Blackout Cake
- Total Time
- 3 hours plus chilling
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:1 cake
- ½cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa
- ¼cup boiling water
- 2ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
- ¾cup milk
- 2cups sugar
- 2sticks unsalted butter, slightly softened, plus 2 tablespoons for the cake pans
- 4eggs, separated
- 2teaspoons vanilla
- 2cups flour, plus 1 tablespoon for the cake pans
- 1teaspoon baking powder
- 1teaspoon salt
- 1teaspoon baking soda
- 2tablespoons unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa
- 2cups boiling water
- ¾cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1ounce bittersweet chocolate, chopped
- ¼cup cornstarch
- 1tablespoon cold water
- ¼teaspoon salt
- 1teaspoon vanilla
- 2tablespoons butter
- 12ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
- ¾cup unsalted butter
- ½cup hot water
- 1tablespoon corn syrup
- 1tablespoon vanilla
For the Cake
For the Filling
For the Frosting
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (16 servings)
577 calories; 34 grams fat; 20 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 10 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 69 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams dietary fiber; 50 grams sugars; 6 grams protein; 314 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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- Step 1
Heat the oven to 375 degrees.
- Step 2
To make the cake, place the cocoa in a small bowl and whisk in the boiling water to form a paste. Combine the chocolate and milk in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir frequently as the mixture warms and the chocolate melts, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat. Whisk a small amount of the heated chocolate milk into the cocoa paste and then whisk the cocoa mixture into the milk mixture. Return to heat, stir for one minute, remove and cool until tepid.
- Step 3
In the bowl of a mixer, cream the sugar and butter together. Beat in the egg yolks one at a time and add the vanilla. Slowly stir in the chocolate mixture.
- Step 4
Combine the flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda. Using a spatula or a wooden spoon, slowly add the flour mixture to the chocolate mixture. In another bowl, whip the egg whites to form soft peaks and, using a rubber spatula, gently fold the egg whites into the batter.
- Step 5
Butter and lightly flour two 8-inch round cake pans and divide the batter between the two pans. Bake for 45 minutes and cool on a rack for 15 minutes. Gently remove the cakes from the pans and continue to cool.
- Step 6
While the cake is baking, make the filling. Put the cocoa into a saucepan and pour in the boiling water and place over low heat. Add the sugar and chocolate. Dissolve the cornstarch in the cold water to make a smooth paste. Whisk the cornstarch into the water and chocolate, add the salt and bring it to a boil, stirring constantly. Boil for one minute.
- Step 7
Remove the pan from the heat, whisk in the vanilla and the butter, and transfer the mixture to a bowl and refrigerate until cool.
- Step 8
Make the frosting. In a double boiler, melt the chocolate. Remove from heat and whisk in the butter, one tablespoon at a time, returning to heat if necessary to melt the butter.
- Step 9
Whisk in the hot water all at once and stir until smooth. Whisk in the corn syrup and the vanilla. Refrigerate for 20 to 30 minutes before using.
- Step 10
Assemble the cake. Use a sharp knife to slice each cake into two disks to form four layers. Set one layer aside. Place one layer on a cake round or plate. Generously swath the layer with filling. Add the second layer and repeat. Add the third layer. Quickly apply a layer of frosting to the top and the sides of the cake and refrigerate for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, crumble the remaining cake layer. Apply a second layer of frosting to the cake, press cake crumbs into the top and sides of the cake, and serve within 24 hours. Store in a cool place.
Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
George Gollin
My mother grew up in Brooklyn, and would buy herself a treat from Ebinger's on her way home from school on Fridays ~1942. So I pointed her towards this story and made the cake as a treat: she is 89, and we have all moved away from the east, due to jobs and extended families. New York bakeries have become remote abstractions for us, though Champaign is a cultural mini-oasis. This is a good recipe, easy to make, and on a par with Ruth Reichl's Giant Chocolate Cake. Five stars.
Jeff
The two times you're instructed to "make a paste": Not enough liquid. It just seizes up. Forget the measurement and add just enough to actually make a thin paste. Also the refrigeration time on the frosting is too short. It needs to stiffen enough to be able to spread. If you follow the recipe, it will just pour. So allow enough time for it to thicken, stirring it occasionally. Five minutes at a time in the freezer if necessary. We loved this cake, it was beautiful and delicious!
Declan
Any reason this wouldn't work if you dumped the whole batch into a bundt pan?
Merla
try using boiling coffee rather than boiling water. It will enhance the chocolate
Leading Edge Boomer
A US stick of butter is 8 tablespoons or 118 milliliters. By weight, a US stick is 0.25 pounds, or 113 grams. Hope this helps.
Jacqueline Vlaming
8 inch cake pans are too small; use 9 inch.
Donna S.
Outstanding! My 72 year old uncle reminisces about the original all the time. I finally decided to give it a try. Although it took me several hours with the help of my son and husband, the end result was worth the effort. My uncle said it was just like the original, just not quite as dark. The taste was exceptional, as was the texture of each part. If you are from Brooklyn, or know someone who remembers this cake, give it a try. It is like going back in time.
TriciaPDX
Read the head notes: "This recipe isn't authentic (the Ebinger family never shared the original recipe with the public)..." Although it's interesting that you're part of the Ebinger legacy, it's snarky to say this cake isn't the real one. The disclaimer was already made, and it was rather more gracious than yours.
Nancy
Only problem with this recipe (good as it is) is that the original Ebinger's Blackout cake used the same pudding mixture for a filling and a frosting. Makes it a bit messier but tastes wonderful. Compare with the version at http://www.hungrybrowser.com/phaedrus/m011403.htm#1
Chiffonade
That is absolutely true - Gale Gand's recipe mimics the pudding and she uses it as both a filling and frosting. I have made her version and it's amazing. http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/brooklyn-blackout-cake-recipe-1909079
delicious chocolate cake!
I read a number of negative reviews that almost prevented me from baking this cake but I’m glad did. I haven’t eaten at the famous Brooklyn bakery so can’t speak to authenticity but it’s a solid chocolate cake that children and adults enjoyed. I skipped crumbing the outside so I baked in 3 9” pans (25 minutes). I used 3T if water instead of 1T to dilute the cornstarch. To finish the cake, after the crumb coat set, I poured warmed icing on the top and used an offset to drip it down the sides.
Christine
I made this cake, and while the cake came out excellent, so yummy!! the filling and frosting were terrible. Too much water! Who puts water in a frosting? It never firmed up, I ended up adding 10XX sugar and cream, whipped it up. Then it was fine, but the filling went down the disposal. As a Brooklyn girl who remembers this cake vividly, this was not it.
Lorraine Fina Stevenski
Growing up on Long Island, my family gathered for Sunday dinner every week. Aunts, Uncles and Cousins came from miles around to keep our family tradition. Aunt Marie lived in Brooklyn and brought the famous Black Out Cake from Ebinger's in a white box wrapped with string. We all enjoyed the cake and I have delicious memories of this cake being moist, chocolate-y and very sweet. There were no leftovers. To recreate it? Maybe not. Remember it. Yes.
Euphemia Thompson
I grew up in Brooklyn and lived on this cake. Theirs, the ORIGINAL Ebinger's, was NEVER "slathered" in chocolate frosting. The original presentation until the day they closed (and had a brief resurgence in Bay Ridge in the early '80s) was chocolate pudding layers between the devil's food cake. period.
Jacqueline
8 inch cake pans are too small. Use 9".
Veronica
Not for the faint of heart! The recipe worked great with the adjustments in the comments: when asked to make a paste, add the liquid YOU need to make a paste. I halved the recipe and baked in 6in pans for 27 min — my oven runs low. The cake is on the dry side, but the filling and frosting make up the moisture. To avoid the filling running out, shave the top/bottom of the cake layers. It'll stay put after the first frost. This is a dense, rich cake, and the people I gave it to loved it!
Sarah
Unfortunately I had a lot of issues with this. Checked the cake at 25 minutes and it was burnt and had fallen despite the oven temp being set correctly. The filling turned out velvety smooth with a nice taste; however, after following chilling instructions I stirred it and a skin had formed, rendering it lumpy. The filling was too loose and the cake layers slid all over the place making a mess. I didn’t attempt the frosting. The flavor of the cake was overly sweet and pretty unremarkable.
Ricard Griffin
The cake looked good, but the frosting never thickened and it ran all my plate. Should I have added powdered sugar?
Euphemia Thompson, Brooklyn NY
I grew up eating this cake. There is NO "frosting" -- the filling and outer were made of 100% pudding. I applaud the idea behind this -- but omit the frosting and iincrease by 1/2 the filling so you can make something as close to the original as possible.
wendy
Corn syrup? This is something I never have. Will Agave substitute?
Katie
This cake has been recommended as one I can freeze for later serving. Mia’s anyone done that? If so, any advice?
wendy
Cut into individual servings, wrap and freeze. Take out as needed :-)
JoAnna
Incredible amount of effort for such an abysmal payoff. My father was raised on Ebbingers and the blackout was his favorite. This was not it. The cakes were dry and the perimeter was overcooked. The filling came together perfectly but after cooling became gelatinous and chunky. It was also way too sweet and lacked flavor or depth. It was nothing like the “hard pudding film” texture my father remembered. The frosting needing an hour to set up and hardened to an awful texture. So disappointing.
Terrible-Dry, No Flavor
This is not a good chocolate cake recipe!! If you follow the baking time it overbakes the cake, the pudding is too sweet and the frosting is a runny mess. Save your ingredients and make a different chocolate cake. What a disappointment.
Brian
I'm no baker, but I can usually follow a recipe. Like some of you others, I baked the cake too long (at only 40 min, and I'm pretty sure my oven is accurate temp-wise). And the filling/frostings came out WAY too thin. Those mistakes aside, we tasted the cake where it was not overcooked and the frosting was a decent thickness, an we didn't even love it enough to want to try again. Oh well, on to the next!
julie
Molly O’Neill worked at the Times in 1991? Great detective work, Molly. You’d be so pleased to see this revival of this project of yours 31 years later.
Min Yoongi
I grew up with Ebingers, everytime we visited family and my mother didn't want to bake Ebingers it was. Oh this pulls at my heartstrings. Thank you for sharing.
GC
Hi! This cake deserves a resurgence! I made it this week for my brother's birthday. It is delicious!! My husband called it "pre-nutritional" since it seems to be from a time when cake was only made to be delicious, without regard for other concerns. And it is delicious! Rich, interesting, with creamy pudding filling, dark cake and a gloss of shiny frosting. I did not coat whole thing in crumbs because looked nice with just frosting dripping down but was still over the top and glorious! Enjoy!!!!
Tish
Disappointed. I baked the cake for 35 minutes and it was already overdone. There was insufficient rise in the center to be able to slice the disc in half. The filling was meh. The frosting was very liquidy, and tasted so-so. Expensive cake to bake given the amount of chocolate that went into it. Agree with others that "paste" needed an additional Tbsp of water.
Janet
How about a metric version?
Euphemia Thompson, Brooklyn NY
Debby
Oh the memories. The blackout cake was for special occasions in my house, I remember going with my father to get one, I can still see the shop in my mind's eye. At one grown-up affair my young cousins and I were bribed with the cake so we would stay in the kitchen, it was fine with us. A friend fondly remembers the balls of string that were above the heads of the salespeople on a sort of pulley so they could pull the string down to tie up the box.
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