Chocolate Celebration Cake (Printable)

Deeply chocolatey olive oil cake with ganache and hazelnut praline. A true showstopper for celebrations.

# What You'll Need:

→ Cake

01 - 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
02 - 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
03 - 2 cups granulated sugar
04 - 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
05 - 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
06 - 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
07 - 3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
08 - 1 cup whole milk, room temperature
09 - 3 large eggs, room temperature
10 - 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
11 - 1 cup hot brewed coffee

→ Ganache

12 - 12 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
13 - 1 cup heavy cream
14 - 2 tablespoons unsalted butter

→ Hazelnut Praline

15 - 1 cup toasted hazelnuts, skins rubbed off
16 - 3/4 cup granulated sugar
17 - Pinch of sea salt

# Directions:

01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and line two 9-inch round cake pans with parchment paper.
02 - In a large bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
03 - In another bowl, whisk olive oil, milk, eggs, and vanilla until smooth. Pour wet ingredients into dry mixture and combine until just blended.
04 - Slowly add hot coffee while whisking until batter reaches smooth consistency. The batter will be thin.
05 - Divide batter evenly between prepared pans. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean.
06 - Allow cakes to cool in pans for 10 minutes, then turn out onto wire racks to cool completely.
07 - Place finely chopped chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Heat cream in a small saucepan until just simmering, then pour over chocolate. Let sit 2 minutes. Add butter and stir until smooth and glossy. Cool while stirring occasionally until thickened to spreading consistency.
08 - Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a small saucepan, heat sugar over medium heat, swirling until melted and amber in color. Remove from heat, stir in hazelnuts and salt, then quickly spread onto prepared sheet. Cool completely, then break into shards or chop coarsely.
09 - Place one cooled cake layer on a serving plate. Spread with one third of the ganache. Top with second cake layer and cover top and sides with remaining ganache. Decorate generously with hazelnut praline shards.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • The olive oil makes the crumb impossibly moist and keeps it fresh longer than butter-based cakes.
  • Hot coffee deepens the chocolate without adding any coffee flavor at all.
  • Ganache is more forgiving than frosting and always looks elegant even when spread imperfectly.
  • Hazelnut praline adds a grown-up crunch that makes every bite feel special.
02 -
  • Let the ganache cool and thicken before spreading or it will slide right off the cake.
  • Don't rush the praline, if the sugar isn't fully melted and amber it won't have that deep caramel flavor.
  • Room temperature eggs and milk are essential, cold ingredients can cause the batter to separate.
03 -
  • Weigh your flour if you can, too much and the cake turns dense and dry.
  • Freeze the cake layers before assembling, it makes spreading ganache so much easier.
  • Save extra praline in an airtight container and sprinkle it over ice cream or yogurt later.
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