I really should call this Mint Chocolate Cake the “Hot Mess Cake.” Because that’s totally what it looks like until the cake comes out of the oven.
It’s just a whole bunch o’ ingredients dumped unceremoniously into a food processor that magically becomes one of the most delicious, moist, and mouth-watering cakes you’ll ever taste.
Even though The Mother-in-Law wasn’t inspired by author Sally Hepworth’s mother-in-law, my book-inspired recipe for this novel is inspired by my mother-in-law.
A few years ago, I brought a homemade strawberry shortcake to dinner at my parents-in-law’s house. While my MIL dutifully ate a slice of cake, I could tell it wasn’t her favorite dessert. I jokingly said that the next time we visit, I’d bring another dessert for her to try, as long as she made her fantastic manicotti again. Well, Mama-In-Law looked me dead in the eye and said pointedly, “Mommy likes chocolate.”
I chuckled all the way home, but I made sure to bring a MIL-approved dessert on my next visit. Said dessert ended up being this Mint Chocolate Cake.
I first made this decadent cake for Christmas a few years ago, after discovering it on one of my favorite blogs, How Sweet Eats. After a little while, I decided to put a small spin on it by baking it in a Bundt pan instead of a loaf pan ( because Bundt pans = pretty!), and I smothered the entire cake in a mint chocolate ganache made with Andes mint candies.
You know those after-dinner mints? Well, they make little baking chips from them—behold! And they are perfect for throwing into and on top of this cake. My version of the Mint Chocolate Cake is now a staple dessert for holidays, parties, and potlucks I attend throughout the year.
How come? Well, apart from it being so darn delicious, it’s amazingly easy to make. Like I said before, the batter is made in a food processor. *MIND BLOWN*
I hardly ever use my food processor for anything that’s not savory, and when I do, it’s certainly not to make cake batter. I didn’t even know making batter in a food processor was a thing.
But, apparently, it is. And, it’s a game-changer.
The recipe for Mint Chocolate Cake is pretty much fool-proof. It’s going to look like garbage as you’re putting it together – and, not gonna lie, even as you’re pouring the batter into the Bundt pan because it’s super liquid-y. But, it somehow all manages to come together in the oven, and the end result is a beautiful little cake.
The flavor happily reminds me of the Mint Chip Hot Fudge Sundaes I made awhile back. The cake crumb is dark, dense, and fudgy, but the sharp peppermint flavor cuts through all that richness perfectly.
I generously sprinkle the mint chips into the cake batter, so the entire cake is infused with extra minty flavor. The chips mostly melt into the batter, but every now and then you get a little crunch of a chip that refused to blend in with the crowd.
And, the finishing touch: the mint chocolate ganache.
I absolutely love ganache; I don’t think you can go wrong by putting it on most desserts. In fact, I’ve actually salvaged some nigh-ruined cakes with the addition of a simple ganache. It just drapes the cake in a little extra decadence that covers all manner of sins — not that this Mint Chocolate Cake has anything to hide!
Dust the ganached cake with some festive sprinkles or some more mint Andes chips for decoration, and you’ve got yourself a show-stopping cake with very little effort.
This Mint Chocolate Cake is definitely mother-in-law approved, and I bet everyone else in your family will love it, too.
Mint Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
CAKE INGREDIENTS
- 1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened and cut into small pieces
- 2 eggs, at room temperature
- 1/3 cup sour cream
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp peppermint extract
- 1/2 cup boiling water
- 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 3/4 cup Andes mint chocolate chips
- 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
GANACHE INGREDIENTS
- 2/3 cup heavy cream
- 4 oz dark chocolate chips
- 4 oz Andes mint chocolate chips
- 1/2 tsp salt
- sprinkles for decorating (optional)
Instructions
PREP INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat oven to 325F.
- Spray a Bundt pan with baking spray, place the pan on a baking sheet, and set aside.
- Combine the chocolate chips and mint chips in a medium bowl, and toss with the 1 tbsp of flour. Set aside.
- Boil ½ cup of water.
BAKING INSTRUCTIONS
- In a food processor fitted with an S-shaped blade (the standard blade), combine all the flour, baking soda, cocoa powder, sugar, butter, eggs, sour cream, vanilla extract, and peppermint extract. Place the lid on and pulse ingredients a few times to combine, then process for a few seconds until you have a thick, smooth batter.
- Measure out ½ cup of boiling water, hit the “ON” button on the food processor, and stream the boiling water into the chocolate batter using the spout on the lid. Blend mixture until smooth and very liquid-y.
- Remove lid and carefully scrape down the sides of the bowl to dislodge any thick pieces of batter into the liquid. Replace lid and pulse batter a few more times to make sure all ingredients are thoroughly combined.
- Remove bowl from processor stand, remove lid, and fold the floured mint chips and chocolate chips into the batter. The batter will be chunky but liquid-y at this stage.
- Slowly pour the batter into the prepared Bundt pan. Bang the filled pan firmly on the countertop to release any air bubbles, then place pan on the baking sheet and place in the oven.
- Bake cake at 325F for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake (away from the center tube) comes out clean.
- Place Bundt pan on a wire rack. Let cake cool completely before removing it from the pan.
GANACHE INSTRUCTIONS
- Place 4 oz chocolate chips and 4 oz mint chocolate chips in a heat-resistant bowl. Set aside.
- Pour heavy cream and salt into a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
- Remove saucepan from heat and pour the cream over the mint and chocolate chips, jiggling the bowl a little so all chips are covered by the cream. Let stand one minute.
- Use a small rubber spatula to gently stir the chips into the cream until the mixture is thoroughly combined and is smooth and shiny. Cover the ganache with plastic wrap and let cool for about 30 minutes. Ganache should be thick but pourable.
- Pour ganache over cake in desired amount, then garnish with sprinkles. Let ganache harden on cake before serving.
