Chocolate Peanut Butter and Caramel Cake

I found this recipe in the back of a fairly recent food magazine, although I couldn't tell you for the life of me which one this was. I just looked at the recipe and it was love at first sight. A tall, double storied fluffy cake made with delicious peanut butter and yoghurt. I've always wanted a yoghurt cake to make since apparently they are lusciously light. It coated in a thick chocolate ganache and in the centre of the cake was a gooey caramel. It looked like if I ate some, I'd have a heart attack

Hrnghhh that cake is so delicious

 I actually made this cake for the dessert of my Pad Thai Party, once again attendance was pitiful. It went down a treat, Amy and her boyfriend Doug, ate all their pad thai, two massive slices of my cake and then they ate a massive slice of the cake they bought over from Le Bon Choix, a weird pear and white chocolate mousse one.

I also made this cake for J2's going away party. One of the senior nurses at work walked into the handover room, she asked what the cake was and she said, "I'll need the old epipen if I had a slice." She then proceeded to cut herself a slice and when I tried to stop her, she happily reassured me and said, "I really did bring my epipen today."

No joke.

Anyway, that shows you how good the cake is, a nurse would risk anaphylatic shock to have a piece. Comments about the cake were about how light and fluffy the cake was, how gooey my homemade caramel was and that my ganache was amazing. Knowing something is bad tends to make things taste better. Here is the recipe anyway!

Peanut Butter, Chocolate and Caramel Cake

Uses: Assorted parties and ruining diets

Ingredients:

Peanut Butter and yoghurt cake:
1/2 cup of natural yoghurt
200g butter, chopped at room temperature
1/2 cup of peanut butter
4 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cup of self raising flour
Extra chocolate/peanuts for decoration

Yay, all the ingredients!

Caramel:
150g white sugar
50g of butter
50ml of cream

Really all you need

Chocolate Ganache:
100g milk chocolate
50g butter
50ml cream

For the cake:
1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees. Line your chosen cake tin/s with baking paper for easy removal
2. Put all the ingredients in a mixing bowl barring flour, mix with a some sort of mixer or like hand whisk or something, until a smooth, disgustingly beige paste is formed.

MIX EVERYTHING BUT THE FLOUR.

Whirrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

3. Sift the SR flour into the bowl and lightly mix until just combined. It should now resemble a cake batter.

Huh, not bad

4. Place in either 2x 20cm cake tins and bake in a preheated 180 degree oven for 20-30 minutes until lightly golden. Or if you're like me and only own a 23cm deep cake tin, bake at 180 for 45-60 minutes until golden brown and cake skewer isn't gooey.

Noice

Not bad.

5. Stand for about 10 minutes in pan and then allow to cool elsewhere.

For the caramel:
1. Have cold water ready on standby in case of caramel burns
2. Heat a tall pot to medium with the sugar inside
3. Whisk the sugar occasionally, it'll make weird chunky white crystals, keep whisking!

A bit lighter than this

4. Once the sugar begins to become lightly golden, throw in the butter, it should foam up like crazy. Keep the pan on heat though

Work fast! Mix it all up!

5. Once the butter is incorporated, throw in the cream as well, continuing to whisk. It'll foam up high again.

For the chocolate ganache:
For some reason I never take photos of this. Use your imagination!
1. In a double boiler or a bowl that fits above a saucepan, melt the chocolate
2. Once melted add the butter and cream until it becomes smooth

ASSEMBLE ALL THINGS!
1. Either slice your solo cake in half or thirds, or I don't know put your two or three cakes together

Not bad for a first effort

2. Apply a later of caramel over the centre
3. Top with the other bit of cake
4. Dribble/coat with chocolate ganache. You can put other things on top like crushed peanuts or chocolate curls

GANACHE

Peanuts!

5. Let the cake set for at least 20 minutes but you can serve it as soon as possible too