Birthday Cake Club: Espresso Martini Cake

A fudgy espresso cake for our snow babies.

Baker’s Notes:

Espresso whipped mascarpone; coffee liqueur drizzle

Thick, fudgy chocolate; decadent yet light and fluffy

Hi Bakers!

This mammoth of a cake is my latest obsession. I was originally inspired by espresso martinis, using coffee and coffee liqueur throughout. Often we use a little bit of coffee or espresso powder to enhance the flavor of chocolate baked goods, but this time we want that rich coffee flavor. For something so bold, the fluffy mascarpone whip keeps things light while still being utterly decadent. Happy Birthday, my February snow babies!

Snow days as an adult are such a vibe - shoveling the walk, unlimited hot beverages, good tunes, and fresh air. Sure my littles were clambering to go outside since the moment they opened their bedroom windows to a thick blanket of snow. But after I chased down three pairs of long underwear-clad kids, fished out their ski bibs, and all six mittened hands were ready to go, it was a day of giggles and rosy-cheeks, post sledding highs, and blissful reflection. 

Our first snow of the season landed on a rare weekend with no plans. The kids busied themselves with snowmen and snow slides while I joined my brother shoveling the lane. With Soundgarden’s Superunknown on the Bluetooth speaker, nods of respect from passersby, and raised coffee mugs with neighbors as we fulfill our community duties, it's easy to romanticize these serene snow days. 

Little legs trudging in snow boots to get back to the top of the sled hill is what shoveling fresh snow is to an adult. An elevated heart rate, a touch of adrenaline followed by euphoric endorphins. As a California-native, shoveling snow always feels like a Canadian rite of passage. And let me tell you, shoveling fluffy snow is so satisfying. Not the packed, frozen stuff, but the light powdery kind that’s easily groomed like a sand zen garden. The stillness, the mountain air, the scrape of the shovel against the drive - it’s no wonder why we are all quick to volunteer for the task that feels more like meditative, low-cardio exercise than a chore.

But what’s a snow day without a cozy treat? While my three pink-nosed kids settled back in with hot cocoa and popcorn, I made this Espresso Martini Cake.

Three layers of fudgy chocolate cake are soaked in a coffee liqueur syrup and stacked with fluffy coffee mascarpone cream. It might be more tiramisu-leaning than martini as I don’t feel vodka belongs in a cake, but you’ll love it nonetheless. You can intensify the booze and coffee flavors to your own liking.

The coffee mascarpone cream is heaven on a spoon. It is light and pillowy but thicker than your typical whipped cream. It is not overly sweet and has a slight tang that offsets the rich chocolate cake. Be mindful of the mixing process so that you end up with cloud-like cream. Whipped too quickly or too vigorously, and you’ll risk breaking the mixture.