The Ultimate Birthday Cake

This weekend we had a Birthday in the house! So of course it was a Cook's dream! I love cooking for special occasions. We had a glorious Breakfast. I made German Pancakes with Pineapple on top and a wonderful Cuban Coffee. Yum!! For dinner I made Italian Ricotta Stuffed Shells with Italian Sausage Meat sauce.
And for dessert the Birthday Cake!!! Ahhhh the Birthday cake... It was sublime. It was fantastic. The perfect combination of chocolate, but not too much chocolate. Sweet, but not too sweet. It was the Modern Day version of an Adult "Foodiefied" treat! All I can say is, Yummy.

The Ultimate Birthday Cake

Chocolate Fudge Cake with Cheesecake filling 

topped with a glorious Nutella Buttercream Frosting

Ingredients

Cake:

Chocolate Fudge Cake Mix

2 eggs

2/3 cup Vegetable oil

1 1/2 cups Water

Filling

16 oz cream cheese (softened)

2 eggs

2 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup Sugar

Frosting

1/3 cup milk

1/2 cup Nutella (softened)

2 Tbsp cream cheese (softened)

1 tsp Vanilla

1 1/2 sticks Butter

3 cups Confectioners Sugar

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350°

Prepare / Grease (2) 9 inch cake pans

Prepare and Bake Cake per box directions.

Divide cake batter among (2) 9 inch cake pans evenly.

Remove cakes from oven when touched in middle it bounces back.

Do not turn oven off.

Cool cakes on racks 15 minutes.

Move oven racks, leaving one middle rack, and one lowest rack.

Place an oblong baking pan on lower rack. Fill 1/2 - 3/4 with water.

Clean and dry cake pans.

Prepare/Grease cake pans

Line both cake pans edges with parchment paper.

As seen below

Make Filling:

Combine in a mixing bowl the eggs and sugar.

Add cream cheese.

Whip until smooth.

Add vanilla and combine.

Place one of the cakes into a prepared cake pan.

Top each cake with cream cheese filling. (divide evenly)

Be sure to not let filling fall off sides of cake.

Try to maintain an edge of cake.

Bake @ 350° for precisely 30 mins. No more, no less.

Remove from oven, and cool 15 mins.

Remove from pans, gingerly.

(I turned them out onto my hand then to a plate VERY quickly. If you do this and there is a little damage on one of them, no worries. Use that cake as the bottom cake. Remember you're frosting this bad boy.)

Cool cakes completely. Very important.

Frosting:

Combine in a mixing bowl, the Nutella and the milk.

Beat until smooth. Add cream cheese and butter. Beat until smooth.

Add Vanilla. combine.

Add Confectioners Sugar. Whip until fluffy and smooth.

Frosting the Cake:

**Be sure your cakes are completely cooled. The frosting will melt and slide on warm cakes. Yuck...

On completely cooled cakes:

** I piped frosting along the top edge of the bottom layer. Remember where I said to maintain a cake edge without cream cheese? This is where you pipe or spoon frosting. This edge of frosting is what will keep your top layer in place. I did not frost the whole middle. I only edged it. I didn't want to interrupt the cream cheese filling. I then frosted the cake as usual.

And Voila!! The Ultimate Birthday Cake:

The cake is so beautiful and absolutely delicious..and hey it has Nutella!!! 

Can you really go wrong???

Chocolate Divinity Cupcakes

Have you ever looked at a dessert and thought...it doesn't look like much, 

but when you take a bite...You were wowwed by it's perfection? 

This is that cake! This is that Dessert!

Here we have an unassuming little chocolate cake

Seems innocent enough. 

Looks like a Simple Chocolate Cake with A nice Chocolate Ganache on top.

Right?

Nice enough. looks moist...and yummy chocolaty. 

Bet that Ganache is really good. I love Ganache, don't you?

But wait...what do we have here?

A surprise inside?? Is that Cream oozing out the side??

Can looks be so deceiving?

Let's slice this Lil Cake open... I want to know what's inside now...

WOW !!!

Layers of Pastry cream

and a Cheesecake Layer Too?!?!

Can it be?

This little unassuming cake. All Chocolaty and sweet on the outside and then

 WOW on the inside!

I need a closer look. I need details!

Let's look at the diagram!

Let me get this straight.

A chocolate cake, with a cheesecake layer.

Stuffed with Pastry cream.

And then slathered in Chocolate Ganache??

"How does she do it?" You Ask.

It is so easy you'll be making them before you stop reading this! 

Here we go:

Mini Chocolate Boston Cream Cheesecakes

Ingredients

Chocolate Cake:

Chocolate Cake Mix

3 eggs

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 1/3 cup water

Cheesecake Mixture:

16 oz Cream Cheese Softened

2 eggs

1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp Vanilla

Pastry Cream:

1 cup whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
1 tbsp Butter

7 tbsp Sugar
2 tablespoon cornstarch
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
pinch of salt

Chocolate Ganache

8 oz Dark Chocolate (chopped)

1 cup Heavy cream

2 tbsp Butter

Instructions:

Prepare Pastry cream.

I was always intimidated by Pastry cream, but once I saw this video from Food Wishes Videos, I was fine.

In a Mixing bowl combine eggs, sugar and cornstarch. Set aside.

In a Medium Saucepan on medium high heat, combine milk, cream and butter.

Bring to a boil.

Lower to low heat and add egg mixture.

Whisking constantly, the mixture will thicken.

Whisk for minimum 1 minute.

Remove from heat.

Strain.

Cover mixture and refrigerate for minimum 2 hours.

(this is really important. mixture must be cold and thick for inserting into cake)

Prepare Ganache

In a medium sauce pan place 1 1/2 cups of water.

Top with oven proof bowl.

Add chocolate and cream.

Stir until chocolate melts and cream incorporates.

Once chocolate is incorporated into cream add butter.

Continue to stir until butter has melted into Ganache and the mixture becomes glossy.

Cover bowl and set aside until fully cooled.

Preheat Oven to 350

Grease or Paper Cup the Cupcake tins

(I used a rectangular cupcake pan, so mine are rectangular)

Prepare Cupcakes:

Prepare Chocolate Cake Mix to box ingredients.

Pour 2 tbsp of batter into each muffin tin.

Bake at 350 for 7-8 minutes

Remove from oven and set aside

Leave oven on!

Prepare Cheesecake Mixture

In a mixing bowl beat together eggs and sugar.

Add in cream cheese.

Beat well.

Add vanilla.

Add 2 tbsp of batter into each muffin tin.

Add remaining Chocolate Cake batter evenly divided over top of each cupcake.

Fill each well only 3/4 full.

Place a baking pan half filled with water in lower shelf of the oven

Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes on middle shelf of oven.

Cakes are done when touched top bounces back.

Cool 1 hour on a rack.

Assembly:

Take each cake and slice into cake top on an angle inward.

Continue around cake until you can remove cupcake top. (keep top intact!)

Fill each cupcake well with Pastry cream. (may  use pastry bag or teaspoon)

Top each cake with it's top.

Press top down, gingerly so cream stays intact.

Frost with Ganache.

Refrigerate 1 hour.

Serve! 

Notes:

**Once cakes have set up they can remain out of refrigerator for decent periods of time.

They just need time to set up in fridge. once that happens you are all set.

I so hope you enjoy this recipe. It was alot of fun!

Thank you again Food Wishes video for your Pastry Cream Divinity!!!!