Chocolate gateau - this is a sinfully delicious chocolate cake layered with a chocolate-heavy cream filling.
Making a chocolate gateau cake is easier than you might think. It looks impressive, but the cakes are easy to make (the best chocolate cakes ever, by the way), and the filling is made with only heavy cream and two sorts of chocolate.
Reader comment - Sunny: "Back here again and (you can refer to my comment back in 2018 as proof) this is really the best chocolate cake ever!! Going to be baking this for maybe the 5th time - for me, that’s a lot - for my dad’s birthday this week".
It is also my favorite chocolate cake, together with this Chocolate Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting.
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Ingredients for the cake
Coffee: You will not taste the coffee instead, but it's a key ingredient. When added to the batter, coffee boosts the chocolate taste of baked goods.
Cocoa powder: Make sure it is the unsweetened kind used for baking and not drinking cocoa.
Buttermilk: It helps leaven the cake, makes it tender, and adds flavor.
Oil: I am a big fan of baking cakes with oil; it makes them incredibly moist and helps keep them fresh for a bit longer.
Ingredients for the filling
Chocolate: Buy good brands to make the filling, and only the kind of chocolate you would enjoy eating. There is so much of it in the filling that you can taste the chocolate itself, so it has to be something good.
How to make a chocolate gateau?
How to make chocolate cream?
You will have to make the filling one day in advance, as it needs time to set in the fridge.
- Chop the chocolate very finely (1).
- Pour the heavy cream into a small pot, slowly bring it to a boil, take off the heat, and add the chocolate to the cream.
- Stir slowly until the chocolate has melted (2).
- Place a piece of plastic foil directly over the cream (so that it doesn't form a “skin”), let the mixture get cold, and then place it in the fridge until the next day (3).
- When ready to use (the next day), whisk the cream mixture until stiff with an electric mixer, just as you would normally whisk heavy cream.
How to make the cake layers?
- Preparations: Preheat the oven to 180°C/ 360°F. Butter and flour 2 springforms or cake pans of 20 cm/8-inch diameter.
- Brew one cup of strong coffee.
- Mix and sift the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl (4).
- Combine buttermilk, oil, eggs, and vanilla extract, preferably in a jug or in another bowl (5).
- Pour this mixture slowly over the dry ingredients, whisking with an electric mixer at a very low speed (7).
- Add the hot coffee and stir with a spatula very shortly until the ingredients are just combined. Make sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl.
- Divide the mixture into two equal parts (I use the scale to make sure I divide the mixture evenly) and pour into the two prepared forms (8).
- Bake for about 40-45 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out relatively clean. It can still be a bit wet, but it should not be covered in chocolate.
- Cool in the pan for a while, then transfer the chocolate cakes to wire racks and let cool completely.
How to assemble the chocolate gateau?
- Cut each cake into two equal slices (9).
- Whisk the chocolate-heavy cream mixture until stiff with the electric mixer like you typically whisk the cream (10).
- Place one cake layer on a platter. Add some chocolate cream, the second cake layer, and so on (11).
- Cover with the remaining chocolate cream; you should use about half of it for layering the cake and half for covering the whole cake (See Expert Tips to learn about the parchment paper you see in the picture).
- Decorate the cake to your liking. I used dried strawberries and meringues crushed between my fingers, chopped pistachios, and hazelnut brittle.
This recipe is part of the Harry Potter series; my interpretation of the chocolate gateau Ron Wesley stuffs his face with in the 6th book of the series. Try Harry's Pumpkin Pasties or Hagrid's Rock Cakes, too.
Tips
Always use a digital kitchen scale in baking; it guarantees the best results (the Amazon affiliate link opens in a new tab).
Don't be tempted to add sugar to the filling, even if you might think it could be sweeter. The cake itself is sweet enough so that the filling should not be sweeter than it already is.
Make in advance: Both chocolate cream and chocolate gateau can be made one day in advance.
- Let the cakes cool on a wire rack, wrap them tightly in plastic foil to prevent them from drying out, and refrigerate them until the next day.
- If it's not too warm, you can also keep them at room temperature until the next day; just make sure you wrap them well.
Parchment paper: Use two pieces of parchment paper to cover the serving platter to keep it clean while filling and decorating the chocolate gateau.
- Cut two pieces of paper and place them on the platter, overlapping them a little. Once you've finished filling and decoration, pull them out carefully and gently so that the cake stays put on the platter. This saves you the more difficult task of transferring the cake to a clean platter.
Chocolate Gateau
Equipment
- 2 springforms or cake pans of 20 cm/8-inch diameter
Ingredients
Chocolate cream filling:
- 500 ml heavy cream 2 cups
- 100 g milk chocolate 3.5 oz, Note 2
- 100 g dark chocolate 70 - 75 % cocoa 3.5 oz
Chocolate cake:
- 210 g all-purpose flour 7.5 oz/ 1 ¾ cups
- 400 g granulated sugar 14 oz/ 2 cups
- 85 g unsweetened cocoa powder 3 oz/ ¾ cups
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 250 ml buttermilk 8.5 fl.oz/ 1 cup
- 120 ml vegetable oil 4 oz/ ½ cup
- 2 eggs large
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 250 ml hot coffee 8.5 fl.oz/ 1 cup
Decoration (optional, you can decorate as you like):
- dried strawberries
- meringues
- chopped pistachios
Instructions
Chocolate cream filling:
- Start one day in advance by making the filling.
- Ganache: Chop the chocolate very finely. Pour the heavy cream into a small pot, carefully bring to a boil, take off the heat, and add the chocolate to the cream. Stir slowly until the chocolate has melted. Place a piece of plastic foil directly over the chocolate cream (so that it doesn't form a "skin"), let the mixture cool completely, then place it in the fridge until the next day.100 g milk chocolate/ 3.5 oz + 100 g dark chocolate 70 - 75 % cocoa/ 3.5 oz + 500 ml heavy cream/ 2 cups
Chocolate cake:
- You could bake the cakes one day in advance as well. Let them cool completely, then wrap them tightly in plastic foil to prevent them from drying out.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F/ 180°C. Butter and flour 2 springforms or cake pans of 20 cm/8-inch diameter. Brew one cup of strong coffee.
- Dry ingredients: In a large bowl, mix and sift the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.210 g all-purpose flour/ 1¾ cups + 400 g granulated sugar/ 2 cups + 85 g unsweetened cocoa powder/ ¾ cup + 2 teaspoons baking soda + 1 teaspoons baking powder + ½ teaspoon salt
- Wet ingredients: Combine the buttermilk, oil, eggs, and vanilla extract, preferably in a jug or another bowl. Slowly pour this mixture over the dry ingredients, whisking with an electric mixer at a very low speed.250 ml buttermilk/ 1 cup + 120 ml vegetable oil/ ½ cup + 2 eggs + 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Combine: Add the hot coffee and stir with a spatula very shortly until the ingredients are just combined. Make sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl as well in the process. Divide the mixture into two equal parts (I use the scale to make sure I divide the mixture evenly) and pour it into the two prepared forms.250 ml hot coffee/ 1 cup
- Bake for about 40-45 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out relatively clean, it can still be a bit wet, but it should not be covered in chocolate. Let cool in the pan for a while, then transfer the cakes to wire racks and let cool completely.
Assemble the chocolate gateau:
- Cut cakes: When the cakes are completely cooled, cut each one into two equal slices.
- Whip the chocolate-heavy cream mixture until stiff with the electric mixer like you would typically whisk heavy cream.
- Assemble the cake: Place one cake layer on a cake platter. Add some of the chocolate cream, then the second cake layer, cream, third cake layer, cream again, last cake layer. Cover the cake with the remaining chocolate cream, you should use about half of it for layering the cake and half of it for covering the whole cake.
- Decorate the cake to your liking. I used dried strawberries and meringues crushed between my fingers, some chopped pistachios, and some hazelnut brittle.dried strawberries + meringues + chopped pistachios
Notes
- Measurements: Always use a digital kitchen scale in baking; it ensures the best results (Amazon affiliate link).
- Chocolate: For a genuine taste, I recommend using German/European style chocolate (Milka, Lindt – German, Belgian, or Swiss chocolate).
Alix says
Hello Adina, this recipe is fantastic, I am baking the cake now, but I made the ganache e yesterday and put in in the fridge, since I am going to fill it tomorrow do you think my ganache will last until tomorrow? Thank you..
Adina says
Don't worry, it will be perfectly fine. Happy baking!
Alix says
Thank you Adina! The cake was perfect but something went wrong with the ganache, I have used what in Italy we call "cooking cream" it is a very heavy cream, maybe TOO heavy... What is the correct percentage of fats in the cream you use for this recipe? Sorry for the weird question...
Adina says
Hi Alix. The standard cream here has 30% fat, it is used for whipping and cooking. A little more is not bad, less would be more of a problem. What went wrong?
Thao @ In Good Flavor says
I love it when Harry Potter marathons are on. I leave it on all day long as I'm working in the house. This cake looks chocolaty and delectable! I can eat that chocolate cream filling by the spoonful!
Tanya says
Hi Adina, now currently making this cake for my dad's birthday tomorrow, this is my first time making it ( hoping it goes right first time as won't have any more ingredients). Slightly concerned that when I asked for cream stabilizer in the supermarket no one knew what it was so I googled it and said the next best thing is gelatine. Would this be ok to use because the last thing I want to do is muck it up because I added the wrong thing. Many thanks.
Adina says
Hi Tanya. No, that is not gelatine, gelatine would not do well here. Either leave it out, but in this case the heavy cream will be softer, less stable. Or mix 1 tablespoon cornstarch with one tablespoon icing sugar together. Use this mixture exactly as the stabilizer, which is beat the cream shortly and very slowly start adding the cornstarch mixture while mixing all the time.
Tanya Rees says
Thank you!
Ebi says
Hello there. I just baked this recipe and it's divine. I would like to know if I can bake it in a bundt pan, considering the thickness of the pan. Will the consistency stay without breaking or getting burnt.
I ask this because my friend's birthday is next month and I will like to bake something really special for her.
Thank you in anticipation of your response.
Adina says
Hi Ebi. I am so glad you liked the chocolate cake, we love it too and I make it so often. However, I have never baked it in a bundt pan, so I cannot say for sure how that will turn out. Theoratically, it should work. If you notice that the top of the cake gets too dark before the inside of the cake is baked, cover the top very loosely with some aluminum foil, just place the piece of aluminum foil on top of the form without pressing it down or anything.
sunny says
hi! complete amateur here, I've only ever baked cupcakes - horrible - but I'm a huuuge HP fan and your amazing description (not to mention droolworthy photos) totes made me want to try this. some questions:
1) I have the sugar in everything I bake eg cookies and was thinking of cutting this to 300g, do you think it would be ok?
2) can I substitute the baking powder w baking soda (and vice versa) and how should it be done?
3) do you bake both cakes at the same time? our oven isn't very big and I don't think it can fit two 8 inch cake tins at the same time 🙁 is stacking possible?
thanks a lot Adina!!
Adina says
Hi Sunny. I am glad you want to bake the cake, it is an amazing chocolate cake and actually well suited for beginners in baking. To your questions:
1. You can reduce the sugar quantity a little, but normally sticking to the required quantities when baking is always best. Unlike cooking, baking is almost chemistry and requires precission, if you change the quantities and the ingredients, the result will not be as expected. However, in the case of this cake, I had used less sugar the first times I have made it and although I find the texture of the cake better when the whole quantity of sugar is used, the reduced sugar version was ok as well. If you are worrying that the cake is too sweet, don't, for some reason, although there is so much sugar in it, the cake is not overly sweet. Must be all the bitter chocolate and the coffee.
2. No, you can definitely NOT substitute baking powder for baking soda, they have different effect on the cake. Use always as required by this or any other future recipe.
3. I bake the cakes together because I have a convection oven. I put two racks in the oven and place each cake pan on a rack. If you don't have a convection/hot air oven and the cake pans don't fit together one next to the other (not stacked) in the regular oven, then it is better to split the recipe and mix the batter twice. If one cake waits so long to be baked, it will not rise anymore in the oven, so it is better to only make the batter just before you can put the cake in the oven.
I hope this helps, if you have more question, do ask. 🙂
sunny says
Thank you so much Adina! I will try it out with help from my friend this weekend, super excited! 🙂
Cheryl says
Hi,
Looks delicious! Can you tell me what size cake tins you used?
Thanks
Adina says
Hi Cheryl. Two springforms of 20 cm/8 inch diameter.
Kim | Low Carb Maven says
Adina, we are Potter fans at my house, too. We haven't seen the movie yet, but it is on our list of things to do this weekend, along with putting up the Christmas tree and cleaning house in anticipation of my folks flying out to visit. I think Ron's cake looks simply amazing and I bet it tastes amazing, too. I love the addition of the coffee to enhance the chocolate flavor and the buttermilk to balance the sweet and give the cake moisture and a bit of a lift. Outstanding.
mjskitchen says
That's so funny that you dreamed about this cake before making it. Now I'll be dreaming about it. 🙂 What an OMG cake!!!! Death by chocolate for sure. So lovely.
rosita vargas says
Wowww ...todo con chocolate me encanta,que delicia es una gran torta,gracias por su comentario la espero siempre,abrazos.
grace says
deeeeeply dark chocolate cake and a super smooth frosting too! this is perfection. 🙂
Magda says
OMG. This is amazing cake ?Thank you very much. Thank you very much for recipe. Was delicious ?
Adina says
So glad to hear it! Thank you, Magda.
Balvinder says
Happy Anniversary, Adina! What a lovely cake to celebrate!
I am not a porterhead fan but my daughter is. She went to watch the first show of this new movie with her friends.
Chris Scheuer says
This is a chocolate lover's dream come true and so beautiful! I can see why you have lots of requests for it!
Angie@Angie's Recipes says
It looks beautiful! Happy Anniversary!
Anca says
It looks amazing! I love the look of those black sponge layers. Happy anniversary! xx
Monica says
Happy anniversary! Sounds like a fun day. I love Harry Potter, chocolate cake, and any reason to celebrate with chocolate cake. This looks divine and I can see why it's a favorite!