Grasshopper Ombré Cake
Based on the chocolate mint cocktail, this Grasshopper Ombré Cake features mint layers and is covered in mint frosting and chocolate ganache!
Servings: 16 servings
Calories: 770kcal
Equipment
- Squeeze bottle (or small piping bag or spoon; to add ganache drip)
- small piping bag + star tip (optional; for decorating)
Ingredients
Grasshopper Ombre Cake layers
- 3 ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 3 cup granulated sugar
- 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter (or 2 sticks, room temperature)
- 1 cup egg whites (about 7 eggs; you can use egg whites from a carton to avoid wasting the yolks)
- 1 cup buttermilk (room temperature)
- 2 teaspoons clear vanilla extract
- ½ cup Crème de Menthe liqueur
- 2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
- 4-6 drops green gel food color (Save & add later; I used Americolor Leaf Green)
Mint Cream Cheese frosting
- 8 ounces cream cheese (one package; softened)
- 1 cup butter (two sticks, softened)
- 6 cups powdered sugar
- 2-4 Tablespoons Creme de Menthe liqueur
- 1/4 teaspoon salt (if using unsalted butter)
- 4-6 drops green gel food color (Save and add later to color frosting for decorating)
Ganache drip & decorations
- 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips (12 ounces)
- 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream (12 ounces)
- 2 mint dark chocolate bars
- 10-12 Andes Mints (or a few more if you tend to eat them as you're baking like I sometimes do... ; ) )
Instructions
Grasshopper Ombre Cake layers
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare three 8-inch round pans with baker's floured spray (or grease and line with parchment rounds).
- Mix together all dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt) in a stand mixer with a paddle (or mixing bowl with a hand mixer or whisk) until fully combined.
- Mix bits of room-temperature butter slowly into the dry mix, on a low speed. Continue to mix until no large chunks of butter remain, and the mixture looks crumbly.
- Pour in egg whites, and mix on low until just incorporated. Combine the Crème de Menthe, buttermilk, and vanilla, and mix in on a low speed. Add in oil, and beat at a low speed until fully incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula, then beat on medium speed for about 30 seconds.
- Divide batter evenly between three bowls (I find a kitchen scale helpful for this part). Color each bowl a progressively darker shade of green. I used about 1 small drop of gel color for the top layer, 2 for the second layer, and 3-4 for the base layer. Pour into the prepared cake pans.
- Bake for 34-37 minutes (or until a toothpick comes out clean). Allow cake layers to cool for 10-15 minutes on a wire cooling rack before removing from pans. Cool completely before frosting. Set in the fridge or freezer to accelerate the cooling process if desired. (This is a great time to make your frosting and ganache!)
- Once the layers have fully cooled, the caramelized bits can be trimmed from the sides / top of the cake using a serrated knife if desired. Be sure the layers are completely cooled or chilled before trimming - otherwise they may crumble or break.
Mint Cream Cheese frosting
- Beat together softened cream cheese and butter; slowly add in powdered sugar alternating with Creme de Menthe until frosting reaches desired consistency. Add salt if needed and beat until well combined.
Ganache (for filling and drip)
- Place chocolate chips in a heat-proof bowl. Add whipping cream and microwave on half power for 30-second intervals, stirring in between until completely melted and smooth. Reserve about 1 cup for cake drip; place the rest into the fridge until it's semi-solid (so it can be used to fill the cake!)
Assembly
- Place the darkest green cake layer on your cake circle (I like to anchor my base layer with a smear of frosting so it doesn’t slide while I’m decorating). Pipe a ring of frosting around the outside of the cake layer (to keep the ganache from showing on the outside of the cake) and spread chocolate ganache over the layer. Repeat the process with your second cake layer, and place the final layer on top. Note – make sure you reserve at least 1/3-1/2 c of ganache to use for the drip!
- Use frosting to crumb-coat your cake (if you're unfamiliar with crumb-coating, it's just what it sounds like - spread a thin layer of frosting to keep cake crumbs out of your outermost frosting layer). Chill cake in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes (or 10 in the freezer) to set the crumb coat.
- While your cake is chilling, divide your remaining frosting into thirds and color the same way you did your cake layers - progressively darker shades of green. (I made my largest third the darkest green so I'd have some leftover to use for decorating.) Once the crumb coat is set, you're ready to frost your cake - I found it easiest to pipe on the colored frosting layers and smooth with a bench scraper. Set your cake in the fridge to prep the cake for the ganache drip - I've found drips to set the best on a chilled cake.
Cake drip
- Okay – ganache drip time! Allow ganache to cool to a moderate temperature – it should feel slightly warm and still be fairly liquid. Transfer to a squeeze bottle or piping bag. (A spoon will work; I've just found spoons to be a little bit more difficult to work with.)
- Slowly drizzle ganache around the upper edge of your cake, pausing every inch or so to let more ganache fall in a drip down the side of the cake. Return cake to the fridge or freezer to set the drips.
Decorating
- Break chocolate bars into triangular pieces and arrange on the top of the cake - I used small swirls of green frosting to anchor them in place. Place the largest pieces at the back and work your way forward, adding chocolate pieces and Andes mints. (I covered about half of the cake, leaving an open space to pipe some lettering and wish the cake recipient a happy birthday!)
- Add the smallest broken chocolate pieces around the rim of the cake, covering the rim of the cake top.
- And you're done! Step back and admire your cake - and enjoy!
Video
Notes
(Please note nutrition information is an estimate and may not be exactly accurate.)
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 770kcal | Carbohydrates: 99g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 39g
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