Winter Wonderland Cake
Submitted by newfie
Amaretto-spiked chocolate cake layered with boozy whipped cream frosting and topped with handmade chocolate trees. A showstopping holiday centerpiece using a simple cake mix shortcut.
YIELD
1 cakePREP
30 minCOOK
55 minREADY
2 hrsThis cake looks like it belongs in a bakery window, but the secret is a box cake mix spiked with Amaretto that does most of the heavy lifting. The almond liqueur goes into both the batter and the whipped cream frosting, giving every layer a warm, nutty sweetness.
The real showpiece is the decoration. Melted chocolate gets spread thin on foil, chilled, then cut into little tree shapes with cookie cutters. Arranged on top of all that snowy white whipped cream, the effect is pure winter magic.
This is the holiday dessert that gets people pulling out their phones to snap pictures before anyone picks up a fork.
Pro Tips
- Chill your mixing bowl and beaters in the freezer for 15 minutes before whipping the cream for the stiffest peaks
- Spread the melted chocolate to an even thickness on foil so your tree cutouts are uniform
- If the chocolate cracks when cutting, let it warm just slightly at room temperature before trying again
- The full 4-hour chill time is key so the whipped cream frosting firms up and slices cleanly
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare cake as directed on box using ⅓ cup Amaretto in place of water in directions.
Bake in 2, 8 inch greased cake pans, following package directions.
Cool in pans 10 minutes.
Remove and continue to cool on racks. Even tops if necessary.
In a chilled deep bowl, beat cream, confectioner’s sugar until almost stiff, add ¼ cup Amaretto and beat until stiff.
Place one layer on serving plate and spread with 1 cup of cream mixture.
Top with second layer and frost.
Chill 4 hours. Melt chocolate morsels over hot water until smooth.
Spread in a ¼ inch thick layer on foil and chill until firm enough to cut.
With different size cookie cutters cut out trees from the chocolate.
If you don’t have a tree cutter you can make a pattern on cardboard, cut it out and trace onto chocolate.
Decorate top of cake with trees or you can place trees the same size over the sides of the cake and spinkle top with green sugar.
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