This Chocolate Rose cake is deep, chocolatey, and just about as romantic as a cake can be. Layers of dark chocolate cake are infused with rose two ways: with both rosewater and a tea made with dried roses. The vanilla bean whipped cream adds just the right amount of softness to cut through the chocolate cake and ganache layers.
If you love the spicy-sweet flavor of fresh roses, this is the cake for you. Bake it for someone you love, when you’re feeling romantic, or when the first roses start to bloom at the end of spring.
Chocolate rose cake tips
This cake is based on a classic devil’s food cake. To get a deep chocolate flavor and create a moist tender crumb, we’ll use a combination of melted dark chocolate, cocoa powder, and sour cream.
I often add hot water to my chocolate cakes. This helps to bloom the cocoa powder and bring out extra flavor in the chocolate. It also aids in blending all the ingredients together beautifully, creating a silky cake batter with no lumps. So, to make this cake extra special and extra rosey, I replaced the hot water with a rose tea.
Put some water on the stove while you prepare your cake pans and dry ingredients. Then, once the water hits boiling, pour the hot water over the dried roses and let it steep for 5-7 minutes while you cream the butter and sugar together for the cake. I used a french press for this. You could also use a teapot or even just a jar with a lid.
Strain the roses out after steeping and whisk the hot rose tea into a bowl with your chopped chocolate and cocoa powder. Whisk until the chocolate is completely melted, then add the rosewater.
Use this chocolate-rose mixture to fold into the cake batter, alternating this mix with the dry ingredients. Blend gently just until everything is combined to avoid over-mixing.
Choose your cake size
You can also make this cake using two 8-inch pans instead of three 6-inch pans. The cakes will take a few extra minutes to bake at this larger size.
Making the chocolate rose ganache
Ganache is just about the simplest frosting you could make, but because you’re working with chocolate, it can be a little bit tricky sometimes. To make the ganache without any troubles:
- Chop the dark chocolate super fine. You want it to melt easily when it comes in contact with the small amount of cream you’re going to add to it.
- Heat the cream over low heat and turn the heat off before it gets too hot. You want to see little bubbles only around the edges of the pan, but don’t let it boil! This will denature the protein structure in the cream and can cause the ganache to break or become grainy.
- After you pour the hot cream over the chocolate, let it sit for a minute before stirring. Then, whisk it gently, starting in the center and working your way outwards as it comes together. It will become thick, glossy, and beautiful!
- Add rosewater at the very end and whisk it in gently.
Cake frosting & decorating tips
Putting the final frosting on a cake can be intimidating, but you’ve got this! Follow these tips to ensure your chocolate rose cake looks as lovely as it tastes:
- Allow the cakes to cool completely before slicing or adding fillings or frostings.
- Use a serrated bread knife to slice the cakes flat on top if they domed during baking.
- You don’t need much ganache or whipped cream in between the cake layers – make sure you save enough to frost the outside of the cake. About 1/4 cup of ganache and 1/2 cup of whipped cream should be plenty to fill the cake.
- Spread a very thin layer of ganache on the top and sides of the cake before you add the final frosting layer. Then, put it in the refrigerator for at least 20 minutes, until the ganache is solid. This is called a “crumb coating”, and it locks in any loose cake crumbs so you can get a nice smooth finish.
- Now you can apply the final layer! When using whipped cream to frost a cake, I always whip it to soft peaks. If it’s whipped further than that, it can start to look a little curdled as you spread it onto the cake.
Decorate this cake any way you please. I used more dried roses and tiny flowers from my garden. It would also look great with a few large fresh roses on top, chocolate curls, and/or piped whipped cream.
Chocolate Rose Cake with Vanilla Whipped Cream
Equipment
- 6-inch cake pans
- Stand mixer with paddle and whisk attachments
Ingredients
Chocolate Rose Cake
- 1 ½ cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 ¼ cups boiling water
- ¼ cup dried roses
- 4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
- ½ cup cocoa powder
- 1 tablespoon rosewater
- 5 ounces unsalted butter, soft
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 3 eggs, room temperature
- ½ cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Chocolate Rose Ganache
- 4 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
- ⅓ cup heavy cream
- 1 ½ teaspoons rosewater
Vanilla Bean Whipped Cream
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 vanilla bean, split
- 1 tablespoon vanilla sugar, or regular sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
For the cake:
- Butter three 6-inch cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment. Preheat the oven to 350° F.
- Sift the flour, soda, baking powder, and salt together and set aside.
- Place chocolate and cocoa powder in a medium bowl.
- Steep the dried roses in the boiling water for 5-7 minutes, then strain into the chocolate bowl. Whisk until combined and smooth; add rosewater.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and brown sugar until fluffy, 2-3 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, scraping sides down with a spatula in between. Mix until well combined. Add sour cream and vanilla and mix.
- Add about 1/3 of flour mixture into butter mix and gently combine. While mixer is running, pour half of the chocolate mixture in. Repeat alternating the flour and chocolate mixtures, ending with the last 1/3 of the flour mix.
- Divide batter between the prepared cake pans and smooth out. Bake until set and just done, about 30-35 minutes. Allow to cool completely.
For rose ganache:
- Place chopped chocolate in a medium bowl. Scald the cream lightly, removing it from heat just as little bubbles start to form around the edges. Do NOT bring it to a boil.
- Pour the scalded cream over the chocolate, let sit one minute, and then whisk to combine. Add rosewater and whisk in gently.
For whipped cream:
- Whisk together cream, vanilla bean seeds, extract, and sugar until soft peaks form.
To assemble cake:
- Level tops of cakes if they domed while baking. Spread about ½ cup of whipped cream onto the first cake and top with the second layer of cake.
- Spread about ¼ cup of ganache on the second layer of cake. Top with the third layer of cake and press lightly to adhere.
- Use remaining ganache to coat the outside of the cake in a thin, even layer. Chill for at least 20 minutes, until ganache is hardened.
- Frost lightly with the remaining whipped cream and decorate as desired. Chill until ready to serve.
Notes
Did you try this recipe?
Be sure to leave a comment below!
