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Mocha Torte

A vintage recipe that has been revised for modern bakers.

Quick Facts

Prep Time: 30 minutes
Bake Time: 25 to 30 minutes
Chill Time: 1 hour
Yield: 16 servings

Ingredients

CAKE:

  • 3 ounces unsweetened baking chocolate
  • 3/4 cup double strength hot coffee
  • 1/2 cup Karo® Light Corn Syrup
  • 1-1/2 cups + 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
  • 3 tablespoons Argo® Corn Starch
  • 1 tablespoon Argo® Baking Powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup butter OR margarine, softened
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 3 egg room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

MOCHA FROSTING:

  • 1 cup (6 ounces) semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 1 to 2 teaspoons instant coffee powder, to taste
  • 3/4 cup Karo® Light Corn Syrup
  • 3 egg yolks
  • 1 cup butter OR margarine, cut into pieces
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease two (9-inch) round cake pans. Line bottoms with 9-inch rounds of waxed paper.
  2. CAKE: Place chocolate in a medium bowl. Pour hot coffee over chocolate. Cover for 2 to 3 minutes. Stir until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth. Add corn syrup; stir until mixture thickens. Let cool.
  3. Sift flour, corn starch, baking powder and salt together; set aside. Cream butter and sugar in a large mixer bowl until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until smooth, then vanilla. Add flour mixture alternately with cooled chocolate mixture, beginning and ending with flour. Mix on low speed until smooth after each addition. Pour evenly into prepared cake pans.
  4. Bake 25 to 30 minutes until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans 10 minutes. Remove to wire rack, peel waxed paper from bottoms, and cool completely. Meanwhile, prepare Mocha Frosting as directed below.
  5. MOCHA FROSTING: Heat chocolate chips and water in double boiler or bowl set over boiling water. Stir until chocolate melts; remove from heat. Stir in coffee powder until smooth. Set aside to cool.
  6. Beat egg yolks in a medium mixer bowl until thick and pale yellow; set aside. Heat corn syrup in a small saucepan over medium heat until temperature reaches 230°F or syrup spins a thread when dropped from fork or spoon. With mixer running, add syrup slowly to beaten egg yolks. Continue beating until thick and creamy and cooled. Add butter, one piece at a time, then vanilla and cooled chocolate mixture. Beat until fluffy. (If mixture is warm, it will not become fluffy. If this occurs, chill mixture until no longer warm, then beat until fluffy.) Chill frosting until ready to assemble torte.
  7. To assemble MOCHA TORTE:Split each cake layer in half. Stack layers, spreading frosting between each layer. Frost top and sides of torte. Chill 1 hour or until set. Store in refrigerator. (Because of high butter content, frosting melts quickly.)