Get your tall glasses of chilled milk ready! These mini, rich, and indulgent cakes are a chocoholic's delight! Add these to your baking repertoire for a special / romantic occasion for that extra WOW factor.

Step 1: Gather Cake Ingredients, Tools, and Prep

Recipe

1/4 cup (56g) (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
2/3 cup (150g) golden brown sugar (packed)
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup (60ml) boiling water
1 ounce semisweet or bittersweet chocolate (no more than 61% cacao), chopped
1/4 cup (20g) natural unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup (60ml) buttermilk
2/3 cup (85g) cake flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt

Tools

12in x 16in jelly roll pan
2 medium bowls (1 nonreactive, such as Pyrex)
1 large bowl
Whisk
Rubber spatula
Electric mixer
Parchment paper
Cooling racks
Cookie cutter (2.75" diameter)
Cake tester (a toothpick)
Measuring cups (or food scale)
Measuring spoons
Offset spatula
Knife
Cutting board

Preparation

Set butter out at room temperature for 20 minutes, allowing it to soften
Preheat oven to 350°
Line pan with parchment paper. Add butter to top of parchment paper
- Adding a little butter between pan and paper helps keep the paper in place

Step 2: Make the Cake: Cream Mixture

Instructions

Using an electric mixer, beat brown sugar and butter in large bowl until well blended (small, consistent lumps)
Add egg and vanilla
Beat until light and creamy, set cream mixture aside

Step 3: Make the Cake: Chocolate Mixture

Instructions

Boil water
Chop chocolate and combine with cocoa powder in medium, nonreactive bowl
Pour boiling water into chocolate and cocoa powder mixture, whisk until smooth
Whisk in buttermilk until combined

Step 4: Make the Cake: Final Mixture

Instructions

Pour chocolate mixture into cream mixture. Beat until combined
In medium bowl, whisk flour, baking soda, and salt together
Add flour mixture to cream and chocolate mixture to complete cake batter. Beat until flour disappears and no lumps exist. Do not overmix (cake will become too dense)

Step 5: Make the Cake: Bake It!

Instructions

Transfer cake batter into prepared pan. Spread with offset spatula
Bake cake until cake tester (toothpick) comes out clean (about 10-12 minutes)
Cool cake on cooling racks

Step 6: Make the Cream Filling!

Recipe

1 cup (240ml) heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup (30g) powdered (confectioners) sugar*
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

*Note: Powdered sugar features corn starch, which stabilizes the cream (do not substitute granular sugar)

Tools

Medium bowl
Electric mixer
Rubber spatula
Measuring cups (or food scale)
Measuring spoons
Piping bag or ziploc bag (quart or larger)
Scissors

Instructions

Optional: Chill whisk beater and medium bowl (helps the cream whip-up faster)
Add cream, sugar, and vanilla into bowl
Beat on medium high speed until cream begins to thicken, then lower to medium speed until stiff peaks form

Step 7: Make the Ganache!

Recipe

3/4 cup (180ml) heavy whipping cream
1 cup (180g) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips

Tools

Medium bowl (nonreactive, such as Pyrex)
Whisk
Rubber spatula

Instructions

Bring heavy whipping cream to a simmer in heavy small saucepan*
Place chocolate chips into medium, nonreactive bowl
Pour simmered cream over chocolate chips and stir gently with whisk until smooth
- Important: To ensure a smooth finish, do not incorporate air into the ganache
Let ganache cool for about 15 minutes
- If you wait too long and the ganache is not pourable, simply reheat

*Note: A heavy saucepan transfers heat evenly (less likely to burn cream). Thin pans tend to heat unevenly, which can cause cream to burn.

Step 8: Assemble the Cake!

Instructions

When the cake has completely cooled, use a cookie cutter to cut out cake layers
- Cookie cutter edges may need to be wiped every 3 cuts to prevent cake from sticking
Transfer whipped cream into ziplock bag, then cut off a corner
Place cooling rack on top of cookie sheet (the cookie sheet will collect excess ganache)
Build the cake layers on cooling rack (cake, pipe on the cream, cake, cream, cake)
Using a knife, clean up the whipped cream (making cream flush with edge of cake)
Using a knife, spread thin layer of cooled ganache onto the side of the cake
- The goal here is to trap crumbs (it doesn't need to look beautiful)
Let cakes rest for 5-10 minutes, or until ganache is set
Pour a generous amount of ganache over the top of cakes
Using a knife, gently push some ganache off the top, allowing it to spill over edges
- Do not use a knife on the sides - Allow ganache to flow down freely to maintain a clean, crisp look
To help ganache cover sides of cake, carefully lift and tap cookie sheet down on table surface
Let cakes rest for about 20 minutes, ensuring excess ganache has dripped off.
- Transfer to container or plate, then place in fridge to allow ganache to fully firm

Step 9: Make Decorations: Whipped Ganache

Tools

Electric mixer
Piping bag and tip (Wilton 1M)
Rubber spatula

Instructions

Using an electric mixer, whip the extra room temperature ganache to make it pipable
- If over-whipped, just warm it up a little, let it cool to room temperature, and re-whip - See picture for reference
Place whipped ganache in piping bag and pipe onto cakes

Step 10: Make Decorations: White Chocolate Hearts

Tools

Parchment paper
Microwavable bowl
Rubber spatula
Offset spatula
Heart shaped cookie cutter

Instructions

Microwave 1/8 cup (25g) white chocolate chips for about 45 seconds or until melted
Spread onto parchment paper using offset spatula
Let cool for 45 seconds. If chocolate cools too long, it may become too brittle
Once the white chocolate hearts have set, place onto cakes