1/2 cup unsweetened Cocoa powder
1 1/4 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
1 teaspoon instant Coffee
A pinch of Salt
3 Eggs
1 cup Mayonnaise
1 cup Sugar
1 1/4 cup Water
1 teaspoon pure Vanilla Extract
1/2 cup Chocolate Chips
For the Chocolate Filling:
Use either your favorite store-bought chocolate frosting or your favorite homemade recipe, if you have one. If you need one for the filling – here’s a good and very easy recipe. This is for a full entire cake (not just for cake filling) so suggest cutting the recipe in half and adjusting the sugar and chocolate content to your taste. Use the filling/frosting when making the cake in 2 pans.
For the Dark Chocolate Ganache (use milk chocolate if that is preferred):
4 oz Dark eating Chocolate (65-70%), broken into pieces
4 oz Heavy Cream
1 Tablespoon Honey, Corn, Agave or Maple syrup or your favorite liquid sweetener (adjust sweetness to taste)
Preheat the oven to 350F. Butter 2 round cake pans (9-inch ones) and line with parchment paper. Mix together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, coffee and salt in a bowl. Set aside. Add the eggs, mayonnaise, sugar, water and vanilla into the flour mixture. Stir until well-blended but do not overmix. Fold in the chocolate chips. Transfer the batter to the prepared pans. Bake in the preheated oven for 20-23 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Oven temperatures vary so adjust the time accordingly. Cool the cakes in the pans for 10 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack. Cool the cakes completely before adding the chocolate filling and coating with the ganache. For the Dark Chocolate Ganache: Place the heavy cream, chocolate pieces and the liquid sweetener of your choice in a small saucepan. Melt the chocolate using low heat and by stirring until it becomes very smooth and shiny. Remove from the heat and immediately drizzle/pour it on the cake spreading it evenly to cover the entire cake. Allow the ganache to fully set before serving.