Father’s Day Chocolate Candies Cake

by | Holidays, Payton's Pastries

     So, this month is my dad’s big 40th birthday party. I love my dad a lot, and I figured that one of the ways I could do something for him this year is make his cake. I know just how much he loves chocolate, so this cake is basically a big mound of chocolate (not just the light, sad kind of chocolate; the thick, rich chocolate that literally makes me want to cry because it is soooooo good), topped with Snicker’s pieces, Hershey kisses, Reese’s cups, and mini KitKat bars.

These recipes are so so good, and I was so happy with how it turned out as far as how it looked. So this cake, consisting of rich chocolate cake, delicious chocolate buttercream, a peanut butter filling that is so so creamy, and some crushed Reese’s pieces as a little crunch layer in the middle, will definitely fulfill your chocolate-loving loved one’s cake dreams.

Let me just say that if you cannot handle rich, thick, scrumptious chocolate that is not at all light, then you might need to look elsewhere for a chocolate cake recipe! This is some serious chocolate we are talking about, so if you are not a fan of the thick stuff, you might as well close this recipe. I got these recipes from all over the place, but I really want to give a shout out to Add a Pinch, where I got the chocolate cake and buttercream recipes. I will definitely be going back to her website for more recipes! But I did do a little tweaking myself, as far as adding even more to this cake.

There is one layer of buttercream, which actually balances out with the cake well, but you will want to make that layer pretty thick in order to achieve the right amount of cake to buttercream ratio. I also added this delicious peanut butter filling to the buttercream layer because if there is anything that my dad loves as far as the cake department goes, it is some good chocolate and peanut butter flavors! I got the peanut butter recipe from the Wilton website. I quickly discovered that it was for a candy filling, but it kinda worked with the cake in a really weird but cool way.

 On top of the peanut butter filling, I crushed some Reese’s pieces and sprinkled those on top of the buttercream layer as well to give some crunch to the cake and to enhance that chocolate/peanut butter flavor. I definitely learned a lot about how to tweak this recipe from how I did it to what might be some better options. So here are those delicious recipes!

Delicious Chocolate Cake Recipe

 

     Ingredients:

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 cups sugar
  • ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon espresso powder
  • 1 cup milk
  • ½ cup vegetable oil
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 cup boiling water

Instructions:

 

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Prepare two 9-inch cake pans by spraying with baking spray or buttering and lightly flouring.
  2. Add flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, salt and espresso powder to a large bowl or to the bowl of a stand mixer. Whisk through to combine or, using your paddle attachment, stir through flour mixture until combined well.
  3. Distribute cake batter evenly between the two prepared cake pans. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until a toothpick or cake tester inserted in the center of the chocolate cake comes out clean.
  4. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for about 10 minutes, remove from the pan and cool completely.

Decadent Buttercream Frosting

 

     Ingredients:

    • 1 ½ cups butter (3 sticks, softened)
    • 1 cup unsweetened cocoa
    • 5 cups confectioner’s sugar
    • ½ cup of milk
    • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
    • ½ teaspoon espresso powder

   Instructions:

 

  • Add cocoa to a large bowl or bowl of a stand mixer. Whisk through to remove any lumps.
  • Cream together butter and cocoa powder until well-combined.
  • Add sugar and milk to cocoa mixture by adding 1 cup of sugar followed by about a tablespoon of milk. After each addition has been combined, turn mixer onto a high speed for about a minute. Repeat until all sugar and milk have been added.
  • Add vanilla extract and espresso powder and combine well.
  • If frosting appears too dry, add more milk, a tablespoon at a time until it reaches the right consistency. If it appears too wet and does not hold its form, add more confectioner’s sugar until it reaches the right consistency.

Wilton’s Peanut Butter Filling Recipe

 

   Ingredients:

  • 1 ½ tablespoons butter
  • ½ cup chunky style peanut butter
  • ¾ cup confectioner’s sugar

 Instructions:

 

  • Cut butter in small pieces and put in small saucepan over low heat.
  • Add peanut butter and stir until melted. Remove from heat.
  • Stir in confectioners’ sugar, blending well, add more confectioners’ sugar, as necessary to form a pliable mass.
  • Cover bowl or pan in plastic and refrigerate.

These recipes were all pretty simple in terms of baking. For the peanut butter filling, if you leave it in the fridge for too long, I would say that it would get hard, since it is technically for a candy filling. When assembling your cake, you will need to spoon it out with a spatula and spread it around. I would also put your Reese’s pieces crumble on in between the buttercream and the filling so that it doesn’t spill out.

 

When I decorated my cake, trust me, there were a lot of wrappers, so I would encourage getting as many unwrapped items as possible to make your life very very easy when decorating. I used some of my leftover frosting after I had covered the whole cake to make a little pile in the middle as kind of a base for the candy to stick to so it would not fall off when I moved it.

 

I would also recommend moving your cake after you ice it onto whatever you are going to display it on and then pile your chocolate on. I started with the larger Snicker’s squares and Reese’s miniature cups and then kind of filled in gaps with the mini KitKat bars and Hershey kisses. I also added some clumps of candy around the bottom of the cake. We also used a cake topper to give the cake some more height.

 

I finished it off with adding little bits of crushed Reese’s pieces around to fill in even more spots where the buttercream was showing. This cake is so fun and easy, and I really enjoyed making it. I hope my dad loves it and that he has a great 40th birthday. I really hope that this chocolate cake will make your chocolate lover’s day so much better!

 

Happy Baking,

                                                                                      Payton

 

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