Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake

Ingredients – cake

• 3 Cups flour
• 1 Cup caster sugar
• ½ tbs baking powder
• ½ tbs baking soda
• ½ tbs salt
• 2 Cups brown sugar
• 225g butter – cut into pieces
• 6 eggs
• 1 Cup sour cream
• 2 tsp vanilla essence
• 270g chocolate chips

Ingredients – fudge sauce filling

• 1 Cup cream
• ½ Cup cocoa powder
• ½ Cup caster sugar
• ¼ Cup brown sugar
• ¼ Cup glucose syrup
• 180g dark chocolate – chopped
• 60g butter
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• ½ tbs salt

Ingredients – Swiss buttercream

• 6 egg whites
• 1 Cup brown sugar
• 2/3 Cup caster sugar
• 365g butter – cut into pieces
• 2 tsp vanilla essence

Method – fudge sauce

Bring the cream, cocoa powder, brown sugar, caster sugar, and glucose syrup up to a simmer, whisking often, until smooth.

Stir in the chocolate and butter and return to the heat while whisking constantly.

Stir in the vanilla and salt and remove from the heat.

Cool to room temperature and then chill for at least 4 hours before using.

Method – cake

Preheat the oven to 160°C.

Grease and line three 20cm round cake tins.

Sift the flour, caster sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a large mixing bowl.

Add the brown sugar and butter. Using a mixer at medium speed, mix until the butter is no longer visible.

Whisk the eggs, sour cream, and vanilla together, and add this all at once to the flour. Mix until blended at low speed and then increase the speed to medium, to beat until smooth and fluffy – about 2 minutes.

Stir in the chocolate chips by hand.

Divide the mix between the tins and spread to level it.

Bake for about 45 minutes or until a tester comes out clean.

Cool the cakes in their tins for 20 minutes and then turn them out.

Method – Swiss buttercream

Place the egg whites, brown sugar and caster sugar in a bowl and place onto a double boiler.

Whisk constantly until the mixture reaches 65°C.

Transfer the mixture to a mixer and whisk until the meringue has cooled to room temperature and is a stiff peak.

With the mixer running at high speed, add the butter a few pieces at a time. The meringue will deflate a little and become very creamy.

Beat in the vanilla and use immediately.

To assemble

Place a cake layer on a cake turntable.

Spread the top of the cake with an even layer of the fudge sauce filling. Top this with the second cake layer and repeat with the fudge sauce frosting.

Place the third cake layer on top and cover the top and sides of the cake with the buttercream, spreading to level it as much as possible.

Chill the cake for 2 hours before completing the decor.

Spread the remaining buttercream on the outside of the cake once it is cooled to form a nice even coating without affecting the structure of the cake.

You can finish the top of the cake off with a variety of ingredients such as cookies, berries, Easter eggs, chocolate bars, or fruit.

ENJOY!