Throughout this whole week I am trying to post fall- and Halloween-related treats that would be just right for any festive get-togethers you may be attending this weekend. A spiderweb chocolate cake is very, very easy to make. You can simply make any chocolate cake (or really, just any cake) you wish, coat it with a layer of ganache, and before the ganache sets make the spiderweb design. It looks impressive but couldn’t be easier.
All you will need is some powdered sugar, milk, a squeeze bottle (or plastic bag with a small tip cut off) and a toothpick. Combine some powdered sugar with a very small amount of milk to get a consistency that will drizzle but in a relatively thick stream. (For those who decorate with royal icing, you want this to be somewhere between the thickness you would use for piping and for flooding.) Transfer the mixture to a squeeze bottle (a baggie is okay too, but I have better control with a squeeze bottle.) Once the ganache has been smoothed onto the cake, make concentric circles over the ganache with the powdered sugar glaze. Immediately use a toothpick dragged outward from the center to create the web effect, cleaning the toothpick between each line. Let the glaze and ganache set – and that’s it!
A couple of notes – I used Dorie Greenspan’s Almost-Fudge Gateau for this. It is one of my absolute favorite cakes, and seemed just right for this variation. Also, be sure to make your web effect immediately after circling the glaze onto the ganache. I was tending to Andrew for just a minute or two and the glaze had already started to set. I think it still turned out pretty cute though! It would also look infinitely better with a plastic spider from the Halloween aisle, but I didn’t want to buy one just for this and don’t tend to have those hanging around my house. Enjoy!
