24 layer cake: chocolate indulgence layers filled with chocolate Swiss meringue buttercream and frosted with semi-sweet chocolate ganache
The most extravagant and expensive cake I've ever made, even though it really only has 12 layers of chocolate cake. This one was a bit of a challenge for me! My 24 layer cake is frosted with chocolate Swiss meringue buttercream and covered in a semi-sweet chocolate ganache.
Step by step:
Video
Check out the video down below to see how I assembled it, and if you want to make the exact recipe as I did in the video - it's down below.
Read this before you begin
Measure by weight, if possible.
Measuring by weight is the best way for you to replicate my recipes. I develop recipes using ingredients (even liquids) measured in grams, which is why you see them listed first in the recipe cards. For measurements under 5 grams, I will typically only list the volumetric measurements (teaspoons, etc.), as most home scales are not precise for such small weights.
In most cases, I have converted grams to volumetric measurements (aka US customary units) for bakers who prefer this method. However, the measurements are not as precise and may have awkward proportions. The recipes should still work, but for the ultimate precision, try to use weight.
This is the OXO scale I use daily. I also purchased this budget version of a good scale, which I keep at my Mom’s house for baking. If you’re interested in other tools I use for my baking, I’ve compiled a list here.
Use room temperature ingredients.
All my ingredients should be used at room temperature, or 65-75 °F/18-24 °C. I will always indicate if you need something outside this range. If no details are given, room temperature is the default.
Pay attention to the ingredient descriptions.
I try not to be brand-specific, but I will always note an interesting result from a type of ingredient, be it negative or positive.
A specific note regarding salt: I use Diamond Crystal Kosher salt for everything on this site except for frostings. In frostings, you want the salt to dissolve more easily, and kosher salt tends to leave granules behind. If you substitute table salt (more finely granulated) for recipes that list kosher salt, you must use half the volume indicated in my recipes.
Substitutions are hard.
That’s not to say they’re impossible, though. For instance, in many cases, substituting reduced fat for whole milk (and thus reducing fat by less than 2%) will probably be fine. Using applesauce for oil or even Greek yogurt when sour cream is listed will definitely alter the fat content and adversely affect the crumb texture and density of the cake.
I experiment for hours to get these recipes to work for us. First, try to make them as written or use one of my tested substitutions, which I often dedicate a section to. Then, if necessary, you can make modifications afterward. Even then I would be pretty cautious, as substitutions are one of the hardest things to investigate in recipe development.
Read all the recipe instructions before beginning.
I’m in the “Pre-read the Chapter before Class Lecture” club... and I invite you to join! Baking new recipes can be intimidating, so let’s set you up for success. I want you to think about timeframes. Most fillings and frostings can be made ahead of time, and give you an extra day for mental space. Also, as you become a more proficient baker, you can anticipate and recognize steps. (“Oh, this has a meringue step, so I’ll need an extra clean bowl…” etc.) Ensure you go down the ingredient list and have everything at the right temperature.
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24 Layer Chocolate Cake
Chocolate Indulgence Cake
- 2 1/4 cups (177g) cocoa powder, Dutch-processed*
- 2 cups (456g) water, boiling hot
- 3 cups (639g) brown sugar, either light or dark
- 1 1/2 teaspoons (4g) kosher salt (I use Diamond Crystal)
- 1 1/2 cups (297g) canola oil (or other flavorless kind)
- 3 large (45g) egg yolks
- 6 large (300g) eggs
- 2 1/4 cups (270g) all-purpose flour
- 3 teaspoons (12g) baking powder
Chocolate Swiss Meringue Buttercream
- 1/2 cups (42g) cocoa powder (either Dutch-processed or natural, I use natural for this cake)
- 6 TB (84g) boiling hot water
- 1 1/2 cups (363g) egg whites, fresh
- 3 cups (600g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 3 3/4 cups (849g) unsalted butter, softened to cool room temp
- 1 1/2 teaspoons (3g) kosher salt
Semi-sweet chocolate ganache
- 1 1/4 lbs (566g) of semi-sweet chocolate, chopped (I used chips in my video)
- 2 1/2 cups (595g) heavy cream
- 2 1/2 (35g) tablespoons unsalted butter
Chocolate Indulgence Cake
- 2 1/4 cups (177g) cocoa powder, Dutch-processed*
- 2 cups (456g) water, boiling hot
- 3 cups (639g) brown sugar, either light or dark
- 1 1/2 teaspoons (4g) kosher salt (I use Diamond Crystal)
- 1 1/2 cups (297g) canola oil (or other flavorless kind)
- 3 large (45g) egg yolks
- 6 large (300g) eggs
- 2 1/4 cups (270g) all-purpose flour
- 3 teaspoons (12g) baking powder
Chocolate Swiss Meringue Buttercream
- 1/2 cups (42g) cocoa powder (either Dutch-processed or natural, I use natural for this cake)
- 6 TB (84g) boiling hot water
- 1 1/2 cups (363g) egg whites, fresh
- 3 cups (600g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 3 3/4 cups (849g) unsalted butter, softened to cool room temp
- 1 1/2 teaspoons (3g) kosher salt
Semi-sweet chocolate ganache
- 1 1/4 lbs (566g) of semi-sweet chocolate, chopped (I used chips in my video)
- 2 1/2 cups (595g) heavy cream
- 2 1/2 (35g) tablespoons unsalted butter
Bake the cake:
- Move your oven rack to the middle position. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Butter the insides of three 8" cake pans and line the bottoms with a circle of parchment paper. Dust a very light coating of flour inside the pans.
- In a large mixing bowl add the Dutch-process cocoa and pour boiling water over the cocoa. Use a whisk to stir; you'll get a steaming hot bowl of thick chocolate paste that smells like heaven. Let that sit for 5-10 to allow the chocolate flavor to bloom.
- Add the brown sugar, salt, and oil. Whisk until it forms a thick runny chocolate sauce. The brown sugar granules may not dissolve all the way, but when you stop stirring, the chocolate sauce will settle down in the bowl and look super smooth.
- Add your egg yolk(s) and eggs all at once and whisk for at least 1 minute by hand. It should be completely homogenous and you should see no steaks of egg yolk or whites at the end. You may see some slight bubbles - that's a good sign.
- Sift in your all-purpose flour and baking powder. Use the whisk to stir it in until you see no flour remaining on the sides of the bowl.
- Evenly distribute the batter into the prepared pans.
- Bake for about 35-40 mins or until a skewer inserted in the center comes out with a few crumbs attached. (Start around 30 mins.) If you do not have three pans, you can bake them one after another. Just let the batter sit out at room temp until you're ready to bake it. (If you prefer a fudgier cake, you can experiment with underbaking a minute or two. When the cake cools, it will have the texture more similar to a flourless chocolate cake rather than a spongey layer cake.)
- Move the pans to a cooling rack and allow the cake to cool in the pans completely.
- Loosen the edges of the cakes using an offset spatula or butter knife, and flip the cakes out onto a cooling rack so you can peel off the parchment bottom. Make sure they are completely cool before assembling and/or frosting.
Make the buttercream (can be done ahead of time, store in fridge.)
- In a small bowl stir together the cocoa powder and boiling hot water to create a paste. Set aside.
- Prepare your double boiler. Make sure you can fit your stand mixer (or other heatproof) bowl on the top so that the bottom is exposed to steam but not directly touching the water. Bring the water beneath to a gentle boil.
- To the bowl of your stand mixer (or other heatproof bowl) add egg whites, sugar, and cream of tartar. Mix with a spatula. It will be viscous (pretty gooey) and thick. Place on top of the double boiler and check to make sure that the steam is getting to the bottom of the bowl properly.
- Continuously stir with the spatula. The eggs will thin out, all the sugar will melt, and the mixture will become more opaque. Use a thermometer to make sure you reach 165. Remove from double boiler.
- Place the bowl in a stand mixer fitted with a whisk. Whisk on high speed for 10 minutes until the bowl has cooled to the touch, the meringue has more than tripled in volume, and starts to ball up around the whisk. Set aside to cool completely.
- Add in the butter, one TB chunk at a time. The frosting will lose volume at first, and then start to come together and look and feel little like firm freshly whipped cream, leaving tracks in the frosting.
- Add your salt and chocolate paste from earlier. Stir on low speed until uniform in color and texture.
Make the ganache
- Chop the semi-sweet chocolate and set that aside.
- In a large saucepan, bring the heavy cream to just under a boil. You should just start to see a bit of steam rise. Remove from heat.
- Add in all the chopped chocolate and unsalted butter and let that sit for about 3-5 minutes.
- Use a whisk to stir until the ganache is smooth and uniform in color.
- Let it cool slightly before pouring onto the cake - if you have a thermometer, a good temp is probably in the high 70's (mine was 73F and was too firm.) You can always check by dripping a little ganache down the side of the bowl to check the consistency.
For complete assembly of this cake, please watch the video above.
Recipe Card - Adriana's Notes
*Dutch-processed (European-style) cocoa is slightly darker (or sometimes redder) in color than natural cocoas. It also has a more mellow and smooth chocolate flavor that is necessary for this cake. I tested natural cocoa for this cake, but the result was overly acidic and chalky - you'll have to make sure that your cocoa powder is Dutch-processed. My favorite brand of Dutch-processed cocoa is Droste (Amazon link to Droste here).
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