Chocolate Celebration Cake (Printable)

Deeply chocolatey olive oil cake with ganache and hazelnut praline—a stunning celebration centerpiece.

# 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 removed
16 - 3/4 cup granulated sugar
17 - Pinch of sea salt

# How To Make It:

01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and line two 9-inch round cake pans with parchment paper.
02 - In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until evenly distributed.
03 - In a separate bowl, whisk together olive oil, milk, eggs, and vanilla extract until smooth and fully incorporated.
04 - Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix until just combined, being careful not to overmix.
05 - Slowly add hot brewed coffee while whisking continuously until batter is smooth. The batter should be thin at this stage.
06 - Divide batter evenly between prepared pans. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean.
07 - Cool cakes in pans for 10 minutes, then turn out onto wire racks to cool completely.
08 - Place finely chopped chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Heat heavy cream in a small saucepan until just simmering, then pour over chocolate. Let sit for 2 minutes. Add butter and stir until smooth and glossy. Cool while stirring occasionally until thickened to spreading consistency.
09 - 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.
10 - Place one cake layer on a serving plate. Spread with one-third of the ganache. Top with the second cake layer and cover top and sides with remaining ganache. Decorate generously with hazelnut praline shards.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • The olive oil keeps every crumb impossibly moist for days, no frosting required to rescue it.
  • Hot coffee in the batter sounds wild but it makes the chocolate taste like it came from a European patisserie.
  • That hazelnut praline on top gives you the crunch and drama that makes people lean in with their cameras.
  • It looks intimidating but the ganache is forgiving and the layers stack without fuss.
02 -
  • Room temperature eggs and milk are non-negotiable, cold ingredients make the batter seize and the texture suffers.
  • The batter looks alarmingly thin when you add the coffee, but trust it, that's what makes the crumb so tender.
  • Let the ganache cool enough to thicken or it will slide right off the cake and pool on the plate.
  • Watch the caramel like a hawk, it goes from amber to burnt in under 30 seconds.
03 -
  • Brew strong coffee for this, weak coffee won't amplify the chocolate the way it should.
  • Chill your ganache for 10 minutes if it's too runny, but pull it before it gets stiff or it won't spread smoothly.
  • Make extra praline because people will steal shards off the top before you even serve the cake.
  • If you don't have two pans, bake one layer at a time and keep the remaining batter at room temperature.
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