Raspberry Dark Chocolate Ganache Cake Entirely inspired by PF Chang’s ‘Great Wall of Chocolate’, I set out on my own little adventure to satisfy my Dad’s ravenous sweet tooth (not to mention his 59th birthday wish). I had so much fun baking this cake because it is the first dessert in a long, long time that I made using original ‘full fat’ ingredients. My family is usually subject to all my healthy experiments in the kitchen (both, good and bad) and so this time I promised my dad that everything would be made the traditional way. My only complaint about this recipe is the texture of the cake. Somehow the cake was a little on the dry side. As I made the batter, I could tell that it was a little thick and ‘dough-ey’, so I added some milk and oil to the batter which made it a little better.. but still not quite there.. If you have any tips on making the cake more ‘moist’ (cringe), please send them my way 🙂 I am not much of a baker but this rich, creamy ganache has inspired me. I hope it does the same to you! What you’ll need… For the cake – 4 oz unsweetened chocolate chunks – 1.5 cups flour – 3 eggs – 2.5 tsp baking powder – 1.5 cups sugar – 1.5 cups milk – 1.5 sticks unsalted butter – dash of vanilla extract – pinch of salt – 1/4 cup vegetable oil For the raspberry jam – 1 box of fresh raspberries – 1 cup of sugar (less if raspberries are naturally sweet) – pinch of lemon zest For the Ganache frosting – 20 oz dark chocolate chunks or chips – 2 cups heavy cream Put it together.. For the cake.. – Pre heat your oven to 350 degrees and grease cake pans – Melt unsweetened chocolate in the microwave for 2 minutes, or until fully melted. Set aside to cool – Beat together the butter and sugar using a hand held mixer until combined – Add in the eggs, melted chocolate, vanilla, flour, salt, baking powder, milk, and oil – Mix until batter starts to thicken – Pour into cake pan and bake for 25-30 minutes (or until your wooden pick comes out clean) For the Raspberry Jam – Heat raspberries (save a few for cake decoration) and sugar in a saucepan until they are both combined and a jam-like consistency is reached For the ganache – In a pot, bring heavy cream to a boil (this boils very quickly so make sure you keep an eye on it at all times) – Pour boiling heavy cream over dark chocolate chunks in a large bowl and begin to mix until combined – Set aside to cool * Once cake is ready and cool, use a long piece of thread to slice it in half. Wrap thread around the circumference of the cake and gently allow thread to cut through the cake * Pour a generous layer of raspberry jam on the layer. I had a lot of extra ganache so I went ahead and poured a layer of ganache as well (everyone loves extra chocolate!) * Place the top layer and pour the remainder of the ganache evenly on the top and the sides. Don’t worry if the ganache is a little runny.. It will set perfectly once left in the refrigerator for an hour * Decorate with raspberries and enjoy! Happy Birthday to the best dad in the world!! ❤