Peanut Butter Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting & Chocolate Ganache
Begin:
Preheat oven to 375.
Prepare three 9-inch baking pans.
Trace and cut parchment paper liners for the bottom of the pan.
Coat the sides and the corner of the pan with solid Crisco and dust with flour.
Soak your cake strips. What is a cake strip? It is the solution to cakes that mound in the middle and make the layers uneven. You soak them in water prior to baking and then wrap them around your cake pans when you are ready to bake the cake.
The Cake:
Sift together in large bowl:
3 C flour
4 t baking powder
1 t baking soda
1 t salt
Combine in second bowl and beat until creamy and smooth:
2/3 C coconut or avocado oil
2/3 C Adam’s Crunchy peanut butter
2 C brown sugar
Add, but don’t overbeat:
4 large eggs
2 C buttermilk
2 t vanilla extract
Add wet ingredients to dry, Stir gently until well-combined, but don’t over-mix.
Pour into baking pan and bake until toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. (Make the frosting while it bakes.)
Cool and remove from baking pan.
The Ganache
When cake is out of pan and frosting is ready, in a large heat-proof bowl, microwave:
1 C heavy cream
1 C quality chocolate chips or chunks
Stir to combine. You may have to zap it a few times, in ten-second intervals, to get a nice pourable consistency.
The Frosting
Cream together:
2 C Adams Crunchy Peanut Butter
1 C softened butter
Add one cup at a time:
6 C powdered sugar
Add in small increments until you get the consistency you want:
2/3+ C heavy cream, room temperature
Assembly
Set your first layer of cake onto your cake stand or plate.
Spread Peanut Butter Frosting on to the top and sides of the cake.
Pour a thin layer of ganache on top of the frosting, avoiding let it spill over the side.
Stack, frost, and ganache the second layer.
Stack, and frost the third layer, taking time on this one to smooth out the sides and top as best you can. If you have time, pop it into the refrigerator now to let the frosting chill. We are going to pour warm ganache over it in a bit and we don’t want it to melt the frosting.
When ready, warm up the remaining ganache. and pour it over the whole cake, allowing drips down the side.
