Cakes are traditionally used to celebrate birthdays and other important events. The art of decorating cakes has been practiced and perfected for hundreds of years, but in recent times it is becoming more and more interesting and creative. The volcano cake recipe allows you to create a unique dessert. Preparation is also fun, as you can use dry ice to reproduce the smoke.
Ingrediants
Mud Cake
- 1 cup (230 g) of butter
- 200 g of chopped dark chocolate
- 2 cups (450 g) of sugar
- ½ cup (60 g) of cocoa powder
- 300 ml of hot strong coffee
- 1 tablespoon (15 ml) of vanilla extract
- 3 large eggs
- 2 cups (250 g) of all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon (4 g) of baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons (8 g) of baking soda
- ½ teaspoon (3 g) of salt
Chocolate and Butter Cream Glaze
- 2 cups (450g) of softened salted butter
- 2 tablespoons (30 ml) of vanilla extract
- 8 cups (1 kg) of powdered sugar
- 1 1/2 cups (180 g) of cocoa powder
- 2-4 tablespoons (30-60 ml) of milk
Lava Effect Gelatin
- ½ cup (120 ml) of cold water
- ½ cup (60 g) of cornstarch
- 1 cup (250 ml) of light corn syrup
- Red food coloring
Steps
Part 1 of 3: Prepare the Cake and Icing
Step 1. Get everything you need
To make a volcano cake you will need several tools, including 3 greased pans: one with a diameter of 25 cm, one with a diameter of 20 cm and one with a diameter of 15 cm. The mud cake is one of the most suitable cakes for this recipe, as it is less fragile than the sponge cake and keeps its shape better. To prepare the volcano cake you will also need:
- Oven preheated to 180 ° C;
- Small saucepan and medium glass bowl;
- Large bowl;
- Whip;
- Electric hand mixer;
- Rubber spatula or spoon;
- 3 cooling grids;
- Round cookie mold, with a diameter of about 8 cm;
- Knife;
- Frosting spatula;
- Plastic shot glass;
- Plier;
- Dry ice and water.
Step 2. Melt the butter and chocolate
Fill the bottom of the saucepan with about 3 cm of water. Fit the glass bowl on the edges of the pot, making sure it does not come into contact with water. Put the butter and chocolate in it. Heat them over medium heat.
Beat the butter and chocolate as they melt, then beat them vigorously for about 30 seconds until they are evenly blended
Step 3. Incorporate the sugar and cocoa
Remove the pot from the heat and place the bowl on a heat-resistant surface. Add the sugar and cocoa, then whisk the mixture to mix all the ingredients well.
Make sure there are no lumps in the dough and beat it until smooth and homogeneous
Step 4. Add the wet ingredients
Take hot coffee and pour in a third of it at a time. Beat it with the other ingredients until well incorporated before adding more. When you add the last third, it also incorporates the vanilla extract. Finally, add one egg at a time. Beat each egg well with the ingredients in the bowl before incorporating another.
Adding one ingredient at a time helps to obtain a smooth and moist batter, as this mode allows you to incorporate larger quantities of air into it
Step 5. Mix the dry ingredients
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Beat for about 30 seconds to remove lumps and incorporate air into the ingredients.
Incorporating air helps to obtain a soft and not very dense cake
Step 6. Mix the chocolate mixture with the dry ingredients
Insert the whips of the electric mixer into the bowl of dry ingredients. Set it to low and slowly pour the chocolate mixture into the bowl. After a minute has passed, set it to medium-high power and whisk for 60 seconds.
Turn off the mixer after 60 seconds. Collect the batter residue from the sides of the bowl using a rubber spatula, then beat it again for another 30 seconds on medium speed
Step 7. Bake the cakes
Divide the batter between 3 greased pans, filling each about ¾. The mud cake does not have the same leavening as a normal cake, so it is possible to fill the trays a little more. Bake for 35-40 minutes.
To understand if the cakes are ready, stick a toothpick in the center of the cakes: it should come out clean or with some crumbs
Step 8. Cool the cakes
Take them out of the oven and let them rest in the pans for 10 minutes. Then, transfer them to the cooling grids. Let them cool completely before stacking and glazing the cake.
Cakes should be glazed at room temperature, otherwise the glaze will melt
Step 9. Make the icing
In a medium bowl, mix the butter, vanilla, powdered sugar, cocoa powder, and 2 tablespoons (30 ml) of milk. Blend them with an electric hand mixer for 3-4 minutes, until the icing is soft, creamy and smooth.
- If the glaze is excessively thick and thick, add a third tablespoon of milk and whisk for another minute. If necessary, you can add a quarter tablespoon of milk.
- Once ready, the glaze will be soft and easy to spread.
Part 2 of 3: Prepare the Volcano
Step 1. Make a lava hole
Take the smaller cake (the one with a diameter of 15 cm) and place the cookie pan in the center of the cake. Press it as hard as you can, then rotate it as you lift it. This will remove the central part of the cake.
The hole in the center of the cake will be used to create the magma reservoir and to insert the shot glass, which contains the dry ice
Step 2. Stack the cakes
Place the 25cm diameter cake on a plate or tray. Cover the top of the cake with a generous and homogeneous layer of butter cream icing with the help of a special spatula. Arrange the medium cake (the one with a diameter of 20 cm) on top of the first cake, placing it in the center. Spread a layer of frosting on the medium cake.
Finally, place the smaller cake on top of the medium one, making sure that the hole in the center of the cake coincides with the central part of the volcano
Step 3. File the sides
Since the cakes have different diameters, the volcano would have a jagged surface if it were glazed directly. To make it smooth, file it on the sides with a knife, creating a smooth transition between the layers.
After the procedure, the cake should have a smooth conical shape, but without the tip
Part 3 of 3: Decorate the cake
Step 1. Prepare the jelly
This substance is often used as an edible glue to make sweets. However, in this recipe it will be used to create the volcano's lava. In a saucepan, beat the corn starch and water until you get a smooth, lump-free mixture. Once the solution has become homogeneous, stir in the corn syrup by whisking it. Bring it to a boil over medium heat, stirring regularly. Boil it for 2 or 3 minutes: it will take on the consistency of a jelly.
- Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in 10 drops of red food coloring. If necessary, add another 10 drops. Remember that the jelly should turn a deep, vibrant red.
- Set the jelly aside to cool.
Step 2. Roll out the first layer of icing
Cover the entire external surface of the cake with a generous layer of icing with the help of a special spatula. Smear the icing into a smooth, even layer, then smooth it out with the spatula.
Put the cake in the fridge for an hour for the icing to solidify. The first layer of icing allows you to cover and fix the crumbs, making sure that the final layer is smooth and homogeneous
Step 3. Icing the cake
Once the first layer has solidified, remove the cake from the fridge. Roll out a second layer, making sure to distribute it evenly over the entire cake. Since this is a volcano cake, the icing does not need to be perfectly smooth.
To create greater definition, make vertical curved lines on the icing using the end of the handle of a knife. This way you can reproduce the jagged and irregular lines typical of rocks
Step 4. Add the lava
Pour the red jelly into the hole in the center of the top cake. If the reservoir becomes full, it lets the excess gelatine flow over the outer surface of the volcano, just as if it were lava.
If you don't have enough gelatin to fill the tank, sprinkle lava on the sides of the cake with a spoon
Step 5. Turn on dry ice before serving the cake
Just before serving the cake, fill the shot glass halfway with dry ice using tongs. So put it in the center of the magma reservoir. Pour in enough boiling water to create smoke.
