The Chocolate Fruit Box Cake:  This cake looks amazing and tastes even better!  It is simply a square cake, covered on each side with a wall of chocolate, filled in on top with fruit...hence, a Chocolate Fruit-filled box!  I was inspired by a picture I saw in a book years ago and just did this box as simply as possible.

• First, make 1 chocolate cake mix according to recipe directions & fill both 8x8 pans as evenly as possible.  Bake cakes according to directions.
• Once cakes are baked and cooled, go ahead and start filling and stacking.  To fill in between the layers, just spread the frosting on, smooth and put the next layer on top.  You do not need to level these cakes, but do try to line up the edges of the sides so the walls of your cake are as straight as possible.  Now you can frost the entire cake. No need to make it pretty as no-one will see the actual cake.
• Now for the fun part….making the chocolate walls!  To start, use a 1lb block of chocolate (I tend to get it at Whole Foods and have used Milk & Dark, either one tastes great!). Chop your chocolate into small pieces.  Put 3/4 of the chopped chocolate in a glass bowl and microwave it, starting at only heating for 1 minute at a time as it might burn if heated too much.  Each time your microwave stops, please test to see if melted by stirring the chocolate (sometimes the pieces will hold their shape even if they have been heated enough). Once it is all melted, add in the reserved 1/4 chopped chocolate & mix it until all is melted (this blending step helps temper the chocolate so that you will not get chocolate blooms, or gray spots, as the chocolate hardens).

• Once all the chocolate is melted, simply spread on a cookie sheet covered with saran wrap. Keep it about 1/4 inch thick and let it cool. Once it is slightly cool but still pliable, score (run a knife through) your chocolate in 4 rectangles measured to the size you’d like (measure your cake for exact size needed as all cakes will shrink slightly when cooled and add ~1-2 inches in height so you can hold the fruit...my walls are usually 7 & 3/4inches wide by 5 inches high). When chocolate is totally cooled, run your knife through the scores again and break your 4 rectangles off.  Now you have your chocolate box walls.
• Next, press each box side up against your room-temperature cake (so the chocolate sides will stick to the cake frosting), and viola a box of chocolate.  I've never tried mitering the edges so that they match, but simply have tied a ribbon around the box and put the best side to the front!
• Finally, fill the top of the cake with fruit, and AMAZE your friends.  SWEET!

The Chocolate Ganache 3-Tiered Heart Cake:  This chocolate cake was made for a 47th wedding anniversary-what a wonderfully sweet way to celebrate a wonderfully sweet couple!  For the cake, I made a 3-tiered heart shaped chocolate cake frosted with chocolate buttercream and draped in chocolate ganache.  I even topped it off with free-form chocolate heart designs and a ‘47’ to commemorate their anniversary.  Although you can find all directions for making a tiered cake in the Fancy Tiered cake gallery here is a quick summary of how I made this one:

• Make 3 chocolate cakes mixes according to directions and fill two 10-inch rounds, two 8-inch rounds and two 6-inch rounds.  Once baked & cooled, fill and stack each tier separately, and put each one into the ‘fridge to set-up.
• Once cooled, cut 3 paper towels to match each tier diameter and cut out a heart shape on each.  Use these paper-towel cut-outs as a guide and cut each tier into a heart shape.
• Next, frost each cake with chocolate buttercream (see Recipes) and stack all tiers. I did not use cake supports (See Fancy Tiered Cakes for directions).
• Next, make a simple chocolate ganache (see Recipes). Pour the cooled but runny ganache over the whole cake and just let it drip down and pool on the cake plate.  After sitting for an hour or more, it sets up smoothly & has such a high gloss- it is awesome!
• Finally, top the cake with some free-form hearts & a number for the anniversary. I made the hearts & number with Wilton candy melts (see Decorating FAQ’s for directions).  To make the designs, I simply melted some Wilton chocolate candy melts per directions, put the runny chocolate into a Ziploc bag and piped out some free-form designs on a saran-wrapped tray (I used swirly hearts, and a ‘47’ for the anniversary).  I put them on the cake and it was just excellent.  Definitely one of my all-time favorites!

The Chocolate Champagne Truffle Cake:  This cake is so yummy & decadent that it works for all occasions!  I mean, come on, champagne, chocolate, cake...what could be better!  Please see Recipes for more details on this cake (including a picture of assembly), but here are the basic directions:

• First, pre-soak your white seedless grapes in champagne for 24-36 hours.
• Next, make 1 chocolate cake mix according to recipe directions & fill either two or three 9inch round pans as evenly as possible.  Bake cakes according to directions.
• While cake is baking, make your champagne chocolate truffle filling (see Recipes) and set aside to cool to a spreadable consistency.
• Once the cakes are baked, cooled & leveled, and your filling is at desired consistency, slice your grapes in half lengthwise and pat dry with a paper towel to remove excess moisture.
• Now you can assemble the cake. If you want a three layer cake, start with one layer of cake on bottom, cover with a generous amount of ganache filling and top with sliced grapes (be generous), then repeat with next layer, topping the stack with your final cake layer.  If you use only 2 layers of cake, start with the cake on the bottom, spread filling on, then place grapes, spread more filling on top of grapes and the set final cake layer on top.  Now frost around sides of cake with extra filling, and set entire cake in ‘fridge.  (Note: It might help to have a tub of chocolate frosting around just in case your grapes are really big and cause your layers to be too far apart for your ganache to cover when frosting the sides of the cake. Just use the tub frosting to fill in your layers around the sides and cover with your ganache...it’s all yummy!).
• Finally, reheat some of your left-over ganache to a runny consistency (just put the glass bowl you made your ganache in over a pot of simmering water and stir gently until a bit more runny...just watch it carefully & try no to stir too much).  Once cool but still runny, pour your ganache over the entire cake and smooth.  Set your cake out to set-up (try not to refrigerate as sometimes that will cause the ganache to loose its shine).  Once set-up, you can garnish top or sides with nothing, or whatever you’d like (I had some left over chocolate which I finely chopped and pressed up along the sides for a decadent crumbled look (see picture).

This cake is so good and was a hit at my good friend's 40th birthday….nothing like trying out new recipes on good friends!

The Chocolate Cathedral Bundt Cake:  This is my easiest cake on the site, and my go to for just about any occasion where I have to bring something (breakfast, lunch, dinner or dessert)!  Using the chocolate Bundt cake recipe (see Recipes), I bake it in my Williams & Sonoma Cathedral Bundt pan.  Once baked and cooled, I put it on a cake plate and drizzle it (be generous!) with a chocolate glaze (see Recipes).  Add strawberries to the top and around the bottom and yum..you are good to go!

The Chocolate Yule Log Cake:  Yule logs are great cake for the Holidays, even if a bit hard to make.  Mine have never turned out perfectly (I want it took look just like a Ho-ho), but I think they are so yummy,  I just keep on trying! Here are some simplified directions...

• Make 1 chocolate cake mix according to recipe directions & fill your jelly roll pan (~15x10x1), and bake. Please watch this cake carefully as it only takes ~15-20 minutes to bake as the pan is much thinner than a normal cake pan.
• Once baked, remove from oven and while still hot (don’t burn yourself though), flip your cake pan upside down onto a well powdered (with powdered sugar) dish towel.  Gently roll the cake (from the narrow end) into a log shape and let the cake cool while rolled (leave the towel on/in it).
• While the cake is cooling, make your Sweetened whip cream filling (see Recipes...it is so simple...you just beat together cold heavy cream & powdered sugar!).  When the cake is completely cool, carefully unroll, remove towel & frost the top of the cake with sweetened whip cream frosting and then re-roll it into the log shape.
• Refrigerate cake and when cold, frost the outside of the cake with chocolate frosting.  You can stop there, or cut a small piece off the end and reattach to the side of the cake (mimicking a branch sticking out), but it is up to you!  One year I just stuck a big artificial poinsettia on the side and viola, a nice centerpiece dessert!

No matter how you make it, it is the cutting of this cake that is the coolest part... it looks like a giant Ho-Ho (at least I always want mine to, but they never are quite as tidy).   Good luck and if you have any advice for me on Yule Logs, I’d love to hear it...Happy Holidays!

The Chocolate Grape Tiered Cake:  This cake was made for a very special 40th birthday....held in a wine bar if you can't tell! To match the theme, I sugared up some grapes, draped the cake with luscious chocolate ganache and just enjoyed!  It was so cool looking that the owners of the wine bar asked if I would teach a cake decorating class for them during one of their event nights...too fun!  So here, goes...

• First, prepare your sugared grapes the night before you will need them. Simply wash & dry your grape bunches well. Mix up 3 egg whites with a fork until slightly frothy. Using a little paint brush, brush egg whites onto the grapes (cover each grape well) and then sprinkle the wet grape with superfine sugar (or regular sugar works too).  Let it sit in 'fridge overnight to harden, and viola, gorgeous fruit!  Please note that while using a little paint brush might seem silly, I highly recommend it as simply dipping your fruit into the egg whites creates globs of egg white on the fruit & thus globs of sugar on them as well...not at all delicate looking. So, as always, learn from my mistakes & use the brush!   (See Decorating FAQs for more details).
• For the cake, make 3 chocolate cake mixes according to recipe directions & fill your round pans (each ~1/2 full), and bake.
• Once baked & cooled, level your cakes, torte if desired (meaning split into two layers using a cake leverer), fill layers with ganache and crumb-coat with ganache. Put in 'fridge to firm up for 30 minutes or more if possible.
• Once cakes are set-up, frost each tier again with a thicker layer of ganache and refrigerate again. Once tiers are set-up, stack as desired (either offset or in center).  I did not use supports for this cake as the ganache kept the cake nice & firm.
• Once stacked, simply pour runny ganache over the tiers and use a frosting spatula to spread if needed.  Please note though, if you pour runny ganache over a cold cake, it will harden fast, so consider bringing your cake to room temperature before pouring ganache over it (I did not do this so I had to work fast).
• Once your cake is set, place grapes as desired, and there you go! Gorgeous!

Using sugared fruit on cakes is now my new favorite thing! See the Cupcake Gallery for the Sugared Fruit Cupcake Tower or the Bakery Gallery for the cake. Have fun and really wow people...the fruit is totally edible too (if people don't mind eating egg white), so it's yummy too!  So, sugar on!

The Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookie Cake:  OK, hold on now...Yellow Cake, with a ripple of chocolate fudge, a center 'layer' of Peanut Butter cookie, and a draping of chocolate fudge frosting...too good to be true you ask?  NO!  You too can make this extravaganza of goodness, and you'll laugh at how simple it is to make!  OK, ok, enough dramatics.  This cake is a Jennycakes original though, so I'm just excited!  Here goes...

• Start by preparing your peanut butter cookie dough according to directions on the Betty Crocker pouch (or your own favorite recipe). Once made into dough, set aside.
• Next, make 1 yellow cake mix according to directions and fill 1 Bundt pan (spray pan with Pam generously). 
• Now melt the 8 Baker's Chocolate semi-sweet squares according to Baker's box directions. Once fully melted, pour chocolate into cake batter around the center. Do not mix it into the batter unless you want your chocolate to not be a strip but mixed into the batter.
• Next take your peanut butter cookie dough and drop in teaspoon size drops (use a spoon or just your fingers-no big deal) into the batter along the center. It will sort of float in the top, and sink into the batter as it all bakes.
• Bake for 50-55 minutes, or until the cake and the cookie center is done (use a bamboo skewer to test for doneness). When slightly cool, remove cake to cooling rack.
• Once cake is fully cool, drape it in runny chocolate fudge frosting, To make your tub or favorite frosting runny, simply place your frosting in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave it slight until it is warm & runny. Be careful when heating though, as if you heat it too much it will be super runny like glaze (which is fine if you'd like that). I like the frosting runny, but still thick & gooey enough to really be a frosting!

The Triple Chocolate Cake:  For my parents' 40th Anniversary, I pulled out all the stops...well, all the chocolate in my pantry that is....nothing is too good for them! OK, now that I've sufficiently kissed-up (thanks for everything Mom & Dad!), I must be real here. This cake was AWESOME-a simple cake, covered in 3 kinds of chocolate. So indulgent, so sweet, so my Mom & Dad!

• Bake your 3 8-inch round cakes in your preferred flavor (I prefer yellow to break-up the chocolate), and set-aside to cool. Once cool, level the bottom 2 layers, and leave the top layer rounded.
• Now make up one batch of chocolate buttercream per Recipes, using the unsweetened Bakers chocolate. When made, fill each layer of the cake and frost entire cake. Consider making the frosting super swirly as it will look so nice against the smooth shiny ganache. Cool your frosted cake in the 'fridge so it sets up nicely.
• Next make one batch of the chocolate ganache per Recipes, using the semi-sweet Bakers chocolate. When it cools enough to reach a pourable, but not runny, consistency, pour it over the center of the cake and allow it to drip down the sides of the cake. If you like your ganache to pool at the bottom of the cake (& I do as it looks so luscious), be sure to place your cake on your cake platter prior to pouring your ganache. If you like a more formal finish, put your cake on a cooling rack and then pour the ganache. When the ganache is set-up, simply move the cake to your platter.pour your ganache while your cake is on a
• Finally, run your sharpest knife (be careful) along the edge of your dark chocolate bar to make sprinkles or ribbons. Pile on the top of the ganache covered cake-this adds flavor & crunch, and face it...it looks cool.

Have fun with this one and add your own fun stuff! Maybe put in some white chocolate, or nuts, or whatever you find super indulgent. Also (and I must add this given the current economic situation as its April 2009), it cost me only $12-$15 dollars to make this cake. What an impressive & luxurious way to celebrate with your loved ones, while still allowing your money to pay for schools, health care, retirement or charity. Good luck to all those who need it & Bake On!