Mocha Buttercream And Mocha Pastry Cream Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter three 8-inch round cake pans (2 inches deep), and line with parchment cut to fit. Butter parchment, and dust with cocoa, tapping out excess. Sift cocoa, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt into the bowl of a mixer. Beat with mixer on low speed until just combined.
• Raise speed to medium, and add eggs, buttermilk, water, oil, and vanilla. Beat until smooth, about 3 minutes.
• Divide batter evenly among pans. Bake until cakes are set and a toothpick inserted into the centers comes out clean, 37 to 39 minutes. Let cool in pans set on wire racks for 15 minutes. Invert pans to remove cakes. Transfer cakes, right side up, to wire racks. Let cool completely.
• Assemble the cake: Trim tops of cakes using a serrated knife to create even surfaces. Place 1 cake on a cake stand or a large round platter. Transfer half the mocha buttercream to a pastry bag fitted with a 1/8-inch plain round tip. Pipe buttercream around edge of cake to create a dam. Spread 1 cup mocha pastry cream over top of cake inside dam using a small offset or rubber spatula. Top with 1 cake, and repeat to cover top with buttercream and pastry cream. Top with remaining cake.
• Spread a thin layer of buttercream (about 1 cup) on stacked cake to seal in crumbs, starting at the top and then frosting the sides, using a large offset spatula (this is called a crumb coat). Use spatula to smooth surface as much as possible. Refrigerate, uncovered, for at least 1 hour.
• Transfer remaining buttercream to pastry bag. Apply another (thicker) layer of buttercream (about 2 cups), starting at the top and then frosting the sides using a large offset spatula. Smooth top with spatula, then smooth sides with a bench scraper. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
• Mound truffles onto center of cake. Sprinkle sugar pearls onto cake around truffles.

Steps:

• Beat whipping cream and sugar together in mixing bowl until stiff. Dissolve coffee granules in boiling water. Cool. Add to whipped cream and beat in. Makes enough to frost and fill one 8 or 9 inch 2 layer cake. Keep Mocha Cream refrigerated.

Steps:

• Prepare an ice bath; set aside. In a small bowl, combine the espresso powder and hot water, and stir until dissolved; set aside. In a medium bowl, combine the whole eggs, egg yolks, and 1 cup sugar. Whisk to combine.
• In a medium saucepan, combine the milk, vanilla seeds, cornstarch, salt, and remaining cup of sugar. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, whisking constantly. Remove from the heat; slowly pour about a third of the hot milk mixture into the egg mixture, whisking constantly until combined. Pour egg mixture back into the remaining milk, whisking constantly. Return saucepan to medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, whisking constantly, until mixture is thick enough to hold a trail when you drag a wooden spoon through it, about 3 minutes.
• Whisk in butter, one piece at a time. Whisk in chopped chocolate and espresso mixture; continue whisking until smooth and combined. Strain the mixture into a large, heatproof bowl. Cover with plastic wrap, pressing it directly onto the surface to prevent a skin from forming. Place in the ice bath until completely chilled, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use, up to 3 days.

Steps:

• Make buttercream, and set aside. In the top of a double boiler or in a heat-proof bowl set over simmering water, melt chocolate, stirring with a rubber spatula until smooth. Allow chocolate to cool to room temperature.
• Dissolve espresso powder in 1 teaspoon hot water. Stir espresso mixture and cooled chocolate into buttercream. Beat until thoroughly incorporated. Use immediately.

Steps:

• Place a rack in middle of oven; preheat to 325°. Lightly butter three 8"-diameter cake pans and line bottoms with parchment paper rounds. Toast 2 cups (250 g) raw walnuts in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet, tossing halfway through, until golden brown, 12-14 minutes. Let cool. Set aside 1 cup walnuts for serving.
• Meanwhile, cook ¾ cup (1½ sticks) unsalted butter in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring often, until it foams, then browns, 6-8 minutes. Remove from heat and immediately stir in ½ cup plus 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil or refined coconut oil, melted. Set brown butter mixture aside.
• Pulse remaining 1 cup toasted walnuts in a food processor until coarsely ground (it should be the texture of panko). Transfer to a large bowl and whisk in 2 cups (250 g) all-purpose flour, 2¼ tsp. baking powder, 1 tsp. Diamond Crystal or ½ tsp. Morton kosher salt, and ½ tsp. baking soda.
• Process 4 large eggs, 1¼ cups (250 g) sugar, 2 tsp. vanilla extract, and 1 tsp. instant espresso powder in food processor (no need to clean bowl) until mixture is lightened in color and thickened, about 30 seconds. Stir 2 Tbsp. whole milk into reserved brown butter mixture. With motor running, gradually stream brown butter mixture into egg mixture and process until combined. Add dry ingredients and process just until a smooth batter forms. Divide batter among prepared pans.
• Bake cakes, rotating pans front to back after 15 minutes, until puffed and just starting to pull away from the sides of pans and a tester inserted in the centers comes out clean, 20-22 minutes. Transfer pans to wire racks and let cakes cool 15 minutes. Run a small knife around edges of each cake to release from pan if needed. Turn out cakes onto racks and remove parchment paper; discard. Turn cakes right side up and let cool completely.
• Combine 8 large egg whites, 2¼ cups (450 g) sugar, ¾ tsp. Diamond Crystal or ½ tsp. Morton kosher salt, and ¼ tsp. cream of tartar in the bowl of a stand mixer. Set over a medium saucepan filled with 1½" of simmering water (bowl should not touch water). Heat, stirring and scraping often with a heatproof rubber spatula, until sugar is dissolved and an instant-read thermometer registers 185°, 10-15 minutes.
• Fit bowl onto stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment and beat, starting on low speed and gradually increasing to high, until meringue is shiny and stiff, 8-10 minutes. Beat in 1 tsp. vanilla extract.
• With mixer on medium speed, add 3 cups (6 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature, cut into pieces, a piece at a time, mixing until incorporated before adding more. Once all the butter has been added, increase speed to high and beat 1 minute. Transfer buttercream in bowl to refrigerator and chill 30 minutes.
• Fit bowl with buttercream back onto stand mixer and add ¼ cup (21 g) unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted if needed, and 2 tsp. instant espresso powder. Beat on medium-low speed, scraping down sides as needed, until combined.
• Using a large serrated knife and long sawing strokes, remove tops of cakes to level if needed. Place a cake layer, right side up, on a cake stand or large plate. Using an offset spatula, spread ¼ cup buttercream over cake, working all the way to the edges. Place second cake layer, right side up, on top; spread another ¼ cup buttercream over cake, working all the way to the edges. Place third cake layer, cut side down, on top, and press lightly to adhere. Spread top and sides of cake with ½ cup buttercream in a thin, even layer. Chill, uncovered, at least 1 hour and up to 12 hours. (If chilling cake longer than 1 hour, cover remaining buttercream in bowl and chill. Bring to room temperature and beat again before using.)

Steps:

• In your mixer, beat the softened butter with the powdered sugar until it is creamy.
• Add in the cocoa powder, vanilla extract & coffee.
• Beat with the mixer until it's nice and fluffy (about a minute or 2)
• This makes a perfectly spreadable frosting. The nice thing about it is that you can put it in the fridge to make it a little more firm if you would like.

Steps:

• In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring sugar and water to a boil. Continue to boil until syrup reaches soft-ball stage, 238 degrees on a candy thermometer.
• Meanwhile, beat egg whites on low speed until foamy. Add cream of tartar, and beat on medium high until stiff but not dry.
• With mixer running, pour syrup into egg whites in a steady stream and beat on high speed until steam is no longer visible, about 3 minutes. Add butter bit by bit. After all the butter has been added, beat for 3 to 5 minutes, until smooth and spreadable. If the icing looks curdled at any point during the beating process, don't panic: keep beating and it will smooth out.
• Melt and cool chocolate. Stir into the beaten buttercream, along with the instant-espresso granules dissolved in hot water.

Steps:

• Melt chocolate in a double boiler or a metal bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water, stirring. Cool.
• Combine egg whites and salt in a large bowl.
• Stir together sugar and water in a small heavy saucepan and bring to a boil over moderately high heat, washing down side of pan with a pastry brush dipped in water. When syrup reaches boil, start beating whites with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until frothy, then beat at medium speed until whites just hold soft peaks. (Do not beat again until sugar syrup is ready.)
• Meanwhile, put candy thermometer into sugar syrup and continue boiling until syrup reaches 238-242°F. Immediately remove from heat and pour into a heatproof 1-cup glass measure. Slowly pour hot syrup in a thin stream down side of bowl into egg whites, beating constantly at high speed. Beat, scraping down bowl with a rubber spatula, until meringue is cool to the touch, about 6 minutes. (It's important that meringue is properly cooled before proceeding.)
• With mixer at medium speed, gradually add butter 1 piece at a time, beating well after each addition until incorporated. (If meringue is too warm and buttercream looks soupy after some of butter is added, briefly chill bottom of bowl in a large bowl filled with ice water for a few seconds before continuing to beat in remaining butter.) Continue beating until buttercream is smooth. (Mixture may look curdled before all butter is added but will come back together before beating is finished.) Add vanilla, chocolate, and coffee mixture and beat 1 minute more.

Steps:

• Bring 1 3/4 cups sugar and water to a boil in a 3-quart heavy saucepan over medium heat, stirring until sugar has dissolved, then wash down any sugar crystals from side of pan with a pastry brush dipped in cold water. Boil, without stirring, until it registers 220 to 225°F, 15 to 20 minutes.
• At this point, while continuing to boil syrup, beat whites with espresso powder, vanilla, cream of tartar, and salt in mixer at medium speed until they just hold soft peaks. Add remaining 1/4 cup sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating, and beat until whites just hold stiff peaks.
• When syrup reaches soft-ball stage (238 to 242°F), immediately pour syrup in a slow stream down side of bowl into whites (avoid beaters) while beating at high speed. Beat until completely cool, 25 to 30 minutes. With mixer at medium speed, add butter 1 tablespoon at a time, beating well after each addition (see cooks' note, below) and until buttercream is smooth. (Mixture may look curdled before all butter is added but will come together at end.)
• Transfer 2 cups buttercream to a small bowl and stir in chocolate. If buttercreams are too soft to spread, chill, stirring occasionally.

Steps:

• Make the mocha buttercream: Combine espresso powder and hot water in a small bowl; stir until espresso dissolves. Heat egg whites and sugar in a heatproof bowl of a mixer set over a pan of simmering water, whisking until whites are warm to the touch and sugar dissolves, 2 to 3 minutes. (Mixture should feel smooth when rubbed between 2 fingers.) Whisk egg-white mixture with a mixer on medium-high speed until stiff, glossy peaks form and mixture cools completely, about 10 minutes.
• Reduce speed to medium-low. Add butter, a few tablespoons at a time, whisking well after each addition. Switch to the paddle attachment, and reduce speed to low. Beat in espresso mixture and melted chocolate until smooth, then beat to reduce air bubbles, 3 to 5 minutes. Cover with plastic wrap, and let stand at room temperature until ready to use.
• Make the mocha pastry cream: Prepare an ice-water bath. Combine espresso powder and hot water in a small bowl; stir until espresso dissolves. Whisk eggs, egg yolks, and 1/4 cup sugar in medium bowl.
• Bring remaining 1/4 cup sugar, the milk, vanilla seeds, cornstarch, and 1/4 teaspoon salt to a boil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, whisking constantly. Remove from heat, and gradually whisk one-third of hot-milk mixture into egg mixture. Whisk entire mixture back into saucepan. Raise heat to medium-high, and bring to a boil, whisking constantly. Cook, continuing to whisk, until mixture is thick enough to hold its shape when lifted with a spoon, about 3 minutes.
• Remove from heat. Whisk in butter, 1 piece at a time. Whisk in espresso mixture and chopped chocolate until smooth. Strain mixture through a fine sieve into a bowl. Cover with parchment or plastic wrap, pressing it directly on surface to prevent a skin from forming. Transfer to ice-water bath; let stand until cooled, about 30 minutes. Refrigerate until chilled and firm, at least 2 hours.