Chocolate-Covered Toffee with Pumpkin Seeds and Sea Salt

Ingredients

serves makes about 1 1/4 pounds, active time 25 minutes, total time 2 hours, including setting/cooling

• 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cubed
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
• 3/4 cup toasted pumpkin seeds, toasted
• Sea salt

Procedures

1. Line a large baking pan with parchment paper. Put the pan on a flat surface and protect the surface—because toffee is sugar cooked at a high temperature—with a trivet or a towel underneath. In a small saucepan, combine the butter, sugar, and 2 tablespoons water (being careful not to get sugar on the sides of the pan, where it can crystallize) and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Boil the mixture, stirring constantly, until it turns a beautiful caramel color (about 295°F on a candy thermometer), about 7 minutes. Immediately remove from the heat.
   
2. Add the salt and stir to combine, then add the vanilla and stir to combine. Be careful: the mixture is very hot and will sputter. Immediately pour the toffee onto the parchment paper–lined pan and, with a heatproof spatula, quickly spread it in an even layer almost to the edges. (This is very hot, so resist the temptation to stick a finger in it.)
   
3. Let cool completely.
   
4. Temper the chocolate. Bring 2 inches of water to a bare simmer in a medium pot. Set a medium metal bowl over it, add two-thirds of the chocolate, and gently melt it. Remove the bowl from the heat and stir in the remaining chocolate until melted and smooth.
   
5. Pat the surface of the cooled toffee dry to make sure the chocolate will adhere properly. With the heatproof spatula, spread the melted chocolate in an even layer over the toffee, then quickly scatter the pumpkin seeds on top and sprinkle with sea salt. Let stand until the chocolate hardens.
   
6. Break the toffee into large pieces. The toffee will keep, covered, for up to 2 weeks.

Chocolate Covered Candy Corn Layer Cake

A halloween candy staple in cake form.

Butter blasted cake layered with buttery buttercream and enrobed in chocolate ganache. The perfect un-scary Halloween cake.

Notes: Wilton brand makes a butter flavoring. The brand that I used was not Wilton, and because there may be differing strengths between brands, I would add the extract to taste (though the batter does have raw eggs in it). This cake is meant to have a really intense butter flavor. I used Wilton color pastes in Lemon Yellow, Orange, and Terra Cotta.

Special equipment: 3 8-inch cake pans, mixer

Ingredients

serves makes one 8-inch cake, active time 2 hours, total time 3 1/2 hours

• For Cake:
• 7 large egg whites
• 1 1/2 cups milk, divided
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 4 1/2 cups (18 ounces) cake flour
• 2 1/4 cups (15 3/4 ounces) granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons baking powder
• 1 3/4 teaspoons salt
• 18 tablespoons (9 ounces) unsalted butter, cut into cubes, softened
• 3 tablespoons butter flavoring (see note)
• 1/2 teaspoon yellow food coloring
• 3/4 teaspoon orange food coloring
• 1/4 teaspoon terra cotta food coloring (see note)
•  
• For Frosting:
• 10 tablespoons (5 ounces) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 1/4 cups (5 ounces) confectioners' sugar
• 1 tablespoon milk
• 1 tablespoon butter flavoring (or to taste)
•  
• For Ganache:
• 6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
• 2/3 cup heavy cream
• Candy corn to garnish cake

Procedures

1. For the cake: Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 350°F. Line 3 8- by 2-inch round cake pans with parchment paper. Grease pans.
   
2. Whisk egg whites with 1/2 cup milk and vanilla; set aside. Place flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Mix on low speed until combined, about 1 minute. Add butter and mix on low speed just until moistened. Add remaining 1 cup milk and mix until combined.
   
3. Increase speed to medium-high and mix batter until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Reduce speed to low and mix in reserved egg white mixture until combined. Mix in butter flavoring.
   
4. Divide batter evenly between three bowls. Add yellow food coloring to one of the bowls until it becomes a bright shade of yellow. Add both orange and terra cotta food coloring to another bowl of batter until it becomes a deep shade of orange.
   
5. Scrape batters into the prepared pans and bake until just set and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 23 minutes. Let cakes cool in pan for 15 minutes, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely, about an hour.
   
6. For the frosting: Place butter, confectioners' sugar, milk, and butter flavoring in mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Flavor to taste with butter flavoring.
   
7. To assemble cake: Place yellow layer on an 8-inch plate and spread with about 1/2 cup frosting. Place orange layer on top and spread with about 1/2 cup frosting. Place white layer on top. Use remaining frosting to fill in any gaps along the sides.
   
8. For the ganache: Heat chocolate and cream in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water, gently whisking, until melted and smooth. Let cool briefly, until the consistency is pourable but not runny.
   
9. Place cake (on plate) on a wire rack that's been set in a rimmed baking sheet. Pour ganache over top of cake, letting it run down the sides. Chill until ganache is set, about 20 minutes, Garnish top with candy corn.