Pasta Sokolatina: Moist Chocolate Cream Cake

Extra moist and delicious Greek chocolate cream cake!

Watch the Video:

Pasta Sokolatina is a moist Greek chocolate cream cake sold in dessert shops all over Greece and American Greek pastry shops. It’s a decadent chocolate cake soaked with syrup, then topped with a layer of Bavarian chocolate cream and covered in chocolate ganache. The syrup makes the cake extra moist, extra soft, and “zoumero,” as we say in Greek. That means juicy. The shops and delis usually have chocolate sprinkles on the sides of each piece, but this is the easy homemade version so you can make it for your next dinner or birthday party. It will be the best chocolate cake they’ve ever had!

Your family will ask for Pasta Sokolatina

• Moist chocolate cake
• Creamy Bavarian chocolate cream
• Silky smooth chocolatey ganache
• The most delicious moist chocolate cake you’ll ever eat!

Chocolatey layers

For the Cake:

• All-purpose flour
• Unsweetened cocoa powder –be sure to use unsweetened to avoid overly sweet cake
• Baking soda
• Baking powder
• Salt
• Semi-sweet baking chocolate –or dark chocolate if you prefer
• Prepared hot coffee –leftover hot coffee from the morning or made from instant.
• Light olive oil –cold-pressed oil has too much flavor for the cake, so use a light neutral-flavored oil
• Yogurt –use plain to avoid added sugars and flavors
• Milk
• Pure vanilla extract –a good quality always
• Granulated sugar
• Large eggs –room temperature

For the Pastry Cream:

• Whole milk
• Corn starch
• Granulated sugar
• Salt
• Egg yolks
• Heavy whipping cream
• Pure vanilla extract

For the Chocolate Ganache:

• Semi-sweet baking chocolate –or half semi, half bitter-sweet. Do not use chips to avoid overly thick ganache
• Heavy whipping cream
• Instant coffee
• Pure vanilla extract

For the Whipped Cream:

• Heavy whipping cream
• Pure vanilla extract
• Confectioner’s sugar

For the Syrup:

• Water
• Granulated sugar
• Pure vanilla extract
• Instant coffee

Pan options

In my video, you’ll see that I used two different pans: a 9×13 inch baking pan and a 9 inch round springform pan. You don’t have to use a springform pan. It’s just what I had on hand. You could use an 8-inch or 9-inch cake pan as long as it’s deep, about 3 inches. And remember, the cake that is baked in a round pan will take an extra 10 minutes to bake. Alternatively to this pan combination, using two 9×13 inch pans would be just as good. One of the cakes is for serving, and one is for freezing, so cut the recipe in half if you only want one moist chocolate cream cake at a time… I know, who doesn’t want a ready-made cake in the freezer?

How to make Pasta Sokolatina Moist Chocolate Cream Cake

Make the Pastry Cream:

• Combine the milk, half of the sugar, and the salt in a saucepan and cook it over medium heat until steaming hot.
• Combine the egg yolks, remaining sugar, cream, and cornstarch in a bowl and whisk together until smooth.
• Add a little of the hot milk to the egg mixture while whisking.
• Then, transfer the egg mixture back to the saucepan and cook over medium heat while constantly whisking until thickened.
• Once thickened, remove from the heat and whisk in vanilla extract.
• Then, pass the cream through a strainer over a large bowl.
• Cover the cream with plastic to prevent a skin from forming and set it aside to cool.
• If you are making the pastry cream ahead, chill in the refrigerator for up to 2 days and then whisk it together until smooth before spreading it on top of the cake.

Make the Syrup:

• Whisk together all of the syrup ingredients (except the vanilla) in a small saucepan.
• Place the pot over high heat and as soon as it comes to a boil and the sugar melts, remove from the heat.
• Add the vanilla, and set aside to cool.

Make the Cake:

• Preheat the oven to 350 °F, 170 °C.
• Whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl.
• In another large bowl, whisk together the eggs, sugar, and oil.
• Place the chocolate in a medium bowl, pour the hot coffee over it and whisk together until it melts.
• Then, add the yogurt, milk, vanilla, and coffee mixture to the large bowl and whisk together until smooth.
• Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients in a few batches until incorporated.
• Grease a 9 x 13-inch baking pan and a 9-inch round by 3-inch deep pan or two 9 x 13-inch pans.
• Distribute the cake batter between the two baking pans filling the 9 x 13-inch cake pan slightly less than halfway.
• Bake the cakes on the center rack for about 35 minutes or until a cake tester that has been inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
• If using a round pan, bake it for an additional 10 minutes or until a pick that has been inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
• As soon as the cake comes out of the oven, poke it all around with a toothpick and brush the cooled syrup over the top.
• Allow the cake to cool completely on the counter, in the refrigerator for up to a day, or quickly cool in the freezer for about 30 minutes.
• If freezing the round cake, release it from the pan once it has cooled and wrap it in 2 layers of plastic wrap. It can be frozen for up to a month.

Make the Ganache:

• Add the chocolate and coffee to a bowl
• Heat the heavy cream until scalding hot, then pour the cream over the chocolate
• Add the vanilla and whisk together until smooth and shiny.

Make the Whipped Cream:

• Add all of the whipped cream ingredients to a large bowl and whip until thick and creamy.

Assemble the Pastry:

• Add about a quarter cup of the ganache to the pastry cream and whisk together until smooth.
• Add 3-4 tablespoons of the ganache to the whipped cream and whisk together until smooth.
• To turn the pastry cream into Bavarian cream, start by mixing in 4-6 tablespoons of the chocolate ganache to the pastry cream. Then, fold in about 4 cups of the whipped cream.
• Spread the Bavarian cream over the chocolate cake and chill in the freezer for 15-20 minutes.
• Warm the ganache in the microwave for 10-15 seconds, and then pour the ganache over the Bavarian chocolate cream.
• Spread the ganache evenly across the top using an offset spatula.
• Then, chill the cake in the freezer for about 20 minutes.
• Transfer the remaining chocolate whipped cream into a piping bag that has been fitted with a large star tip.
• Cut the cake into 12 large portions or smaller portions if you prefer. The better chilled the cake is, the easier it will be to slice neat pieces.
• Pipe rosettes or stars on top of each slice.

Make-Ahead Freezer Instructions:

The chocolate cake can be baked weeks ahead of time, wrapped tightly with plastic wrap, and then frozen. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight to thaw before adding the syrup, Bavarian cream, and ganache. You can even freeze the completely assembled Pasta Sokolatina cake for up to 2 weeks. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and serve.

Serving

There isn’t a more decadent, moist chocolate cream cake than Pasta Sokolatina. So, it’s the perfect dessert to impress everyone at a dinner party. It’s also a great birthday surprise for a chocolate cake lover. Add a hot cup of Greek coffee, and you’ll be ecstatic that you made extra for the freezer. Kali Orexi!

More Desserts:

• Mosaiko: No-Bake Chocolate Cake
• Nutella Baklava Pie
• Chocolate Biscotti
• Baci di Dama Cookies