Hot Cocoa Cake
By America's Test KitchenPublished on October 5, 2014
Time
1 hour, plus 1½ hours chilling
Yield
Serves 12 to 16
Ingredients
Before You Begin
We like to use our Chocolate Layer Cake for this recipe.
Instructions
- Sprinkle gelatin over water in large bowl and let sit until softened, about 5 minutes. Microwave mixture until bubbling around edges and gelatin dissolves, about 30 seconds. Stir in butter, vanilla, and salt until combined. Let mixture cool until just warm to touch, about 5 minutes. Whisk in marshmallow crème until smooth; refrigerate marshmallow filling until firm enough to spread, about 1½ hours.
- Bring 1/2 cup cream and cocoa to simmer in small saucepan over medium-high heat, whisking until smooth. Pour cream mixture over white chocolate chips in small bowl and whisk until melted and smooth. Let white chocolate mixture cool completely, about 30 minutes. Using stand mixer fitted with whisk, whip remaining 1 cup cream with cooled white chocolate mixture on medium-high speed until soft peaks form, 60 to 90 seconds.
- Place 1 cake layer on plate or pedestal. Spread half of filling in even layer over top. Top with second cake layer and remaining filling. Place third cake layer on top. Spread top and sides of cake with even layer of frosting. Arrange marshmallows on top in large mound; dust with extra cocoa. Serve.
for the filling
for the frosting
to assemble
Time
1 hour, plus 1½ hours chillingYield
Serves 12 to 16Ingredients
Ingredients
Ingredients
Why This Recipe Works
UPDATE: This recipe has been slightly reformulated to be more foolproof since its initial publication. The revision you see here was published in May of 2020. Reminiscent of a steaming hot mug of cocoa on a cold winter morning, this rich layer cake gets its name from the combination of chocolate cake and marshmallow filling. To make the filling, we stabilize marshmallow crème with gelatin and then stir in butter and vanilla for creaminess and flavor. For the frosting, we use a combination of cocoa powder and white chocolate chips added to fresh whipped cream. The top of the cake (like the top of your hot chocolate) gets a garnish of marshmallows and a dusting of cocoa.
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