Masala Chai Chocolate Cake With Ginger Buttercream Frosting Recipes

CHAI TEA CAKE WITH GINGER CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour two 9-inch round cake pans.
• Begin cake by combining water, 3 tea bags, ginger root, cardamom pods, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, and 1/4 teaspoon cloves in a saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and keep warm.
• Combine sugar and butter in a large bowl; beat with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add molasses and egg; mix well.
• Mix flour, baking soda, cardamom, and salt with remaining 1 teaspoon cinnamon and 1/2 teaspoon cloves in a separate bowl. Add dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, one half at a time; stir to combine. Strain hot tea and slowly pour into the batter and stir until smooth; batter will be thin. Pour into the prepared cake pans.
• Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes. Cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Run a table knife around the edges to loosen. Invert carefully onto a serving plate or cooling rack. Let cool, about 30 minutes.
• While the cakes are cooling, combine water, sugar, and tea bags for simple syrup in a small pot over medium-high heat. Cook until sugar has dissolved, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly.
• Brush simple syrup over cooled and leveled cakes until the majority of the cake has absorbed the syrup. Do not oversoak the cakes; you want enough syrup to soak in and keep cakes moist and flavorful without flooding them. Place cakes in the refrigerator for 1 hour or until ready to decorate.
• Combine cream cheese, butter, and ginger for frosting in a large bowl; beat with an electric mixer until smooth. Add sugar and blend until smooth. Frost cake.

MASALA CHAI CHOCOLATE CAKE WITH GINGER BUTTERCREAM FROSTING

Steps:

• For the Masala Chai Tea Concentrate:.
• Crush lightly together the cinnamon, cloves, cardamom pod, allspice and star anise.
• Add crushed spices in a small saucepan and add the ginger, black tea leaves, half and half and water.
• Bring to a light boil, then lower heat to a simmer and steep for 30 minutes to an hour, depending on how strong you want the chai. Strain mixture through a fine mesh sieve into a cup, this should make about 1 cup of chai tea.
• For the Ginger Buttercream Frosting:.
• Beat butter with an electric mixer until creamy.
• Add confectioner's sugar, milk and ginger. Beat until well combined, and until a spreadable consistency is reached. If frosting is too thin, add ½-1 cup confectioner's sugar and mix until desired consistency is reached. Set aside.
• For the Cake:.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat 2-3 9-inch cake pans with cooking spray, then flour lightly. Mix together chocolate cake mix, eggs, masala chai tea concentrate and oil with an electric mixer on low speed for 30 seconds. Then beat at medium speed for 2 minutes. Pour equal amounts of batter into each cake pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean.
• Let cool in pans for 15 minutes. Invert cakes onto platter or cooling rack and let cool completely. When cake has cooled, spread ginger buttercream frosting between layers and on top of cake. Decorate with chocolate chips or chocolate shavings if you like. Makes 8 servings.