How to Make Chocolate Popcorn Cake

This cake probably sounds crazy but OMG! It was sooooo good!

A rich chocolate cake covered in a luscious frosting and topped off with rich chocolate ganache and spicy popcorn.

This cake is sweet, salty, spicy, buttery and crunchy! 😀

Ingredients

• • 1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 2 cups granulated sugar
  • 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • 1 cup strong coffee (freshly brewed)
  • 1/2 cup light olive oil
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tbsp vanilla extract

• • 1/4 cup unsalted butter
  • 1/4 cup shortening
  • 2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 3 cups powdered sugar
  • 1/3 cup whole milk or heavy cream
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract

• • 8 ounces semi sweet chocolate (good quality)
  • 1 cup heavy cream

• Freshly popped popcorn
• 1 tsp chill powder
• 1 tsp paprkia
• Wilton’s edible red spray

Instructions

1. 1. Sift flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Dump it all in a mixing bowl and keep aside.
   2. In another bowl, add eggs, oil, buttermilk, coffee and vanilla extract. Mix everything thoroughly.
   3. Now, add this wet mixture into your sifted, dry mixture and mix everything again.
   4. Pour this batter into 2 greased/floured round cake pans (Dimensions: 8×2).
   5. Bake at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

1. 1. Melt butter in the microwave.
   2. In your mixer, add melted butter and shortening. Mix until they are both combined.
   3. Add cocoa powder and mix again.
   4. Now, start adding powdered sugar and milk alternately. Keep mixing until everything is thoroughly combined.
   5. Finally, add vanilla extract and mix everything one final time.
   6. Notes
   7. If you feel that this frosting is too thick, you can thin it out by adding a little milk or heavy cream… Only 1 tsp at a time.
   8. If you feel that this frosting is too thin, you can thicken it by adding some more powdered sugar…Only 1 tbsp at a time.

1. 1. Chop up the chocolate into small pieces and place it in a heat-proof bowl.
   2. Heat heavy cream in a saucepan, making sure not to over-boil it.
   3. Pour this hot heavy cream over your chopped up chocolate.
   4. Use a whisk to mix everything until you have a smooth, glossy mixture.
   5. Allow the ganache to cool down and thicken a little before applying it on top of your cake.

1. 1. Prepare your salted, buttered popcorn the way you normally do, and dump it all in a big deep bowl.
   2. Sprinkle chilli powder and paprkia on your popcorn and mix everything with a big spoon.
   3. Just spray these popcorns with red spray but don’t overdo it. It’s nice to see shades of yellow (from the butter) and red (from the spray).
   4. Notes
   5. You can adjust the amount of chill powder and paprika, based on the level of spice you can handle OR you can omit it completely if you can’t handle spices too well.

1. Once your cakes have cooled down, fill them and frost them completely with chocolate buttercream.
2. Use a spatula to make a diagonal pattern on the cake.
3. Pour some ganache on top of the cake and use a spoon to spread it out and let it pour down the side of the cake slightly.
4. Place this cake in the fridge and when you are ready to serve, toss some spicy buttery popcorn on the top.
5. Note
6. If you toss the popcorn on top of this cake in advance, they will become soggy and yucky! So, only put popcorn on top of the cake, just prior to serving! ?

I hope you enjoyed this recipe and try it out.

Happy caking everyone 🙂