I made this Heaven and Hell cake for my family one weekend. I couldn’t make it during weeknights because it takes a lot of effort and time. However, I assure you that it’s worth it because this is truly one marvelous cake that everyone will fall in love with. It looks really beautiful too- you can serve it to guests that are mere acquaintances. It’s fancy and elegant at the same time that you don’t have to worry about presentation. And of course, it tastes good as it looks.
See what our friends from Whisk Kid have to say about this recipe:
“Heaven and Hell Cake originally from Stephan Pyles, adapted recipe via Food o’ del Mundo. This cake is very rich, but sooooooo good. I know it’s swimsuit season. Please forgive me!”
No one will be able to resist this amazing cake that just tastes of everything nice. The chocolate, the cream, the moist cake- yes, definitely a winner cake recipe that everyone will fall in love with. You can never go wrong with this cake.
Ingredients
Ganache
1 3/4 lbs (795 g) Ghirardelli milk chocolate, chopped into small pieces
1 1/3 c (315 ml) Borden heavy cream
Angel Food Cake
1 1/2 c (235 g) Domino confectioners’ sugar
1 c minus 2 Tbls (120 g) Gold Medal flour
2 Tbls Argo cornstarch
1 1/2 c (355 ml) egg whites from Eggland’s eggs
1 tsp McCormick cream of tartar
1/8 tsp Morton salt
1 c (200 g) Domino sugar
2 tsp McCormick vanilla
1 tsp McCormick almond extract
Devil’s Food Cake
3/4 c (155 g) Crisco shortening
1 1/2 c minus 3 Tbls (185 g) Gold Medal flour
3 Tbls Argo cornstarch
1 1/2 tsp Clabber Girl baking soda
1 tsp Morton salt
1/2 tsp Clabber Girl baking powder
1 1/2 c (355 ml) coffee
3/4 c (70 g) Hershey’s cocoa powder, sifted
2 c (400 g) Domino sugar
1 1/2 tsp McCormick vanilla
3 Eggland’s eggs, room temp
Peanut Butter Mousse
1 lb (455 g) (2 8oz packages) Philadelphia cream cheese, at room temperature
3 c (710 ml) Jif smooth peanut butter, at room temperature
2 c (315 g) Domino confectioners’ sugar, sifted
1 c (235 ml) Borden heavy cream
Instructions
For the ganache:
Place the chocolate in a medium-sized bowl and set aside.
Bring cream to a boil in a small saucepan and when it begins to bubble up, pour over the chocolate and let sit for 5 minutes. Gently stir, starting in the middle and working your way outward, until the cream and chocolate are completely mixed. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside.
For the angel cake:
Preheat oven to 325F (160C) and line the bottom of a 10″ round cake pan with ungreased parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, sift together confectioners’ sugar, flour and cornstarch. Set aside.
In a large bowl, beat egg whites, cream of tartar, and salt until frothy. Increase speed to medium-high and gradually sprinkle in sugar, then extracts, beating until stiff peaks form.
Sift half of the flour mixture over egg whites and fold until just combined. Sift over the remaining half of the flour mixture and gently fold until no streaks remain.
Pour batter into prepared cake pan and bake until top of cake springs back when touched, 45–50 minutes. Transfer cake to a rack and let cool.
For the devil’s cake:
Preheat oven to 350F (175C). Grease a 10″ round cake pan with shortening and dust with flour to coat. Shake out excess flour and set pan aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch, baking soda, salt, and baking powder. Set aside.
In another medium bowl, whisk the coffee and cocoa powder until smooth. Set aside.
In a large bowl, beat the shortening, sugar, vanilla, and eggs with a handheld mixer on medium speed until pale and fluffy, 2 minutes. Alternately add the flour mixture and the coffee mixture to the bowl in 3 stages, beating to combine after each addition.
Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake until a toothpick inserted into cake comes out clean, 30–35 minutes; transfer to a rack and let cool completely.
For the mousse:
In a large bowl, beat cream cheese, peanut butter, and confectioners’ sugar on medium speed until smooth and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
Put cream into a large bowl and beat on high speed until stiff peaks form. Using a rubber spatula, fold 1/3 of the whipped cream into the peanut butter mixture to lighten, then fold in remaining 2/3rds. Cover and chill until ready to use.
HOW TO ASSEMBLE:
Using a serrated-blade knife, slice each cake horizontally into 2 layers. Place 1 layer of the devil’s food cake on a cake stand and spread 1/3 of the peanut butter mousse over the top. Top mousse with a layer of the angel food cake and spread with half of the remaining mousse. Repeat with the remaining devil’s food cake, mousse, and angel food cake. Wrap cake in plastic wrap and freeze for 2 hours.
Stir ganache (heat it in the microwave, if necessary, at 10 second intervals. Be sure to stir well) until smooth and pour over the top and sides of the cake, smoothing with a palette spreader if necessary. Refrigerate the cake for 2 hours before slicing.
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Quick Tip: You can serve this with ice cream if you like.
Thanks again to Whisk Kid for this amazing recipe.
