St. Patrick’s Day is upon us and that means it’s time for one of our favorite flavors, Grasshopper. Grasshoppers are a very popular cocktail for St. Patrick’s Day because of its green color from the crème de menthe. They can be made with and without crème de cacao, but everything is always better when you add chocolate to it. Who isn’t a fan of mint and chocolate? We’ve seen a lot of Grasshopper cakes that are made with chocolate cake and mint buttercream, however we wanted to change things up a little. The main flavor in a Grasshopper is the mint so we wanted that to be the most prominent part of the cake. Keeping in tradition we used crème de menthe to flavor the mint flavored cake. The liqueur also adds the prefect mint green color to the cake. We did add some green food coloring to the cake because we wanted it to have a deeper green color.
For the frosting we decided to change it up from our typical buttercream and do a whipped chocolate ganache. Whipped ganache is a really easy way to make frosting and the best thing about it, it only take two ingredients, chocolate chips and heavy cream. If you are a chocolate lover this is the frosting for you! The ganache will need to set for a while so it can firm up before you are able to whip it. We typically make the cake first before making the frosting but for this recipe we find it best to make the ganache first so it can set while you are baking the cakes. We loved how smooth the whipped ganache turner out and how easy it was to frost with.
We added one last element to this cake and that was Andes Mint chips. Unfortunately they did not have the chips at the store so we just bought regular Andes Mints and chopped them up. We put the Andres chips in both the cake batter and sprinkled between the layers.
We absolutley loved how this cake turned out! The creme de menthe made the cake so moist and flavorful and the whipped chocolate ganache was the perfect pairing and texture. We hope you enjoy this cake just as much as we did. Please share with us on the blog and Instagram if you make this cake. We love hearing from you! Happy baking!
Grasshopper Cake
Ingredients
- 2 cups flour
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2/3 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 2/3 cup egg whites
- 1 cup buttermilk room temperature
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 3-4 tbsp Creme de Menthe
- 1-2 tsp mint extract optional
- 3/4 cup Andes Mint Chips or chopped Andes Mints
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray three 6 inch pans with cooking spray and line bottom with parchment.
- In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt until combined.
- Cut butter into one inch cubes. With the mixer on low speed add the cubes of butter one at a time.
- Add the egg whites and continue to mix on low until incorporated.
- With the mixer still on low speed slowly pour in the buttermilk.
- Add the vegetable oil and vanilla. One tablespoon at a time add the Creme de Menthe till you reach the flavor you desire. We wanted our cake to have a strong mint flavor so we added all 4 tbsp of the Creme de Menthe and 2 tsp of mint extract. Once everything is added mix until fully combined and then stir in the Andes Mints.
- Divide the batter evenly between the three prepared pans.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Let the cakes cool in the pans for about 10 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Whipped Chocolate Ganache Frosting
Ingredients
- 12 ounces semisweet chocolate chip
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
Instructions
- Place the chocolate chips in a heat safe bowl. We like to use the bowl of our mixer so there is less clean up.
- In a small sauce pan heat the cream over medium high heat until it starts to form small bubbles around the edges. Be sure to keep an eye on it so it doesn't boil over. This can also be done in the microwave.
- Once the bubbles form remove the cream from the heat and pour it over the chocolate. Try and cover as much of the chocolate chips as you can. Let stand 3-5 minutes without stirring.
- Wisk the ganache by hand until completely smooth. Let the ganache set until it is firm but still soft. This can be done at room temperature or in the refrigerator and can take a few hours so plan accordingly.
- When the ganache has set, transfer to the bowl of a stand mixer. Whip at high speed until fluffy, about 3-4 minutes.
