Fiery Chocolate Torte

A while ago, Jesse wanted to take something into work, but he didn’t really know what.  I had just gotten the Simple Sweet cookbook from the Pampered Chef, so I had him browse through it.  He ended up coming across this recipe and kept coming back to it. I don’t have much of a spice tolerance, so I was iffy on it, but I’ll admit to being curious to see how it would turn out.

I’m not sure if I messed up my measurements with the cayenne pepper or not, but this definitely came out spicy.  The recipe calls for 1/2 tsp of cayenne pepper in the cake mix and 1/4 tsp in the frosting and I can’t remember if I did use the teaspoon or if I grabbed the tablespoon instead.  For me (and I heard for others as well), the cake was a bit too spicy, but I don’t want to change the measurements in case I did screw it up and the original ones are far better.  So, if you do try this, just be warned that it may end up spicier than you think.

I did double the frosting recipe. There simply wasn’t enough to frost the entire cake. I don’t know if I made mine too thick or what, but be advised that it’s already been doubled once.  One thing I would recommend is letting the frosting cool a little before attempting to frost the cake.  It’ll make it a little easier to spread.

I’m not sure what size box of devil’s food cake I used, but I didn’t measure out the amount.  According to the recipe, it says to use 1 – 9oz package of devils food cake or 1-3/4 cups of an 18.25oz box; I’m not sure how much of a difference this made to the recipe.

The cake itself, aside from the spiciness, was pretty good.  If the spice was cut back a little, I would definitely make it again.  However, I have to be honest, this is probably a recipe I won’t make again unless it’s requested.  I’m just not a fan of spicy chocolate.

Ingredients:
Cake
1 (9oz) package of devil food cake mix
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tsp ground cayenne pepper
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 egg

Frosting
2 (8oz) pkgs cream cheese, softened
2 cup powdered sugar
4 tsp cinnamon
2 (12oz) container frozen whipped topping, thawed, divided
2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 tsp ground cayenne pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray two torte pans with nonstick cooking spray and dust with flour.
2. In a mixing bowl, combine ingredients for cake; beat on medium-high speed with electric hand mixer 2-3 minutes or until smooth. Divide batter equally between pans, spreading evenly to edges.
3. Bake 10-12 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in centers come otu clean. Remove pans from oven to a cooling rack; cool 5 minutes. Invert one cake onto serving platter. Invert second cake onto cooling rack. Cool completely.
4. In a mixing bowl, combine cream cheese, powdered sugar and cinnamon; whisk until smooth. Fold in 2-1/2 cups of the whipped topping. Place one cake layer well-side up onto serving platter. Spread half of the filling over cake layer. Stakck remaining cake layer on top of first, well-side up; spread with remaining filling.
5. Combine remaingin whipped topping, chocolate chips and cayenne pepper in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave, uncovered, on high 40-60 seconds or until melted, stirring every 20 seconds. Whisk until chocolate is thickened, smooth and glossy. Frost torte with frosting.

Nutrional Info: 360 calories; 22g total fat; 11g saturated fat; 30mg cholesterol; 39g carbohydrates; 5g protein; 200mg sodium; 2g fiber.
Diabetic exchanges: 2 starch, 1/2 fruit, 4 fat (2-1/2 carb)