Description
A moist and tender blackberry velvet cake with fresh blackberries baked into the batter, topped with an easy and luscious dark chocolate ganache. Perfect for any occasion and impresses without stress.
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups (310g) all-purpose flour
- 1 ¾ cups (350g) granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons (15g) unsweetened cocoa powder (Dutch-processed preferred)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (240ml) buttermilk (or milk + 1 tbsp lemon juice, let sit 5 minutes)
- ½ cup (120g) sour cream
- ½ cup (120ml) vegetable oil
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups (225g) fresh blackberries (if frozen, toss with 1 tsp flour)
- For the ganache:
- 8 ounces (225g) dark chocolate (70% cacao bars preferred)
- ¾ cup (180ml) heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons (28g) unsalted butter
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease two 8-inch round cake pans with butter and dust with flour or line with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, sift together flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Whisk to combine.
- In another bowl, whisk eggs until frothy. Add buttermilk, sour cream, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract. Mix until smooth.
- Pour wet ingredients into dry and mix gently on low speed or fold with spatula until just combined. Do not overmix.
- Gently fold in blackberries, being careful not to break them.
- Divide batter evenly between pans (about 2 ½ cups each). Bake 35-40 minutes until toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs and cake springs back lightly.
- Cool cakes in pans for 15 minutes, then invert onto wire racks to cool completely.
- Make ganache: chop chocolate and place in heatproof bowl. Warm cream until simmering, pour over chocolate, let sit 2 minutes, then stir until smooth. Stir in butter until glossy.
- Assemble cake: place one layer on plate, spread thin layer of ganache, add second layer, then cover top and sides with remaining ganache.
- Refrigerate cake at least 1 hour to set ganache. Bring to room temperature before serving.
Notes
[‘Use room temperature eggs and dairy for even mixing.’, ‘Be gentle folding in blackberries to avoid purple batter.’, ‘Check oven temperature with thermometer for best results.’, ‘Make ganache while cakes cool to save time.’, ‘Brush cake layers with blackberry or simple syrup for extra moistness.’, ‘Allow ganache to set before slicing to avoid messy cuts.’, ‘Frozen blackberries can be used if tossed with flour first.’, ‘For gluten-free, use 1:1 gluten-free baking flour blend and gluten-free baking powder.’]
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice (1/12th of c
- Calories: 320
- Sugar: 25
- Fat: 17
- Carbohydrates: 38
- Fiber: 3
- Protein: 4
Keywords: blackberry velvet cake, dark chocolate ganache, berry dessert, moist cake, easy chocolate cake, homemade cake, berry cake recipe