Chocolate Walnut Potato Cake with Chocolate Ganache Frosting

Just when you think there are no more original potato recipes to be made, along comes 40-plus bloggers to save the day.  The new potato recipe day, that is.

The rules for participating in this challenge were simple.  Use any kind of potato you wish, but you must create an original dish.  And, no…..we didn’t have to be a poet to participate.  That’s just a bonus.  LOL.

As for the potato recipe, I immediately knew the one I wanted to use.  You see, back in the day, my mom was one of the best cooks in the county.  Ask anybody in our small town and you’ll surely get an ear full.   They’ll just go on and on about her cakes, pies, and sweet tea.  

But that was a long time ago and mom doesn’t bake anymore.  In fact, when she moved to assisted living, I brought all of her old recipes home with me.

One day, as I was thumbing through the box, it broke my heart to see how the pages of every book were crumbling and the words….fading.  Over the years, Mom had made these recipes thousands of times.  Anytime there was a church social, family gathering, funeral, wedding, or sickness.  Mom’s delicious dishes were always there.  So I knew that somehow, though the pages are now failing, the memories had to be alive and well.  ……They just had to be.  

So, I put out a little feeler on social media to see if anybody in my hometown would be interested in having a copy of mom’s old recipe.  The response was amazing.  

And so, the deciphering began.

I pulled what I could from the scribbles on the crumbling brown notepad and the rest from my own memory of hanging with her in the kitchen.  The result is this super-delicious dark chocolate cake made with leftover mashed potatoes.

But, before we head over to the recipe card, let’s do a quick run-though just so you can see how this cake comes together in the bowl.

First, you’ll want to bring all of the ingredients to room temperature, then combine the wet ingredients together (butter and sugar first), followed by the dry ingredients.  After all ingredients are mixed together, including the finely chopped walnuts, the batter will be quick-whipped to the texture of a mousse.  The key is to add air to the batter very quickly without over beating, so please, please… kick the mixer to high and let’er rip.  The batter should change from a batter texture to a near-mousse texture rather quickly (in about 30 seconds or less).  Then, immediately transfer the batter to the baking pans and pop them into the pre-heated oven.

Chocolate Walnut Potato Cake with Chocolate Ganache Frosting

2016-03-06 20:41:57

Serves 10

A delicious dark chocolate cake filled with walnuts and spices and frosted with a rich chocolate ganache.

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Prep Time

1 hr

Cook Time

1 hr

Total Time

2 hr

Prep Time

1 hr

Cook Time

1 hr

Total Time

2 hr

For the cake

1. 1 cup butter (2 sticks)
2. 2 cups sugar (granulated)
3. 1 & 1/3 cups leftover mashed Idaho or Russet potatoes (creamy, not stiff)
4. 4 eggs (well-beaten)
5. 3/4 cup buttermilk
6. 2 cups self-rising flour (White Lilly or other soft wheat flour)
7. 3/4 cup baking cocoa
8. 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
9. 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
10. 2 teaspoonfuls baking powder
11. 1 teaspoonful baking soda
12. 1/2 cup walnuts (finely chopped)
13. 1 cup of raisins (optional)
14. 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves (optional)

For the ganache

1. 1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
2. 1 and 1/2 cups sugar (granulated)
3. 2 heaping tablespoonfuls baking cocoa
4. 3/4 cup Half and Half

For the cake

1. Bring all ingredients to room temperature.
2. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
3. Prepare baking pans.
4. Once the mixing is started, work quickly to get the whipped batter into the oven.
5. Cream butter and sugar until fluffy.
6. Add mashed potatoes.
7. Add eggs.
8. Add buttermilk.
9. Using the gentle speed of the mixer, fold in the flour 1/2 cup at a time.
10. Fold in the cocoa, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
11. Fold in walnuts.
12. Add the baking powder and baking soda.
13. Turn mixer to high and whip the batter to a mousse-like texture (about 15-30 seconds).
14. Carefully scoop batter (so it isn't deflated) into baking pans (makes 2 - 9-inch layers or 3 smaller - 8-inch layers).
15. Immediately place all pans into preheated oven.
16. Bake until done, about 30 minutes for 9-inch pans and 20-25 minutes for 8-inch pans.

For the ganache

1. Melt butter in a stovetop pan.
2. Stir in sugar and cocoa.
3. Stir in Half and Half.
4. Bring to a soft boil and stir constantly.
5. When mixture thickens slightly and sticks to the spoon, remove from heat.
6. Add ice cubes to a heat-proof bowl.
7. Set pan holding the ganache onto the ice cubes and stir constantly.
8. Assemble the cake when the ganache is cooled, but still in a syrup consistency.
9. The ganache will thicken to a hot-fudge consistency when fully cooled.

Notes

1. When cake layers are done, remove from oven and let cool in pans about 5 minutes. Then turn the layers out to cool on a rack.
2. If the mashed potatoes are too stiff (dry), the cake can be a little dry. To prevent dryness, after the cake is cut, seal two slices of fresh bread with the cake in the cake container.
3. A quick short-cut is to bake the cake in a 9 by 13 sheet-cake pan. When cool, poke holes in the cake with the end of a wooden spoon and pour the ganache over the cake so that it fills every hole.
4. During the holidays, mom added 1 cup of raisins (soaked in water for 30 minutes and then drained) and 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon cloves. These are folded into the whipped batter along with the walnuts.

By Susie Mertl @TheChelseaProject

Adapted from Mom's Personal Collection

Adapted from Mom's Personal Collection

The Chelsea Project https://thechelseaproject.com/

Who knew?

If you enjoyed this recipe, I do hope you’ll save it for later and share it with your friends.

PLEASE CLICK THE LINKS BELOW TO SEE MORE ORIGINAL POTATO RECIPES: