Chocolate cakes are one of the sweetest competitions at the Pennsylvania Farm Show.
This year, a layered cake with mousse and raspberries wowed the judges and earned a blue ribbon and $500 prize for Sharon Kurtz of Lehigh County.
Her “Raspberry Lovers’ Chocolate Mousse Cake” was tops among 70 cakes entered in the Homemade Chocolate Cake Contest. Entries were evaluated by a panel of judges on taste, presentation, consistency and other metrics.
Baking contests are one of the hallmarks of the Farm Show, which runs through Jan. 15 at the Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex & Expo Center in Harrisburg. Along with chocolate cakes, judges scrutinize apple pies, sticky buns and angel food cakes.
Contestants compete at county and community fairs to become eligible to compete on the statewide level at the Farm Show.
Kurtz is a repeat winner. In 2020, she won first place in the Blue Ribbon Apple Pie contest at the Farm Show.
As for the chocolate cakes, second place was awarded to Lorrie Rauch of New Tripoli, Lehigh County and third place to Deneen Tracy of Needmore, Fulton County.
Here’s Kurtz’s winning recipe:
Raspberry Lovers’ Chocolate Mousse Cake Chocolate Cake
Ingredients:
2 cups flour (256 grams)
¾ cup dark cocoa (90 grams)
2 cups granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon butter flavoring
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup boiling water
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour three 8-inch cake pans. Combine dry ingredients in a mixing bowl and blend well. Combine all wet ingredients in another bowl and mix well. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix on medium speed for 2 minutes. Scrape bowl and add eggs one at a time and continue to mix for another 2 minutes or until smooth. Pour batter into prepared cake pans. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until done. Place on a cooling rack until cool.
Chocolate Mousse
1 cup heavy whipping cream
2 (0.35 ounce) packs whipping cream stabilizer (Such as Dr. Oetker Whipped Cream Stabilizer)
1 cup confectioners sugar (130 grams)
2 tablespoons butter, softened
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
2/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 pint fresh red raspberries
Beat whipping cream and stabilizer on medium high speed for 2 minutes or until stiff peaks form when beater is slowly raised. Set whipped cream aside. In a large mixing bowl, blend butter, cream cheese, confectioners sugar and vanilla. Mix on medium-high speed for 1 minute or until well blended and smooth.
Place chocolate chips in a small microwave safe bowl and heat on high for 30 seconds, stir and heat for an additional 30 seconds or until melted. Add melted chocolate to mixture. Mix on medium speed for 1 minute or until light and fluffy. Fold whipped cream into mixture until blended. You will use the raspberries when assembling the cake. Refrigerate mousse filling until ready to assemble cake.
To assemble cake, place a layer of chocolate cake on a serving platter, then evenly spread 1 1/8 cups of chocolate mousse on cake layer. Cut raspberries in half and evenly place raspberry halves completely over the mousse filling.
Continue process with second cake layer, and then place the last chocolate cake layer on top and frost cake with fluffy chocolate frosting.
If desired, place Pirouline wafers around the side of the cake.
Fluffy Chocolate Frosting
2 cups butter, softened
2 pounds confectioners sugar
1 cup dark cocoa (120 grams)
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup whole milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Beat butter on medium high speed until smooth. Add confectioners sugar, cocoa and salt alternately with milk and vanilla. Mix until smooth, then mix on medium high speed for 2 minutes or until fluffy.
Garnish Pirouline wafers (if desired) red raspberries (as desired) This recipe contains whipping cream and should be refrigerated until ready to serve.
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