Black Cocoa Cake

You know how Oreos are not a normal chocolate color? That's because they use black cocoa powder! This stuff is hella dark and earthy. You can buy it on Amazon (surprise; you can buy everything on Amazon), and it will change up some of your favorite recipes. This cake was made for my friend Peter's birthday. It is a black cocoa cake with black cocoa frosting and a white chocolate ganache dyed green to look like slime. This is just a slight departure from my regular chocolate cake, but it does take on a personality of its own. It is a banging cake that would perfect for any monsters in your life. This recipe is enough for three 8-inch round cakes or 24 cupcakes (with a little extra).

For the Cake
2 c granulated sugar
2 1/2 c all-purpose flour
3/4 c cocoa powder
1/4 c black cocoa powder (this cocoa powder doesn't have as much chocolate-y flavor, so  you want to use just a little bit of it)
3/4 c vegetable oil
3 large eggs
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 c buttermilk
1 c hot water

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Grease three 8-inch round pans using goop.
2. Combine sugar and vegetable oil in stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment.
3. Add eggs one at a time until incorporated. Add in vanilla extract as well.
4. In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients.
5. Alternate dry ingredients and buttermilk, incorporating each into the batter before adding more. Start and end with the dry ingredients.
6. Add the hot water *make sure your speed is on the lowest!* to the batter a little at a time. Once all incorporated, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and then turn to medium-high speed and whip for one minute. This batter will look pretty loose, but that's how it should be, so don't worry!
7. Pour batter evenly into cake pans and bake for 18 - 22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
8. Let cool slightly before turning out on a cooling rack to finish cooling completely.

For the Buttercream
3 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 c cocoa powder
1/4 c black cocoa powder
3 c powdered sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla

1. Sift together powdered sugars and cocoa powders in a large bowl.
2. In a stand mixer with paddle attachment, cream butter.
3. Slowly add powdered sugar and cocoa powders to the butter.
4. Add salt and vanilla and mix to incorporate.
5. If it seems too loose, add a bit more cocoa powder; if it seems really tight, you can add a bit of heavy cream or buttermilk to it.
**I did NOT add any food coloring to this, and it was pretty dark. It also gets darker as the buttercream sits.You can add black food coloring if you want to make it midnight black, but I don't really think it's necessary.

For the Ganache
10 oz white chocolate
2/3 c heavy cream
1 1/2 tbsp unsalted butter
A pinch of salt
*optional food coloring of your choice*

1. In a small saucepan, heat heavy cream. *You aren't looking for it to boil; you just want to warm it.
2. In a heat-safe bowl, combine white chocolate and butter (cut your butter into small cubes).
3. Once the heavy cream is warm, pour it on top of your chocolate and cover with plastic wrap for five minutes to help the melting process.
4. Once it's melted, stir to combine. You can add food coloring at this point if you like. The mixture will be pretty runny at first. Give it time to firm up a bit. You want it to still be pourable, but you also don't want it to just slide off the cake.

Assembly
1. Level off your cake layers if needed.
2. Put a dollop of buttercream on your cake stand, and then add your first layer of cake.
3. Cover top of first layer with buttercream and then add second cake layer.
4. Repeat process until all three cake layers are stacked. Cover entire cake in the black buttercream.
5. Once the ganache is cooled to a good consistency, start by pouring in the middle of the top of the cake. I just take a spoon and carefully start to push it to the edge of the cake at various spots to let it drip over the edge. The ganache will continue to harden as the cake sits.

I also want to link you to some Oreo buttercream that is a good alternative to the black cocoa with white chocolate ganache. Full circle, back to the Oreos!