Black Pearl Layer Cake

Name: Black Pearl Layer Cake
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients: 6 oz bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped; 0.75 cup heavy whipping cream; 1 tsp ground ginger; 0.5 tsp wasabi powder*; 2 tbsp black sesame seeds*; 1 tbsp corn syrup; 2 tbsp butter, room temperature; 1 cup water; 0.5 cup sugar; 5 tbsp matchstick-size strips peeled fresh ginger; 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise; 2 cup boiling water; 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder; 2.75 cup all purpose flour; 2 tsp baking soda; 0.5 tsp baking powder; 0.5 tsp salt; 2.25 cup sugar; 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature; 4 large eggs; 1 tbsp vanilla extract; 2 cup chilled heavy whipping cream; 0.25 cup plus 2 tablespoons powdered sugar; 0.5 tsp vanilla extract; 0.5 tsp ground ginger; 1 Additional black sesame seeds

From the kitchen of Carly

Bittersweet chocolate meets wasabi heat in this striking layer cake, finished with black sesame and candied ginger. The filling gets its edge from fresh ginger and a whisper of wasabi powder, while syrupy ginger strips add sweet, spicy contrast. Dark, sophisticated, unforgettable.

Three layers of tender, ginger-spiked chocolate cake sandwiching a wasabi-dark chocolate ganache studded with black sesame. The trick: steep fresh ginger into the cocoa batter and again in the frosting, then cut it with heat and toasted nuttiness. The wasabi doesn't announce itself; it sharpens the chocolate's edges and makes you come back for another bite.

Prep: n/a
Cook: n/a
Total: n/a
Servings: 4
Difficulty: medium

Ingredients

4 servings

6 ozbittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped
3/4 cupheavy whipping cream
1 tspground ginger
1/2 tspwasabi powder*
2 tbspblack sesame seeds*
1 tbspcorn syrup
2 tbspbutter, room temperature
1 cupwater
1/2 cupsugar
5 tbspmatchstick-size strips peeled fresh ginger
1vanilla bean, split lengthwise
2 cupboiling water
1 cupunsweetened cocoa powder
2 3/4 cupall purpose flour
2 tspbaking soda
1/2 tspbaking powder
1/2 tspsalt
2 1/4 cupsugar
1 cupunsalted butter, room temperature
4 largeeggs
1 tbspvanilla extract
2 cupchilled heavy whipping cream
1/4 cupplus 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
1/2 tspvanilla extract
1/2 tspground ginger
1Additional black sesame seeds

Instructions

Place the chocolate in a medium bowl. In a small pot, bring the cream, ginger, and wasabi to a boil. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate, cover with plastic wrap, and let stand for 15 minutes. Whisk the cream and chocolate together until smooth. In a small bowl, mix the sesame seeds and corn syrup together to coat the seeds; stir this into the chocolate mixture. Cool to lukewarm. Stir in the butter. Cover and let stand at room temperature overnight to set.
In a small saucepan, combine 1 cup of water with the sugar and ginger. Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean into the pan and drop in the bean too. Stir over medium heat until the sugar dissolves. Simmer 2 minutes and pull from the heat. Let stand at room temperature for 1 hour so the flavors meld.
Strain the syrup into a small bowl. Chop the ginger. (Holds 1 day ahead: cover and refrigerate the ginger and syrup in separate containers.)
Bring the oven to 350°F. Butter and flour three 8 inch diameter cake pans with 2 inch high sides. Line the bottoms with parchment paper.
Whisk 2 cups of boiling water with the cocoa powder and the reserved chopped ginger in a medium heatproof bowl. In a large bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together. Using an electric mixer, beat the sugar and butter together in a large bowl until fluffy, around 1 minute. Drop the eggs in 1 at a time, beating to incorporate after each addition. Beat in the vanilla extract. Add the flour mixture in 4 additions alternating with the cocoa mixture in 3 additions, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Divide the batter evenly among the prepared pans and smooth the tops.
Bake the cakes until a tester pushed into the center comes out clean, around 30 minutes. Cool in the pans for 5 minutes. Turn the cakes out onto racks and cool completely. (Cakes hold 1 day ahead: wrap in plastic wrap and store at room temperature.)
Beat the cream in a large bowl until soft peaks form. Add the sugar, vanilla, and ginger. Continue beating until stiff peaks form.
Using a long serrated knife, trim the rounded tops off each cake to create flat surfaces. Place 1 cake layer cut side up on a plate. Brush the top with 1/3 cup of ginger syrup. Spread half of the ganache across the top. Place a second layer cut side up over the first. Brush with another 1/3 cup of syrup and spread with the remaining ganache. Top with the third cake layer. Brush with the remaining syrup. Cover the sides and top with the whipped cream frosting. Shower the top with black sesame seeds. Refrigerate until the ganache sets, around 4 hours. Let stand at room temperature 30 minutes before serving. (Holds 1 day ahead, kept refrigerated.)

Tips from the kitchen

Let the ganache sit overnight at room temperature as written, not in the fridge. Cold ganache gets grainy when you stir it, and the texture won't come back.
When you whisk the boiling water into cocoa and ginger, let it cool in the bowl for a minute before folding into batter. This stops the butter from breaking and keeps the cake tender.
Strain the ginger-vanilla syrup through a fine sieve to catch all the ginger pieces, then set them aside separately. You'll need those chopped pieces stirred into the cocoa batter for texture and flavor.

Variations

Skip the wasabi and add 1/2 teaspoon cayenne to the ganache for a warmer, slower heat that builds on the palate.
Replace black sesame with toasted white sesame and swap the ground ginger for cardamom in the frosting for a spice cabinet shift.
Make it a sheet cake instead of layers. Bake in one 9x13-inch pan for 35 to 40 minutes, then spread ganache and whipped cream on top.

Make ahead and storage

Wrapped tightly, the cake holds for 3 days in the fridge. The ganache can be made 1 day ahead; keep it covered at room temperature. Don't freeze, the ganache will separate.