Well, Thanksgiving is over. If you’re lucky like me, you got a five-day break. And chances are that you’re back to work on Monday. And if you’re like me, you’re pretty mopey about it. Let’s have a moment of silence, shall we?
All right, down to business. On Thanksgiving, it was just me and my boyfriend, so I made a super delicious feast for two. Even with that relatively small amount of food, the leftovers fed us well through the weekend. One thing I did not make, however, was pumpkin pie. Or pecan pie. Or any pie at all. My boyfriend’s birthday happened to fall on the day before Thanksgiving this year, and if you’ve followed me for a while, you’ll know that he always requests the most insanely decadent cakes for his birthday. This year was clearly no exception. After one sliver each of this cake on Wednesday night, we both agreed to scrap the Thanksgiving pie. There was simply no need! Not only would it just be downright gluttonous to have both, but mere pumpkin pie just couldn’t possibly measure up to this masterpiece.
This quadruple-threat starts with a layer of rich, dense devil’s food cake. Bittersweet, to anchor the sweetness of the rest of the cake. Then, a layer of creamy cheesecake with a light vanilla flavor and a hint of molasses. Third, a thin but powerful layer of chocolate chip cookie dough. Yes, straight up cookie dough. It’s eggless, of course, so it can be eaten safely. Again, the molasses comes through with the distinct brown sugar flavor of raw cookie dough. Finally, the whole thing is frosted with a light cocoa-molasses buttercream. I decorated it simply with a chocolate chip border and my boyfriend’s first initial.
This may seem like an overwhelming mix of flavors, but there’s a delicate balancing act going on here. The buttercream and the cookie dough layer are both sweet, but they’re balanced by the slight tartness of the cheesecake and the bittersweet cake layer. The flavors of molasses and chocolate tie everything together: chocolate in the cake, the chips in the cookie dough, and the cocoa in the frosting; molasses in the cheesecake, brown sugar in the cake and cookie dough, and molasses in the buttercream. It all works! If you’re looking for a super impressive and mind-blowingly delicious cake for your next celebration, this is the one.
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Devil’s Food Cake Cheesecake
Adapted from Sprinkle Bakes
Serves 15-18 (1 8-inch cake)
Devil’s Food Cake Layer:
- 1 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped evenly
- ¼ cup plus 2 Tablespoons unsweetened dark cocoa powder
- ½ cup hot water
- 2 teaspoons espresso powder
- 1 egg
- 1 egg yolk
- 2 tablespoons nonfat greek yogurt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
- ¾ cup light brown sugar, tightly packed
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8-inch cake pan with baking spray or butter and line with a circle of parchment paper. Grease paper and set pan aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the chocolate, cocoa, hot water, and espresso powder until smooth. Set aside.
- In another bowl, whisk the eggs, yolks, greek yogurt, half the chocolate mixture and vanilla until just combined.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the flour, brown sugar, baking soda and salt on low for 30 seconds. Add the softened butter and the remaining chocolate mixture. Mix on low speed until the dry ingredients are moistened. Raise the speed to medium and beat for 30 seconds. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- With the mixer off between additions, add the egg mixture in two parts, starting on medium-low speed and gradually increasing to medium. Beat on medium speed for 45 seconds after each addition to incorporate the ingredients and strengthen the structure. The batter will be slightly fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Using a silicone spatula, scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the surface evenly with a small offset spatula.
- Bake for 30-40 minutes (check at 30). Cake is does when a toothpick tester comes out clean and the cake springs back when pressed in the middle. Let the baked cake cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then turn cake out onto a wire rack. Let cool completely.
Cheesecake Layer:
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
- ½ cup sugar
- 2 8oz. packages cream cheese, softened
- 2 eggs
- 1.5 oz. (or ¼ cup plus 2 teaspoons) cook and serve vanilla pudding mix
- 2 tablespoons molasses (regular molasses, not black strap)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease one 8-inch springform pan with baking spray or butter, line the pan with parchment and then grease the parchment. Set aside.
- Cream butter and sugar in a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Add cream cheese a little at a time until smooth. Scrape bowl down and beat again on medium speed, adding eggs one at a time. Add vanilla pudding mix, molasses, vanilla and baking powder; mix again until well combined.
- Pour batter into prepared pan. Smooth batter with offset spatula and bake for 55 minutes to 1 hour. Cheesecake will puff up during baking, then deflate when taken out. Allow cheesecake to cool in pan. Place in freezer until needed for assembly.
Cookie Dough Layer:
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅓ cup plus 2 tablespoons light brown sugar, packed
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup unsalted butter, melted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup chocolate chips (bittersweet or semisweet)
- 2 tablespoons milk
- Line an 8-inch spring-form pan with parchment paper.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, stir together flour, salt, brown sugar and granulated sugar. Pour in butter and vanilla extract. Mix until a dry dough forms. Add chocolate chips and mix on lowest speed.
- When chocolate chips are evenly dispersed, add milk 1 tablespoon at a time with the machine on low speed. Remove dough from mixer bowl and press into the prepared springform pan. Place in freezer until ready for cake assembly.
Chocolate-Molasses Buttercream:
- 1½ cups (24 tablespoons or 3 sticks) unsalted butter
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons molasses
- 1 tablespoon cocoa powder (regular, not dark)
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- Combine butter and powdered sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer. Beat on low until just combined, then beat on high until mixture is thoroughly incorporated. Stop mixer and add vanilla, molasses, cocoa powder and salt. Beat on high speed until light and fluffy.
- Scrape down bowl and beat again until no streaks of molasses remain.
Assembly:
Make sure each layer is thoroughly chilled before assembly. The cheesecake and cookie dough layers will be easiest to work with when completely frozen (I froze them overnight). Also, make sure to level your cake and cheesecake layers with a serrated knife before assembly so you have a nice level cake.
- Start by lining the edges of your serving platter with foil or parchment paper to keep the platter clean while you frost the cake. Place a dollop of frosting in the center of the platter to keep the cake in place. Place the cake layer down in the center of the platter.
- Place another dollop of frosting in the center of the cake layer. Spread it out with an offset spatula until it’s even and about a half-inch from the edge of the cake.
- Place the cheesecake layer on top of the cake layer. Repeat the frosting step again.
- Place the cookie dough layer on top of the cheesecake layer. From this point, work quickly, as the cookie dough will become soft and hard to frost. I chose to frost the top, but you can also leave it unfrosted and just frost the sides—completely up to you.
- Optional: Once the cake is completely coated, run your offset spatula under hot water and use it to smooth the sides and top of the cake. Decorate simply with a border of chocolate chips as I did, or use any extra frosting to pipe flourishes on the top and at the base.
- Remove parchment paper or foil. Chill before serving, and keep any remaining cake covered and chilled. Keeps well in the fridge for several days.
