When the my boyfriend’s father was asked what type of birthday cake he wanted, he said, “It doesn’t matter, but make it with plenty of nuts.” The boyfriend’s father is health conscious and a martial arts instructor. He looks excellent for his age, because he’s always exercising, reading health-related books and playing music. Ask him any health-related question, and he has an answer. Such as repeatedly telling us how nuts are good for {blush} men’s reproductive health, and he explains why without the crass. The decision to make him a Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake — with plenty of nuts — was easy.
Compared to Pink Patisserie’s Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake, my version is sloppy sweet. Pink Patisserie’s sweet cake is neatly planned. Did I mention, my cake was kinda last minute? That’s the beauty of this chocolate cake recipe. The cake is made in one bowl sans the fancy equipment. The Peanut Butter Mousse is whipped until it’s light and fluffy with fresh cream. The cake is topped with dark chocolate ganache and plenty of nuts.
Besides adding plenty of nuts, what would make a Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake healthy? Dark chocolate has plenty of vitamin C. Milk chocolate has calcium and vitamin D. This recipe is sans butter (I personally don’t have any problems with butter). There’s a scattering of wheat flour. It’s sweeten with low-glycemic coconut sugar instead of white sugar. The filling is made with protein-rich peanut butter. I know… the nutritional information just provided in this paragraph raises eyebrows, because health experts know sugar is still sugar. Still, a slice of Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake makes everyone happy, and being in that state of mind is considered good for the health.
The boyfriend’s healthy father’s face brighten with joy when presented with a Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake topped with plenty of nuts and candles. He took the leftovers home to enjoy another slice the next morning with coffee. He also called to thank me for his birthday cake, which was made with plenty of love.
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp. + ½ cup coconut oil; plus more for greasing the baking dish
- 1-cup whole milk
- 1-1/4 cup all purpose unbleached white flour
- ¾ cup whole wheat flour
- ¾ cup cocoa powder
- 1-½ tsp. baking powder
- 1-½ tsp. baking soda
- 2 cups coconut sugar
- 1 tsp. sea salt
- 2 eggs; room temperature
- 1 tbsp. vanilla
- 1 cup boiling dark roast coffee
- One recipe for Peanut Butter Mousse (see recipe below)
- Double the recipe for chocolate ganache (see recipe here)
- Garnish with at least 1 cup lightly chopped nuts (A mix of peanuts, almonds and hazelnuts)
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a baking dish (13" x 9") with 1 tbsp. coconut oil and sprinkle with flour. Set aside.
- Place a large sifter over a large bowl. Add white flour, whole wheat flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and baking soda to the sifter. Sift dry ingredients over the large bowl. Toss in the coconut sugar and sea salt. Make a well in the center of the bowl. Place aside.
- In another bowl, whisk milk, eggs, vanilla and 1/2 cup coconut oil.
- Using a spatula, mix in the wet ingredients in the dry, sifted ingredients. Add the boiling coffee and scrape down the edges of the bowl. Do not over mix. The batter will be thin.
- Pour the chocolate batter -- while scraping the the edges of the bowl -- in the baking dish.
- Place baking dish in the oven to bake for about 35 to 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean (It's okay if a few crumbs appear on the toothpick).
- Remove baking dish from the oven and completely cool over a wire rack.
- Evenly cut baking sheet in half. If the top is rounded, cut off the top with a knife to evenly flatten it (use excess pieces with coffee).
- Place half the cake on a cake stand or plate.
- Frost the top layer with peanut butter frosting.
- Place the second half of the cake over the peanut butter mousse.
- Frost the second half of the cake with the peanut butter mousse.
- Pour/Drizzle the chocolate ganache on top of the whole cake and let it drip to the sides.
- Garnish with plenty of nuts.
Adjusted from Pink Patisserie's Peanut Butter Filling recipe here.
Ingredients
- 1-1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
- 3/4 cup organic heavy cream
- 1 tbsp. confectioners sugar
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
Directions
- Place peanut butter in the bowl of a mixer. Using the wire whisk attachment, beat until light and fluffy.
- Place cream, confectioner’s sugar, and vanilla in another bowl. Using a mini beater, whip cream until light airy.
- Scoop whip cream into the same bowl as the peanut butter. Whip for about one minute or until the cream is mixed in with the peanut butter.
- Set aside until ready to use.
Notes
The original recipe uses more sugar, but since the peanut butter is sweetened, less was used. Adjust the sweetness to your personal taste.
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Hi, Elisabeth! Peanut butter goes straight to a guy’s heart! I haven’t tried making the peanut butter mousse with yogurt, but Something Swanky food blog makes a similar recipe with full fat, Greek yogurt here. Let me know how it turns out. Thanks for visiting MyLifeRunsOnFood.com.
This recipe looks PERFECT for my boyfriend who eats peanut butter with a spoon. Do you think I could substitute full fat greek yogurt for the heavy cream?
This cake looks exactly like a dream! You did that, have mercy!
Chocolate + Peanut Butter Mousse (Say What?!?) + Chocolate Ganache + Plenty of Nuts = Heaven in my book. This combination brings my household together in perfect harmony. Everyone gets their favorite. Your descriptions and photos will haunt me until I present this for dessert. I can only imagine a slice for brekkie with a cup of coffee. WINNER!