‘Guittard Chocolate Cookbook’
Amy Guittard’s new cookbook (Chronicle, $25) is filled with stories, tips and decadent recipes from her family’s San Francisco chocolate company. It’s sheer heaven for chocoholics, with recipes for everything from breakfast chocolate (yes, please) to Salted Chocolate Shortbread, Chocolate Banana Blondies and Grandma’s Chocolate Cake, a white chocolate buttercream-festooned extravaganza whose appearance — and taste — belie that humble name.
Among Guittard chef Donald Wressell’s tricks: “Let the cake batter rest for 30 minutes before baking. This allows the leavening to settle down and prevents the fast rise and then fall of the center of the cake in the oven.”
Grandma’s Chocolate Cake
Cake:
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons water
1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons Guittard Cocoa Rouge or Dutch-processed unsweetened cocoa powder
1 3/4 cups plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon baking soda
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons full-fat buttermilk
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Ganache:
2 2/3 cups Guittard Semisweet Chocolate Baking Wafers
1 1/4 cups heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
White chocolate buttercream:
3/4 cup Guittard Choc-Au-Lait Baking Chips or white chocolate
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
3 egg whites, at room temperature
Pinch of salt
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes, at room temperature
1. Cake: Place a rack in the middle of the oven. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Butter two 8-inch round cake pans.
2. In a saucepan, bring water to a boil. Off heat, add cocoa powder. Whisk until smooth; set aside to cool.
3. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, salt and baking soda. With a hand mixer, beat in buttermilk, oil, eggs and vanilla until smooth, 2 minutes. Add cocoa mixture; blend until combined, 30 seconds. Divide batter between cake pans; let rest for 30 minutes at room temperature.
4. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Transfer cakes to a rack to cool for 30 minutes.
5. Line a baking sheet with parchment; sprinkle lightly with sugar. Using a knife, loosen cake sides. Invert a wire rack over the top of the cake pan, carefully flip rack and pan together. Gently shake pan until cake falls out. Invert a second wire rack on the bottom of the cake and flip it right-side up. Repeat with remaining cake. Cool for about 1 hour. Place cakes on prepared baking sheet; refrigerate until completely cold, about 1 hour.
6. Ganache: Put the semisweet chocolate in a medium heatproof bowl. In a medium saucepan, bring cream and corn syrup just to a boil. Pour hot cream mixture over the chocolate. Let stand for 3 minutes, then whisk until melted. Add butter and stir until combined. Pour ganache into a shallow, flat, glass baking dish; cool at room temperature for 1 hour, or until spreadable. (At this point, you can wrap it tightly in plastic and store at room temperature for up to 1 day.)
7. Buttercream: Melt white chocolate chips in a bowl set over, but not touching, simmering water. Stir until completely melted and smooth. Remove bowl. Keep water simmering.
8. Place sugar, egg whites and salt in a second heatproof bowl and set it over the simmering water. Whisk continuously until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is very thin and warm, or until a candy thermometer reads 115 degrees. Transfer mixture to a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whisk on high speed until stiff peaks form, about 5 minutes; reduce speed to low and mix until cool, about 10 minutes. Add vanilla and butter on low speed. Add melted white chocolate in two additions, continuing to blend on low. Increase speed to medium and beat until buttercream is smooth and shiny.
9. Using a serrated knife, cut both cakes in half horizontally, for a total of four layers. Place one layer on a cake platter. Spread with a third of the ganache. Top with the second cake layer; repeat until you have four layers of cake sandwiching three layers of ganache. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
10. Apply a “crumb coat” (or first layer) of buttercream: Spread half the buttercream on the cake top and sides. You’ll see some chocolate crumbs. Chill the cake for 15 minutes to firm. Use remaining buttercream to apply the final coat. Best enjoyed day of, but you can refrigerate this cake in an airtight container up to 1 day.
— Amy Guittard, “Guittard Chocolate Cookbook” (Chronicle, $25)
Other Fall Cookbook Recipes
Burrata With Blood Oranges from ‘NOPI’
Salmon With Cucumber and Mint Fettuccine from ‘Kitchen Gypsy’
Grilled Skirt Steak With Chimichurri from ‘Cooking Like a Master Chef’
Pistachio, Hazelnut and Raspberry Friands from ‘The Violet Bakery Cookbook’
