make sure no water splashes into the chocolate or it’ll become grainy. And then you’ll become grouchy.) Remove from the heat to cool until just warm.
- Meanwhile, dump the sugar, flour, baking soda, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment.
- In a bowl, whisk together the hot espresso, sour cream, oil, butter, and vanilla and chocolate extracts. Pour the espresso mixture into the flour mixture in the stand mixer and mix on low until just blended, about 30 seconds.
- Slowly drizzle in the beaten eggs and mix on medium until smooth. Scrape in the melted chocolate and beat until the batter is uniform in color, about 15 seconds. The batter will be thin but that’s how it should be.
- Divide the batter evenly between the 2 pans and bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until a tester comes out clean. Move the cakes to a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes. Run a sharp knife around the edge of each cake and invert them onto another rack to cool completely.
Make the espresso frosting
- Dissolve the espresso granules in the water.
- Pour the espresso mixture into a food processor and add the butter, sugar, and heavy cream. Process until it becomes light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. The frosting will initially look curdled and destroyed. And then just when you’re about to lose all faith, everything will come together beautifully. Swear.
☞ TESTER TIP: You simply must use a food processor for the frosting. Seriously. Or the frosting won’t come together.
Assemble the cake
- Place 1 cake on a cake stand or serving plate. Frost the top and then stack the second cake on top. Frost the top and sides. Devour immediately.
Notes
Decaf Sour Cream Mocha Cake variation
If you’re sensitive to caffeine, you may get a subtle buzz from this cake. Rather than risk a sleepless night if you tend to eat a late dessert, simply make the recipe with decaffeinated espresso. The intense mocha flavor won’t be affected in the least.
An LC Original
View More Original RecipesNutrition
Serving: 1 sliceCalories: 501 kcalCarbohydrates: 65 gProtein: 5 gFat: 27 gSaturated Fat: 17 gTrans Fat: 1 gCholesterol: 77 mgSodium: 194 mgFiber: 2 gSugar: 46 g
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Tried this recipe?Mention @leitesculinaria or tag #leitesculinaria!
Recipe © 1999 David Leite. Photo © 2019 David Leite. All rights reserved.
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Frosting fiasco LOL but I will remake soon and this time borrow my mom’s food processor. But the flavor of the frosting is so good regardless. I ended up using an easier “spur of the moment” frosting made from 1 1/2 sticks butter, 2 cups powdered sugar, and 2 (what was left of my expresso powder) tbsp expresso powder mixed with 2 tbsp heavy cream. The cake is too die for, so moist and so flavorful and my frosting was good too. My parents and husband loved the cake. I can’t wait to make it again and then take it to my mom’s house to use her food processor so that I can hopefully remake the frosting.
Way to persevere, Regine! I am so proud of you! And yes, I agree, frosting is soooo good. I’m one of those people who oft leave some cake on the plate but practically lick it clean of frosting. Thanks for sharing your experiences with us. Can’t wait to hear about the next recipe you make from the site…
Ah. I did not follow SassyMC’s instructions well because my icing is a mess. LOL. I ended up using a blender which removed the curdling (I admit my butter was not soft enough and I added liquids too fast) but it then became 100% liquid. I now have it in fridge to harden it and I can hopefully rewhip in mixer. If it fails I will either borrow my mom’s food processor or redo SassyMC’s way. All this is my fault for not following instructions to the T.
Ooooooh sorry to hear it, Regine. Yeah, unfortunately, sometimes instructions are pretty precise and need to be followed. We’re thinking of you with fingers crossed and breath held. Kindly let us know how it goes!
I only tried the frosting from this recipe as wanted to make one different from my butter cream with cream cheese recipe. I prepared it in my Ninja food processor and it was as you said, curdled looking at first but then smoothed out. My problem was it was too runny so I added about another 1/2 cup powdered sugar and it was still runny, so refrigerated it and it became too hard to spread. Do you need to refrigerate this frosting after processing to get it to a spreadable consistency?
Dixie, thanks for writing. This is my recipe. I suspect the problem was the food processor. The Ninja has two mini blades, neither of which are on the bottom of the bowl. And you don’t need to refrigerate the frosting because it will harden, as you experienced. Also, did you use the correct amount of frosting ingredients? You’re essentially making a whip cream frosting enriched with butter.
One more question. Do I have to refrigerate cake.
Regine, no, I never refrigerate the cake. But if you want to, you can. Just take it out of the fridge about 2 hours before serving.