OREO Black Magic Cake

Name: OREO Black Magic Cake
Prep time: 50 min
Total time: 85 min
Yield: 20
Ingredients: ¾ cup butter, softened, divided; 2 cups black cocoa powder (See Tip.), divided; 16 OREO Cookies; 1½ cups flour; 1 tsp. salt; ¾ tsp. baking soda; ½ tsp. baking powder; 1½ cups coffee; 2 cups granulated sugar; ½ cup oil; 3 eggs; 1 cup sour cream; 1 Tbsp. vanilla, divided; 4½ cups powdered sugar; ½ cup milk; 16 Mini OREO Cookies

Spooky eyes will be watching you thanks to halved OREO Cookies, and those eyes make an easy decoration for this delicious homemade chocolate layer cake.

Prep time:

0 min

Total time:

0 h 0 min

Servings:

Makes 20 servings.

Ingredient list

¾ cup plus 2 Tbsp. butter, softened, divided
2 cups plus 2 Tbsp. black cocoa powder (See Tip.), divided
16 OREO Cookies
1½ cups flour
1 tsp. salt
¾ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. baking powder
1½ cups hot brewed strong coffee
2 cups granulated sugar
½ cup oil
3 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 Tbsp. vanilla, divided
4½ cups powdered sugar
½ cup milk
16 Mini OREO Cookies

Directions

Heat oven to 350°F.

Brush 1 Tbsp. butter evenly onto bottoms and up sides of 2 (9-inch) round pans. Cover bottoms of pans with parchment, then brush 1 Tbsp. of the remaining butter evenly onto parchment rounds.

Add 1 Tbsp. cocoa powder to each prepared pan; gently shake pan to evenly coat bottom of pan with cocoa powder, then tap bottom of inverted pan to remove excess cocoa powder.

Split regular OREO Cookies in half, leaving creme on one half of each cookie. Reserve creme-topped cookie halves for later use. Finely crush remaining cookie halves.

Combine flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder and 1/2 cup cookie crumbs. Add coffee to 1 cup of the remaining cocoa powder in small bowl; stir until dissolved.

Beat granulated sugar and oil in large bowl with mixer until blended. Add eggs; beat 2 to 3 min. or until light and fluffy. Blend in sour cream and 1 tsp. vanilla. Gradually beat in coffee mixture. Add flour mixture; beat just until blended.

Pour batter evenly into prepared pans.

Bake 30 to 35 min. or until toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean. Cool 10 min. Invert cakes onto wire racks; remove and discard parchment. Turn cakes over; cool completely.

Combine powdered sugar and remaining cocoa powder. Beat remaining butter in large bowl with mixer until light and fluffy. Add powdered sugar mixture and remaining vanilla; mix well. Gradually beat in milk.

Reserve 1/2 cup frosting for later use. Fill and frost stacked cake layers with remaining frosting.

Split Mini OREO Cookies in half, leaving creme on one half of each cookie.

Press large and small creme-topped cookie halves, creme sides up, into frosting around side of cake. Top each large cookie half with 1 of the plain mini cookie halves, securing pieces together with some of the reserved frosting. Add small dab of the remaining reserved frosting to center of each small cookie.

Sprinkle remaining cookie crumbs onto plate around bottom edge of cake.

Recipe Tips

Food FactsBlack cocoa powder is an ultra Dutch-process unsweetened cocoa powder which gives this cake its distinctive color and flavor. Look for it online or in specialty baking supply stores. If unavailable, you can instead use dark Dutch-process cocoa powder. Look for it in the baking section of your supermarket. Please note that if you prepare this cake using the dark Dutch-process cocoa powder, the finished cake will be a lighter color with a milder flavor.
To Make Strong CoffeeAdd 1 Tbsp. instant coffee granules to 1-1/2 cups boiling water; stir until dissolved.
Size-WiseEnjoy a serving of this indulgent cake on occasion, but keep portion size in mind. One cake makes enough for 20 servings.