Have you ever met a cake that fulfilled all your dessert dreams? This 4-layer Bourbon Chocolate Cake is just that. It’s layers of deep, chocolate cake with hints of bourbon, coated with rich chocolate buttercream, chocolate ganache and salty pretzel crunch. Sounds so good right?
While most of our recipes, like our Chocolate S’more Poke Cake, are super easy and simple, this recipe requires a little more time and effort. The extra work is worth it because this recipe is truly one stunner of a dessert. Don’t get us wrong, because this recipe uses our Organic Chocolate Cake Mix and Organic Chocolate Buttercream Frosting, this cake is definitely still easier to put together than most. No need to measure dry ingredients or make your own frosting—we’ve got you covered!
We love baking with our Organic Mixes and Frostings because they’re so easy and the final bakes always taste like they’re from scratch. We already are dreaming of the next time we get to bake this epic chocolate cake!
1 cup (6 ounces) semi-sweet chocolate or chocolate chips
½ cup whipping cream
2 Tbsp bourbon
Pretzel Crunch
2 cups crushed pretzel sticks
¼ cup brown sugar
¼ cup nonfat milk powder
½ cup butter, melted
Directions
For the Cake
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease four 9” or 8” round pans.
In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, water, coffee, and bourbon.
Add cake mix and whisk until smooth, followed by mini chocolate chips.
Divide evenly between pans and bake according to package directions. Set aside and cool completely.
For the Pretzel Crunch
Turn oven to 275 degrees F. Mix together pretzels, brown sugar, milk powder, and melted butter. Spread into an even layer on a baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Let cool completely.
For the Ganache
In a microwave safe bowl or over a double-boiler, melt the chocolate with the cream; whisk in bourbon. Set aside to cool until mixture is the consistency of a thick caramel.
Assembly
Place one cake layer on a plate and cover with chocolate frosting. Repeat with remaining four layers and then cover the entire cake with frosting. Place in the refrigerator for 20 minutes to firm up.
Remove cake from refrigerator and slowly pour ganache over cake. Be careful here – you don’t want to pour too quickly and create a mudslide. Place cake back in the refrigerator for 20 minutes.
Top ganache with pretzel crunch and place in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
Recipe Note
Pro Tips:
If your cake is moving around while frosting, pop it in the fridge for 20 seconds to firm up.
If you’re worried about crumbs in your frosting, cover the entire cake in a thin layer of frosting and place in the refrigerator for 20 minutes. This is called a crumb coat and will seal in the crumbs. Remove from the refrigerator and cover with another layer of frosting.
Make sure you let your ganache cool to the consistency of a thick caramel before pouring, and when you do pour, do so very slowly so you don’t create a mudslide.
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