Christmas is a fantastic time to try new peppermint recipes.

This cake is moist with a great balance of chocolate and minty toppings. The chocolate cake is light and when it’s made right before your gathering, it is fantastically fresh and delicious.

This Candy Cane Cake is topped with peppermint buttercream and candy cane candy sprinkles. If you would like to change this cake up to celebrate your holiday, you can change up the buttercream colors and also garnish it with differently colored mint candies such as green or ice blue mint candies.

Make this cake and buttercream your own festive cake and invite the kids into the kitchen to help to create it. You can add fewer candies, maybe place four standing tall candy canes around the outside the cake.

Set this cake on a pedestal in the center of your dessert table because it is a showstopper.

Candy Cane Cake

Chocolate Cake Batter

1¾ cups plus 2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour

¾ cup of cocoa powder

2 cups of sugar

1½ teaspoons baking soda

1½ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon kosher salt

1 cup of buttermilk at room temperature

1 cup of boiling water

½ cup of a neutral oil such as canola, safflower or sunflower oil

1½ teaspoons of pure vanilla extract

2 large eggs at room temperature

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Butter the bottom and sides of your 8-inch round cake pans. Place in round pieces of parchment paper to cover the bottom of the pans. Lightly sprinkle cocoa to coat each piece of parchment paper and the sides of each cake pan. Set the pans aside.

In the bowl of your stand-up mixer or in a large bowl, mix all of your dry ingredients.

Into the dry mix, add your sugar and whisk together.

In another large bowl, mix together all of your wet ingredients, except for the boiling water.

On low speed, gradually add your wet ingredients into your dry ingredients. Mix and then scrape the bowl.

Turn the mixer on to medium and beat for another minute. Then, with your mixer still on medium, slowly pour in the hot water. Stop the mixer and scrape the bowl. Back on medium speed, mix so that all of your ingredients are nicely combined.

Bake the cake rounds for approximately 30-35 minutes or until tested done. You want a few moist crumbs on your tester to know that the cakes are baked but not dry.

Set aside the cakes onto your cooling racks still in their pans for about a half an hour. Carefully remove the cake and allow to cool some more. Cover each cake with plastic wrap and store in a cool place until you are ready to decorate the cake.

Peppermint Buttercream

3 cups of powdered sugar, sifted

3 sticks of unsalted butter at room temperature

1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract

1 teaspoon of pure peppermint extract

1/8 teaspoon of salt

Red and green food coloring

Mint candies

In a large mixing bowl, beat your butter until smooth. Note: I use the paddle attachment for the butter.

On low speed, gradually add in your sugar. Once all the sugar has been added, scrape down the bowl. Add in your extracts and the salt. After all is added, mix on high speed for five to seven minutes, until light in color.

Design the cake, as you like. Add food colorings to parts of the buttercream, separating as much buttercream as you would like to add color(s) to.

Garnish your cake, again as you like with swirls of peppermint, adding candies as you like to the amounts you also like.

Sarah Schweitzer is dual-certified in Culinary Arts and Baking & Pastry from the Escoffier School of Culinary Arts. She is a former line cook for Chef Robert Irvine at “Fresh Kitchen by Robert Irvine” which was located at the Downtown Allentown Market. Sarah is currently working as a Sous-Chef at Ateira’s on First and has her own blog simplysarah.online. She can be reached at sarah.schweitzer18@gmail.com.