Peanut Butter Layer Cake

Today is my good friend Darryl's birthday. He likes to keep his birthdate a secret, so he's disguised his birthday party as a housewarming (though, that too is overdue). Similarly to last year, i like to spoil the surprise by bringing along a birthday cake. Last year was a hazelnut mudcake with ganache, and i pondered over how i could outdo that year's effort. And here it is: Three layers of peanut butter cake sandwiching a rich chocolate and peanut butter ganached. Cover the entire thing with rich chocolate ganache and garnish with chopped Picnic bars and you have 12 slices of rich ecstacy.

Ingredients

Cake

• 150gm butter
• 2 1/2 cups self raising flour
• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 450gm brown sugar
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 5 eggs 

Peanut Butter Ganache

• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 360gm dark chocolate
• 2 cups whipping cream
• 1/2 cup brown sugar

Icing

• 360gm dark chocolate
• 200ml double cream
• Chopped Picnic bars to garnish

Method

Cake

As you can see from the ingredients photo for the cake, i split each ingredient into three separate lots. This is because i only had one cake tin so i had to cook 3 separate cakes. If you have 3 identical cake tins feel free to make one large cake batch and divide into the 3 tins instead.

Preheat oven to 180 degrees.
Grease and flour your cake pan/s (i used an 8 inch springform tin)
In a large mixing bowl, combine the butter and peanut butter with an electric mixer

Add the sugar and beat until lighter in colour
Add the egg, bit by bit, until incorporated

Add the butter milk and flour bit by bit, interchanging but both starting and ending with the flour

Transfer the mixture to the cake tin and flatten out with a spatula

Transfer cake to oven and bake for 25-35 minutes, or until an inserted skewer comes out clean

Let sit in the pan for 5 minutes then transfer cake to a cooling rack.
Repeat above steps for 2 more cakes.
Let cakes cool to room temperature. 

Peanut Butter Ganache

Heat the sugar and cream in a small saucepan until lightly simmering

Remove from the heat and add the chopped chocolate, stirring until fully combined

Add the peanut butter and whisk through well
Transfer mixture to fridge and let cool completely

Assembly and Icing

 Put half of the peanut butter ganache ontop of the first cake and smooth out, leaving 1/2 inch around the edges.

Place the next cake ontop and repeat the above step.
Turn the last cake upside down and place on top of the stack. Turning the cake upside down helps give the cake a smooth, flat top.

Add the chopped chocolate and cream to a small saucepan and stir over low heat until chocolate and cream are melted and combined

Remove from heat and let sit for 10 minutes or until thickened
Pour the icing mixture ontop of the cake and smooth over the edges.

As the icing drips over the edge of the cake use a spatula to push the icing over the sides of the cake.

Top with the chopped picnic bars

As the icing sets you can smooth it out with the spatula to create a more even surface.