Last weekend we had a birthday to celebrate. I asked JP what kind of cake we should make and he said mint chocolate chip. It’s their favorite ice cream flavor. So off to Pinterest I went to find a recipe.
I decided to try this recipe from Bunsen Burner Bakery. I made a few substitutions and it turned out really good! I’ve never really paid attention when recipes call for room temperature eggs or other liquids. Apparently it really does matter so maybe from now on I’ll follow directions.
Substitutions
It’s been quite some time now that I have substituted coconut sugar for any type of sugar, white or brown. If a recipe calls for both I do equal parts. For example, if it calls for 1 cup of white and 1 cup of brown I use 2 cups of coconut.
Another substitution that I use is for oil. I don’t use vegetable oil for anything. In baking I substitute in unsweetened applesauce. I stay away from any added sugars so to me applesauce should just be apples or with cinnamon added. I’ve used plain or with cinnamon and the cinnamon doesn’t effect taste. Again, this is an equal part substitution.
While I’ve used several healthier swaps for quite some time now a new one is diary. I’m not totally eliminating cow diary. We do use raw milk direct from a farm. For cheeses I try and use raw or goat. Whole foods has sliced goat cheese for sandwiches and shredded too. For the frosting on this recipe I did use coconut heavy cream. I still used the buttermilk but I guess I at least reduced the amount of dairy.
Another ingredient I try hard to stay away from is food dyes. I don’t often have an occasion to add them so haven’t tried many replacements. This was my first time using matcha powder. You’ll notice it’s not as vibrant but I don’t think any food has too have a fake color. Just let food have it’s natural color! I’m the only one who knew what I did. Joe licked the bowl and has loved the cake. JP isn’t crazy about the frosting. He licked a beater and said he didn’t like it. I said when it it’s on the cake it will be good. He is still eating a little of it but said it tastes like grass. I thought that was so interesting because he has no idea what matcha is or what it tastes like. We don’t taste anything different than a normal frosting so you try and be the judge.
Other notes
If you are looking at my versions there are a few other minor tweaks I made. I used cacao and not cocoa power. Cacao powder is the raw, less processed form of chocolate. It retains some nutrients while the more processed cocoa loses that. I also have powdered vanilla instead of liquid extract. I use that in a 1 to 1 ratio. Another minor change is the mint extract in the frosting. I just ran out…lol! I didn’t even have quite enough for the cake but it was what it was. It was honestly the perfect amount though. I think if I would have had the full tsp. and also had it in the frosting it would have been too much.
Mint Chocolate Chip Cake
Adapted from Bunsen Burner Bakery with a couple of my substitutions
Ingredients
- 2 3/4 cups (330 grams) organic all-purpose flour
- 3 cups (596 grams) organic coconut sugar
- 1 cup (84 grams) natural unsweetened cacao powder
- 1 tablespoon baking soda
- 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups (341 grams) organic buttermilk, room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups (341 grams) organic hot coffee
- 3/4 cup (149 grams) organic unsweetened applesauce
- 2 teaspoons organic pure ground vanilla powder
- 1 teaspoon mint extract
- 1 cup (226 grams) organic unsalted butter, room temperature
- 4 cups (454 grams) organic confectioners’ sugar
- 1/4 cup (57 grams) organic coconut heavy cream
- 1/4 teaspoon pink Himalayan salt
- 1- tsp organic matcha powder, optional
- 1 mint candy bar, chopped
For the Frosting:
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a 9 x 13-inch metal baking pan with parchment paper, then grease or spray with nonstick baking spray.
- Make the Cake Batter: In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In a separate smaller bowl, whisk together the eggs, buttermilk, coffee, oil, vanilla extract, and mint extract. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and whisk by hand or on low speed using an electric mixer until combined and no dry streaks of flour or cocoa powder remain. The batter will be thin.
- Bake the Cake: Transfer the batter to the prepared pan. Bake for 33 to 36 minutes or until a tester inserted into the cake comes out with a moist crumb. Set the cake in the pan on a wire rack and cool completely.
- Make the Mint Buttercream Frosting: Cream the butter using an electric mixer on medium high speed until pale yelllow and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Add 1 cup of the confectioners’ sugar and one tablespoon of the heavy cream. Turn the mixer to high and mix for one minute. Add another cup of the confectioners’ sugar and a tablespoon of the heavy cream, turn the mixer back on to high and mix for one minute. Repeat until all the sugar and cream have been added. Add the salt, and matcha and mix on high for one additional minute. If the frosting is too dry, add an additional tablespoon or two of heavy cream; if the frosting is too runny, add an additional tablespoon or two of confectioners’ sugar to achieve the ideal consistency.
- Frost the Cake: Spread the frosting on the fully cooled cake using an offset spatula. Swirl the frosting using the back of a spoon and decorate chopped chocolate.
Thanks Bunsen Burner Bakery for the great recipe and I hope my substitution notes can help someone else!
Welcoming Sentiments 
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