I Took the BA Ribbon Cake Challenge

Happy New Year everyone!  I know that today is the day that people normally come up with their lists of resolutions for the year to come, but in this post I'd like to focus on a resolution that I made two years ago.  At the beginning of 2010 I vowed to make at least one recipe from Bon Appetit each month.  January flew by, then February, and I am sad to say that like so many New Year's resolutions that I have made over the years, I failed miserably at sticking to my plan.  Before I knew it, March had rolled around, and I still hadn't attempted to make a single recipe from the magazine (for a refresher about my progress, or perhaps more accurately lack thereof, see here). 

By the time the December issue found it's way into my mailbox, I had only successfully made two recipes from 2010 issues of the magazine (a far cry from the twelve I had aimed for, but better than nothing!).  But the moment that I laid eyes on that cover, I promised myself that I would make the amazing cake that graced it no matter how many months (or years) it took me to get around to it. 

Now I want you to understand, this cake is no ordinary cake.  This cake recipe is the one recipe that has been requested more often than any other recipe in the entire history of Bon Appetit magazine.  (The magazine calls it "The Ribbon Cake Challenge".)  It's a three layer chocolate cake, topped with a rum and chocolate buttercream frosting, topped with an espresso chocolate glaze, topped with chocolate ribbons.  All told, 7.5 sticks of butter and 3.5 pounds of chocolate go into this cake.  It is the ultimate cake.  (You can find the recipe here.) 

Once I had my heart set on making the cake, it was just a matter of when I would partake in an event that warranted such an extravagant and decadent cake.  Luckily, December 2011 presented me with the perfect reason - my mother-in-law's 70th birthday party.  What better time to indulge than when celebrating such an amazing milestone?

I am here to tell you that making this cake was not easy.  It took 2 days for me to complete this cake, thanks in no small part to help from my sous chef Paul.  Hands down, it was the most ambitious and difficult baking project that I have ever tackled.  But the result was well worth the effort.  Just maybe don't ask me to make it again until my 70th birthday. 

Here are some of the highlights from the process:

The cake with the buttercream frosting.

The ingredients for the glaze . . .

And the glaze itself.

Waiting for the glaze to set.

The cake once the glaze has set.

After adding the first set of white chocolate ribbons . . .

And topping the white chocolate ribbons with dark chocolate ones.

Bending the chocolate pieces that are to be used to form the bow . . .

And after adding the dark chocolate ribbons on top.

The finished product.