Chocolate Whiskey Cake

Chocolate Whiskey Cake
Andrew Scrivani for The New York Times
Total Time
1 hour 25 minutes
Rating
5(3,065)
Comments
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This recipe came to The Times from Marti Buckley Kilpatrick, who adapted it from Dol Miles, the pastry chef at Frank Stitt’s Bottega restaurant in Birmingham, Ala. Ms. Kilpatrick describes the cake as an ugly frog of a confection, but promises that anyone willing to bet a kiss on its excellence would be amply rewarded. The interplay of coffee, black pepper and cloves is subtle but powerful, and results in a deeply flavored, moist confection that comes together quickly. It’s just delicious. —Melissa Clark

Featured in: Thanks for the Holiday Desserts

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Ingredients

Yield:8 to 10 servings
  • 12tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces, more for pan
  • 85grams unsweetened cocoa powder (about ¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons)
  • cups brewed strong coffee
  • ½cup Irish whiskey
  • 200grams granulated sugar (about 1 cup)
  • 156grams light brown sugar (about 1 cup)
  • 240grams all-purpose flour (about 2 cups)
  • 8grams baking soda (about 1 ½ teaspoons)
  • 3grams fine sea salt (about ¾ teaspoon)
  • ¼teaspoon black pepper
  • teaspoon ground cloves
  • 3large eggs
  • 2teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1cup mini semisweet chocolate chips
  • Powdered sugar, for serving (optional)
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (10 servings)

500 calories; 22 grams fat; 13 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 7 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 69 grams carbohydrates; 5 grams dietary fiber; 44 grams sugars; 7 grams protein; 384 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Heat oven to 325 degrees. Butter a 10-inch springform pan. Dust with 2 tablespoons cocoa powder.

  2. Step 2

    In a medium saucepan over low heat, warm coffee, Irish whiskey, 12 tablespoons butter and remaining cocoa powder, whisking occasionally, until butter is melted. Whisk in sugars until dissolved. Remove from heat and cool completely.

  3. Step 3

    In a bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, pepper and cloves. In another bowl, whisk together eggs and vanilla. Slowly whisk egg mixture into chocolate mixture. Add dry ingredients and whisk to combine. Fold in chocolate chips.

  4. Step 4

    Pour batter into prepared pan. Transfer to oven and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center emerges clean, 55 to 65 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack, then remove sides of pan. Dust with powdered sugar before serving, if you like.

Ratings

5 out of 5
3,065 user ratings
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Comments

Is it the best cake I have ever made? Quite possibly. Chocolate cake is not often sophisticated and when it is—flourless or molten—it's more a cliche than an appealing dessert. This cake, however, is swoonable. Is that a word? Chocolate (skip the mini semisweet chips in favor of a rough chop of good bittersweet), coffee, whiskey, cloves, black pepper (be generous with the mill): all speak individually but somehow meld into a deep, balanced flavor. Also? It's moist. Perfection.

Use brandy instead of whiskey for a richer flavor that plays better with the coffee and cloves.

I have made this twice and the first go round not happy with the chocolate chips that sunk to the bottom of the cake and got crunchy. Second time, I followed Scott R's advice to use chopped bittersweet chocolate. That worked great! The cake is so moist that you cannot trust the toothpick test for doneness. I baked the first cake too long. 50 to 55 minutes works well. The second cake I baked ahead for a birthday party. It froze well. Thanks for the great recipe.

Just made this cake according to the recipe, and learning from other comments, didn't turn on the oven until liquids were almost cool. Also, in the end everything goes into that pan you melted stuff in, so start with a big one! I transferred to a large bowl, then there's another bowl for the dry, and yet another for the eggs. Phew! It just came out of the oven, looking done after 50 minutes in a 10-minute inch springform. Hoping friends will come by later to try it!

Where are people finding a 10" springform pan?

I made this tonight, Thursday for a dinner party Saturday night. Will it last, covered, or do I need to freeze it?

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Credits

Adapted from Dol Miles, Bottega, Birmingham, Ala. (Submitted by Marti Buckley Kilpatrick)

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