My birthday was a week ago yesterday, and I decided that this year I wanted to make my own birthday cake. Ben very sweetly offered to bake a cake for me, but it likely would have been from a box. Of course I would have been very appreciative and been happy to eat it, but we both knew that I could bake something better and let’s face it, I would have way more fun making it myself too. Then it was just a matter of deciding what type of cake I wanted to make. Oh, how I agonized over this decision…so many options, both new ideas and old. I finally decided to try something new. I’ve been on kind of a butterscotch kick lately so this sounded fantastic.
This is basically just butterscotch blondies baked in small cake pans instead of a 9×13″ pan, and topped with butterscotch and dark chocolate ganaches. It was phenomenal! It definitely has the dense texture of a blondie or brownie rather than a cake, and it was very rich. The mini cake size ended up being just perfect because even a small piece was very filling. Once again, I had issues with the chocolate ganache because I used a different recipe than my usual (don’t ask why I keep doing this – I really have no good reason). It tasted fine but didn’t have the smooth finish that I love. Oh well, the cake was gone in no time so no one seemed to care ;) I have changed the ganache to my favorite recipe below so that you won’t have the same problems I did. The butterscotch ganache recipe makes more than you need so either make a half batch, or just save the rest for topping ice cream…or really anything!
Butterscotch Brownie Cake
Ingredients:
For the butterscotch brownie cake:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 3/4 cups packed light brown sugar
1 tbsp. vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 (11 oz.) package butterscotch chips, divided
For the butterscotch ganache:
3/4 cup butterscotch chips
6 tbsp. heavy whipping cream
3 tbsp. unsalted butter
For the chocolate ganache:
4 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tbsp. sugar
2 tbsp. water
Extra butterscotch chips, for garnish
Directions:
To make the cake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour the sides of two 5-inch round cake pans, and line the bottoms with parchment paper. In a medium mixing bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the butter, sugar and vanilla. Beat on medium speed until creamy. Scrape down the bowl and mix in the eggs until well incorporated. Gradually beat in the flour mixture on low speed just until combined. Stir in 1 cup of butterscotch chips with a rubber spatula.
Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans. Sprinkle with the remaining butterscotch chips. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Transfer the pans to a wire cooling rack and allow to cool completely before carefully removing from the pans.
To make the butterscotch ganache, combine the cream and the butter in a small saucepan. Warm over medium-high heat until the mixture is almost boiling. Place the butterscotch chips in a small, heatproof bowl. Pour the cream mixture over the butterscotch chips and allow to sit for 30 seconds. Stir until smooth.
To make the chocolate ganache, place the chopped chocolate in a small bowl. Bring the cream, sugar and water to a boil, then pour the liquid over the chocolate and let sit for 30 seconds. Gently whisk the mixture together until smooth. Leave the glaze to sit until it thickens a bit to your desired consistency.
To assemble the cake, place one of the cake layers on a wire rack with a sheet of wax paper. Drizzle butterscotch ganache over the top so that it drips over the edges of the cake. Drizzle with a small amount of chocolate ganache as well. Lay the remaining cake layer on top of the first and top with remaining chocolate ganache so that it drips over the edges. Decorate with extra butterscotch chips, if desired. Transfer the cake to a serving platter.
Source: adapted from Bakerella, cake adapted from Very Best Baking, chocolate ganache from Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan
