Description

Made with browned butter, cookie-infused buttermilk, mini chocolate chips, and brown sugar Swiss meringue buttercream, this chocolate chip cookie cake channels all the flavor we love in a chocolate chip cookie. A show-stopping, drool-worthy cake that everyone is going to love!

Ingredients

Scale

For the cookie buttermilk:

320 mL (1 1/3 cups) whole buttermilk, at room temperature
7 Chips Ahoy Original chocolate chip cookies, broken into large pieces

For the chocolate chip cookie cake:

313 gm (2 1/2 cups, spoon and leveled) all-purpose flour, plus 1 tablespoon for coating chocolate chips
80 gm (2/3 cup, spoon and leveled) cake flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
180 gm (3/4 cup, firmly packed) light brown sugar
150 gm (3/4 cup) granulated sugar
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon espresso powder or instant espresso granules
282 gm (1 1/4 cups) unsalted butter, browned, solidified, then softened to room temperature*
4 large eggs, at room temperature
320 mL (1 1/3 cups) cookie buttermilk, at room temperature
120 gm (1/2 cup) sour cream, at room temperature
1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
240 gm (1 cup) mini chocolate chips

For the brown sugar Swiss meringue buttercream:

8 large egg whites
268 gm (2 1/2 cups, lightly packed) light brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
565 gm (2 1/2 cups) unsalted butter, slightly softened but still cool**
2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract

For the chocolate ganache drip:

160 mL (2/3 cup) heavy cream
4 oz. quality semisweet or dark chocolate, finely chopped
Store-bought or homemade chocolate chip cookies for decoration
Flakey sea salt, optional

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Instructions

To make the cookie buttermilk:

First, make the cookie buttermilk. Combine the broken up cookie pieces and buttermilk in a medium-sized bowl or glass measuring cup and soak for 15 minutes. Pour the cookie-infused buttermilk into a separate bowl through a fine mesh sieve, gently pressing the milk through the sieve as needed with a rubber spatula or the back of a spoon and scraping any that accumulated on the underside of the sieve. Some of the cookies will have disintegrated into the milk, so it will be thicker. Discard the remaining cookies and set the cookie buttermilk aside.

To make the chocolate chip cookie cake:

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray three 8″ cake pans with non-stick baking spray and line the bottom of each with parchment paper. OPTION for getting even cake layers: to evenly divide the batter between the cake pans later in the recipe, weigh the empty bowl from your stand mixer and make a note of it.
Sift the all-purpose flour, cake flour, baking powder, and baking soda directly into the bowl of a stand mixer. Add the brown sugar, sugar, kosher salt, and espresso powder and whisk to combine.
Add 226 gm (1 cup) softened browned butter to the dry ingredients in 1 to 2 tablespoon pats. Using the paddle attachment on the stand mixer, mix the butter and dry ingredients together on low speed until the butter is evenly incorporated and the mixture looks like coarse sand.
In a separate bowl or glass measuring cup, whisk the eggs, cookie buttermilk, sour cream, and vanilla extract together. Add the wet ingredients to the flour/butter mixture in 3 additions, mixing on low speed after each addition just until the ingredients are incorporated. Be careful not to overmix. Use a rubber spatula to fold the batter a few times, being sure to reach down to the bottom of the bowl, to ensure that all the ingredients are incorporated to form a smooth batter.
Place the mini chocolate chips in a small bowl. Drizzle 1/2 teaspoon water over the chocolate chips and stir so that they’re all moistened. Next, sprinkle 1 tablespoon of flour over the moistened chips and stir until they’re evenly coated with flour. Transfer roughly 3/4 of the floured chocolate chips to the cake batter and gently fold into the batter using a rubber spatula.
OPTION for getting even cake layers: Weigh the bowl containing the cake batter. Now subtract the weight of the empty bowl that you noted at the beginning of the recipe from the weight of the bowl containing batter. Divide this number by 3 — this is how much batter to pour into each cake pan! Divide the cake batter evenly between the prepared pans. Sprinkle the remaining chocolate chips over the batter in each pan.
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean. Allow the cakes to cool in their pans for 5 minutes before inverting onto a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the brown sugar Swiss meringue buttercream:

Combine the egg whites, brown sugar, cream of tartar, and kosher salt in a heatproof bowl set over a pot filled with 2-inches of simmering water, being sure that the water does not touch the bowl with your ingredients. Whisk constantly until the sugar has dissolved and an instant read thermometer registers 160°F; this typically takes about 8 to 11 minutes.
Carefully transfer the egg white mixture to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whisk on high speed for 7 minutes; the mixture should look light and fluffy.
Reduce the mixer to medium-low speed. Add the butter, 1 to 2 tablespoons at a time, making sure each portion of butter is incorporated before adding the next. The mixture may start to look soupy, but that’s okay! Just keep adding. Once all the butter has been incorporated, increase the mixer to high speed and whip for 8 minutes, until the meringue is glossy and fluffy (if at some point the meringue starts to look grainy or broken, don’t worry, just keep mixing- it will come together!). Add the vanilla extract and briefly mix on high speed to combine. Use immediately on cooled cake layers.

Assembly + Chocolate ganache drip and decoration

Stack the cake layers. Place a small dollop of buttercream on the center of a cake turntable or cake stand. Place the bottom cake layer over the dollop of frosting and press gently to secure to the surface. Next, spoon roughly 2/3 cup buttercream onto the bottom cake layer and smooth into an even layer. Carefully place the next cake layer on top and gently press to adhere the two layers together. Repeat this process with the third cake layer.
Apply the crumb coat. To do this, apply a thin layer of frosting to the entire cake, smoothing with an offset spatula. Place the cake in the fridge for 20 to 30 minutes. This makes applying the final layer of frosting easier.
Apply the final layer of buttercream. Remove the cake from the fridge and use remaining buttercream to apply a final layer over the entire surface of the cake (for a smooth finish, I use a combination of an offset spatula and *icing smoother*). Place the cake back in the fridge while you prepare the chocolate ganache drip.
Make the chocolate ganache drip. Place the chopped chocolate in a medium-sized, heatproof bowl; set aside. In a small saucepan set over medium heat, warm the heavy cream just until the edges of the cream begin to simmer. Pour the warm heavy cream over the chopped chocolate and leave undisturbed for 2 minutes. Whisk the chocolate and cream until a smooth ganache forms. Set aside to thicken for 10 to 15 minutes before using on the cake.
Apply the chocolate ganache drip. Before applying to the cake, check the consistency of the ganache. It should be runny, but not so warm that it will melt the buttercream. If it’s too warm, leave it to cool a bit longer. If the ganache has cooled/ thickened too much, gently rewarm in the microwave for a few seconds. Transfer the ganache to a squirt bottle or piping bag. Hold the tip of the squirt bottle/ piping bag just above the outer edge of the cake and carefully add drips of chocolate along the entire outer edge of the cake. Next, use more chocolate ganache to “fill in” the top of the cake and gently smooth into an even layer with an offset spatula.
Decorate the cake using a combination of whole/ crushed up chocolate chip cookies (store-bought or homemade). Sprinkle the cookies with a bit of flakey salt, if desired. For clean cuts, allow the ganache to set before slicing.

Notes

*How to prepare the browned butter: To brown the butter, place the butter in a medium stainless steel saucepan set over medium-low heat. Allow the butter to melt and come to a boil, stirring constantly. As you continue to stir, you’ll hear the butter begin to make a crackling noise. Eventually, the crackling noise will subside and a foamy layer will surface to the top. Continue to stir constantly and watch the liquid butter underneath the foam go from yellow, to tan, to caramel-colored; the butter will become fragrant. Once you’ve reached this stage, pour the butter into a heatproof bowl, being sure to get all the brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Allow the browned butter to cool to room temperature before covering and placing in the fridge to solidify. Allow to soften to room temperature before baking.

**Butter for the Swiss meringue buttercream should be slightly softened, but still cool to touch. Setting the butter out for 30 to 40 minutes before making the buttercream will typically give you the right temperature and consistency for your butter.

Make ahead: Browned butter can be prepared and stored in the fridge for several days before making cake layers. Cake layers can be made 1 day in advance. Bake the cakes and allow them to cool, then wrap in a layer of plastic wrap, another layer of foil, and then store in an airtight container or gallon zip-top bag.