Description
A festive and delicious Chocolate Peppermint Cake featuring moist chocolate layers infused with peppermint, layered and frosted with a smooth Peppermint Swiss Meringue Buttercream, perfect for holiday celebrations.
Ingredients
Scale
Chocolate Peppermint Cake:
- 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder, sifted
- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 3/4 cup buttermilk, room temperature
- 3/4 cup hot water or hot coffee
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp peppermint extract (optional)
Peppermint Swiss Meringue Buttercream:
- 6 large egg whites
- 2 cup granulated sugar, lightly packed
- 2 cups unsalted butter, cubed, room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp peppermint extract or more to taste
- Bright white color gel
- 2 Tbsp powdered sugar
- Red color gel
Assembly:
- 1/2 cup crushed candy canes plus more for outside of cake
- Candy cane sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat and Prepare Pans: Preheat your oven to 350F. Grease three 6-inch round baking pans, dust them with cocoa powder, and line the bottoms with parchment paper to prevent sticking.
- Mix Dry Ingredients: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Stir them together to blend evenly.
- Whisk Wet Ingredients: In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the vegetable oil, buttermilk, hot water or coffee (add slowly if very hot to avoid cooking the eggs), eggs, vanilla extract, and optional peppermint extract until well combined.
- Combine Wet and Dry: Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix on medium speed for 2-3 minutes. The batter will be very thin; this is expected for a moist cake.
- Fill and Bake: Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans using a kitchen scale for accuracy. Bake in the preheated oven for 35 minutes or until a cake tester comes out mostly clean.
- Cool Cakes: Let the cakes cool in the pans for 10 minutes. Then invert them onto wire racks and allow them to cool completely.
- Make Swiss Meringue: Combine egg whites and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer. Whisk together and then place the bowl over a hot water bath, whisking constantly until the mixture reaches 160F or is no longer grainy (about 3 minutes).
- Whisk Meringue: Transfer the bowl to your stand mixer and whisk on medium-high until stiff peaks form and the bowl is no longer warm to the touch, approximately 5-10 minutes.
- Add Butter: Switch to the paddle attachment and gradually add the cubed butter, mixing continuously until the buttercream is smooth and creamy. Add vanilla and peppermint extracts, then whip again until fully incorporated.
- Color Buttercream: Remove 1 1/2 cups of buttercream into a separate bowl. Add 2-3 tablespoons powdered sugar and red color gel to create the red buttercream. Use bright white color gel to whiten the remaining frosting if desired.
- Assemble Cake Layers: Place one cake layer on a serving plate. Spread about 2/3 cup of buttercream on top and sprinkle with 1/4 cup crushed candy canes. Repeat with remaining layers.
- Crumb Coat and Chill: Apply a thin crumb coat of frosting around the entire cake to seal in crumbs. Chill the cake for 20 minutes to set the crumb coat.
- Final Frosting and Smoothing: Generously frost the outside of the cake, smoothing with an icing smoother. Use a cake comb on the sides, repeating smoothing and scraping until the surface is smooth.
- Decorate: Pipe red buttercream dollops on top using a 1M piping tip, spaced slightly apart. Pipe smaller white buttercream dollops between the red ones using a 4B tip. Decorate the cake base with crushed candy canes and sprinkles as desired.
Notes
- Ensure egg whites are free of yolks and your mixing bowl and whisk are completely grease-free to achieve stiff meringue.
- If the buttercream appears curdled during mixing, keep beating until it becomes smooth and creamy.
- You can substitute hot coffee for hot water to enhance the chocolate flavor.
- Use a kitchen scale for equal batter distribution to ensure even cake layers.
- The peppermint extract is optional; adjust the amount to your taste preference.
- For a brighter white buttercream, use a bright white food coloring gel to eliminate any yellow tint.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 430 kcal
- Sugar: 38 g
- Sodium: 190 mg
- Fat: 22 g
- Saturated Fat: 13 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 7 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 52 g
- Fiber: 4 g
- Protein: 5 g
- Cholesterol: 70 mg
