peanut butter milk n’ cookies cake
Hold your hinies, folks. This is a treat to blow your socks off.
During the initial “planning” stages of my 27th birthday, I knew at once I wanted an over-the-top, extra indulgent cake. As a general I bend towards healthier treats and am quite conservative with desserts anyway, but gracious, it was my birthday. This cake is the amalgamation of every flavor I love: brown butter vanilla cake, dark chocolate, and two fat layers of edible peanut butter cookie dough. Of course, too, peanut butter cups to garnish.
I wrestled a tad with aimlessness at the start of my birthday. I woke up, noshed on my favorite pre-workout Clif Bar flavor (Caramel Macchiato), and launched into a 27 mile bike ride followed up with a 2.7 mile run and tied up with a 27 Sun Salutation, 27 minute yoga session. Excessive, yes. Once the sun climbed I had to configure how I wanted the rest of December 30th to look, and I truly wasn’t sure. The day promised a touch more warmth, mid 70s, and sunlight twinkled atop the channels, but I couldn’t get my mind away from the inevitable sunset and the worry that I wouldn’t pass it with purpose.
After breakfast, though, J coaxed me for a midmorning walk. We leaned over the railing by the river together. I blew a leaf into the water, a wish strung to its veins. The little cloud over me dissolved. I decided for sure we should try to kayak, and J offered to cook dinner, and anything in between we’d figure out along the way.
Of course, the plan also involved eating a load of this cake. We probably nibbled through half of it. Rich, sweet, soft, loaded with peanut butter in the dough and the buttercream, it’s a magical tower of indulgence. Make the peanut butter cookie dough while the cake layers bake and stow it in the covered in a cool area – the fridge, preferably, until 15-20 minutes before assembling. Cool the layers completely before wedging the dough in between and frosting the whole endeavor thoroughly with salty-sweet peanut butter buttercream. Oh, and flouring the chocolate chips? Game changer. This prevents them from sinking to the bottom of the cake layers. I love pools of chocolate inside a dessert as much as the next guy, but not in this cake. You need them distributed nicely.
Birthdays embrace a new magic as I age. I may not participate in frilly parties or gatherings anymore, and this year I didn’t even dress up to attend a special dinner. I cruised through the hours with my favorite people, with the one I love in a way I’ve never loved prior. I may have baked my own cake instead of purchasing one or expecting another to create it for me, but hey, it’s the gift of getting older. I can make some decisions on my own. And hell, this cake was a pretty damn good decision.
I can also swear twice in one sentence, on a blog post. That’s a pretty nifty aspect of being an adult.
Have you ever baked your own birthday cake? If not, why not this one? Leave a comment below with your thoughts and as always, I’m floating around Instagram ready to say hello and see any of my recipes you make!
Need more cake inspiration?
4 Layer Peppermint Tuxedo Cake
Pumpkin Cake with Gingerbread Buttercream
Ingredients
brown butter vanilla chocolate chip cake
- 10 tbsp butter
- 1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 eggs, room temperature
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract or paste
- 1 cup warm milk (oat or whole preferred)
- 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 cup dark chocolate chips
- 2 tbsp all purpose flour
peanut butter cookie dough
- 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
- 1/4 cup butter, soft
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 tsp salt (omit if using salted butter/peanut butter)
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 2-3 tbsp milk or water
peanut butter buttercream
- 1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
- 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
- 2 cups powdered sugar
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 3 6-inch cake pans liberally with butter or oil. In a small saucepot, melt butter over medium heat until solids begin to separate and butter turns a rich golden brown. Remove from heat and let cool 5-10 minutes.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer or a medium bowl with a hand mixer, cream brown butter, yogurt, and sugar until fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Whip in one egg at a time, then add vanilla and warm milk and mix thoroughly. In a separate bowl, combine flour, salt, and baking powder. Add in two batches to the wet ingredients and mix until mostly incorporated. Some streaks of flour are okay. Toss chocolate chips with 2 tbsp flour – this helps prevent the chips from sinking to the bottom of the cake layers – and fold into batter with a spatula.
- Split batter evenly between the three cake pans. Bake 30-35 minutes until tops are set and a knife or toothpick comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool 5 minutes in the pans, then run a knife around the edges of the cakes to loosen and turn onto a wire rack. Cool completely.
- While cakes bake, prepare the cookie dough. Cream peanut butter, butter, and sugars until soft, then blend in vanilla extract. Fold in flour. If the dough is crumbly, add milk or water 1 tbsp at a time until dough adheres. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside.
- When cakes are ready, make the buttercream. With the stand mixer or a hand mixer, whip butter, peanut butter, and powdered sugar until soft and creamy.
