Mocha Cake with Chocolate Crown
- Butter and flour, for pans
- 1 1/3 cups hot water
- 1/2 cup instant coffee crystals
- 1 box (18.25-ounces) devil's food cake mix
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 3 eggs
- 1/4 cup instant coffee crystals
- 2 tablespoons hot water
- 1 container (8-ounces) frozen whipped topping, thawed
- 1 container (16-ounces) classic chocolate fudge frosting
- Parchment paper
- 1 package (12-ounces) semisweet chocolate morsels, plus more for decorating
- 1 1/2 cups white morsels
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Cake Preparation: Butter and flour 2 (8-inch) round cake pans; set aside.
- Stir hot water and coffee crystals in large bowl until crystals dissolve.
- Add cake mix, oil, and eggs to coffee mixture.
- With an electric mixer, beat for 2 minutes, or until well blended.
- Divide batter between prepared pans.
- Bake for 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean.
- Cool cakes in pans on cooling racks for 15 minutes.
- Invert cakes onto cooling racks and cool completely.
- Filling and Frosting Preparation: Stir coffee crystals and hot water in medium bowl until crystals dissolve.
- Refrigerate for 30 minutes, or until cold.
- Fold whipped topping into cold coffee mixture.
- Then stir in chocolate fudge frosting just until blended; chill in the refrigerator.
- (This is the mocha cream.)
- Cut each cake horizontally in half.
- Place top cake layer, cut side up, on a serving platter.
- Spread 1 cup mocha cream atop cake.
- Top with bottom cake layer, cut side down.
- Spread 1 cup of mocha cream over second cake layer.
- Repeat layering with third cake layer and mocha cream.
- Top with remaining cake layer, cut side down.
- Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Evenly spread the remaining mocha cream onto the cake until completely covered.
- Return to refrigerator.
- Chocolate Crown Preparation: Draw 3 (6-inch) high crown designs over 3 (15-inch) long sheets of parchment paper.
- Cut out designs from parchment papers.
- Lay each crown parchment template on a large baking sheet.
- Melt chocolate morsels in a glass bowl in the microwave for 2 1/2 minutes, stirring every 30 seconds, until melted and smooth.
- Repeat with white morsels.
- Using an off-set spatula, spread melted chocolate thickly over 1 side of 2 of the crown templates.
- Repeat with melted white morsels and remaining crown template.
- Arrange additional chocolate morsels decoratively on white crown.
- Refrigerate for 30 minutes, or until chocolate is set.
- Wrap 1 chocolate template around half of cake; carefully peel off paper.
- Wrap second chocolate crown around remaining half of cake; carefully peel off paper.
- Seal ends of crowns with a knife dipped in very hot water.
- Refrigerate cake until chocolate crown is completely firm.
- Wrap white crown, paper side inward, around a 5-inch bowl.
- Refrigerate until white crown is completely firm.
- Carefully peel paper from white crown.
- Place white crown atop cake.
butter, water, instant coffee crystals, cake mix, vegetable oil, eggs, instant coffee crystals, water, frozen whipped topping, frosting, paper, chocolate, white morsels
Taken from www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/sandra-lee/mocha-cake-with-chocolate-crown-recipe.html (may not work)