Mint chocolate chip cake

My new favorite love is mint and chocolate.  A friend of mine recently introduced me to Starbucks Peppermint Mocha, and I have to say, I'm OBSESSED!  I find every possible excuse to stop by and enjoy one of those deliciously tasty treats.  And of course, the liquid form is not the only way to enjoy this perfect marriage of flavors. My Christmas cookie feature this year included Andes Candies cookies! Seriously... mint and chocolate are the perfect combination (well, equal to chocolate and peanut butter!).  They are the perfect end to a satisfying meal (a la Olive Garden), or a perfect addition to a dessert table.  So when my Aunt asked me to bring dessert, I knew I wanted to try something using this delightful duo.  


I came across a recipe for mint chocolate chip cake from raspberricupcakes.com.  This is my adaptation - I hope you find it as delightful as I do! 


** I'm not including WW points plus value for this one... I don't want to know **

Ingredients and directions for cake batter:  
Cake batter:

- 1 stick butter, room temperature
- 1.5 cups sugar

- 9 tsp. cocoa powder
- 1.5 cups flour
- 1.5 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1/4 tsp. baking powder
- 2 eggs, room temperature
- 1/2 cup coffee, mild
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 cup Andes Candy pieces

Pre-heat the oven to 350*.  In a mixing bowl, whisk together cocoa powder, flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder until well combined.

Using a stand mixer, beat the butter and sugar until its smooth and fluffy.  Add the eggs and continue beating until well combined.

Next, beat in half of the dry ingredients, followed by the milk and coffee.  Once well combined, beat in remaining dry ingredients until thoroughly combined.  Mix in Andes Candy pieces using a wooden spoon.

Grease two Springform pans.  Pour half of the batter into each of the pans.  Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.  Remove the sides of the pans and flip upside down onto clean towel.  Allow to cool completely.

Ingredients and directions for icing:

- 2.5 sticks of butter, room temperature

- 4 cups powdered sugar, whisked

- 2 tsp. peppermint extract

- 1 large bar of dark chocolate

- Green food coloring

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat butter until smooth.  Add in one cup of powdered sugar at a time, until well combined and fluffy.  While its beating, chop chocolate bar in food processor.

Add the chocolate pieces and peppermint extract into the mixing bowl, and beat until well combined.  Add food coloring to achieve desired green color.  Remove bowl from mixer, and mix by hand to ensure color is evenly distributed.

On a cake platter, place one layer of cake.  Using 1/4 of icing, evenly spread icing across the top.  Place the second layer of cake on top.  Evenly spread remaining icing across tops and sides of cake.  To achieve a smooth look, wet your icing spreader with hot water and run across your icing until smooth, wetting spreader frequently.  I topped with chocolate curls for a little decoration.

Enjoy!