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Peanut Butter and Dark Chocolate Layer Cake, with fleur de sel

Print Recipe
Course Dessert
Keyword cake, chocolate, peanut butter
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes

Ingredients

for the cake

  • 1/4 cup butter softened
  • 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
  • 1 egg
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 2/3 cup buttermilk

for the frosting

  • 5 oz 142 gr unsweetened chocolate
  • 8 Tbspn butter
  • 1 cup + 1 Tbspn 215 gr sugar
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1 tspn vanilla extract
  • flaked finishing salt

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 and grease two four inch round cake pans or one eight inch round. Set aside. Line bottom with parchment circles if desired.
  • Sift together the dry ingredients in a medium size bowl. In another bowl, beat together the butter, peanut butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla and beat until smooth.
  • Add the buttermilk and dry ingredients alternately, beating well after each addition. Pour batter into prepared pan filling it three-quarters full and bake for 25 minutes, or until the sides of the cake begin to pull away from the pan and a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Turn over onto a large plate and let cool while you make the frosting.
  • Make the frosting. Chop the chocolate and butter and set aside.
  • In a saucepan, bring the sugar and heavy cream to a boil over medium heat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 6 minutes. Do not let the saucepan overflow.
  • Remove from heat and stir in the chocolate and butter until melted.
  • Stir in the vanilla extract. Let the frosting cool completely, whisking occasionally during cooling. Once completely cool at room temperature, the frosting will be spreadable. {note: I chilled my frosting in the refrigerator, whisking frequently, to speed up the cooling.}
  • If making a mini layer cake, slice each layer in half horizontally (a good trick, that I did not know about, is to stick toothpicks all around the cake as markers to help you cut evenly). I’ve also read that a cake chilled in the freezer is easier to slice.
  • Frost cake. Sprinkle the frosted cake with finishing salt. Transfer cake to serving plate using a spatula. Turn a beer chalice upside down. Set plate on top.
  • Stay classy.