Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Graveyard Halloween Cake

Welcome back to Mimi's Organic Eats. Today we're making a pumpkin chocolate chip graveyard Halloween cake. This super adorable and totally festive cake is going to be perfect for your Halloween party. Let me show you guys how to make it. So before we begin our recipe today we have to fill up my chocolate chip jar. As you can see it is completely empty and I'm so excited because I just got a delivery from my friends at Equal Exchange. These organic semi-sweet chocolate chips are what I used at my bakery for over a decade and they're still my favorite today. I sought out Equal Exchange when I was opening my bakery because they're naturally vegan, they're naturally toy free, and they're honestly the best tasting chocolate chips and I tried so many. They have minimal ingredients and of course they're organic and they're also fair trade. Fair trade goes beyond the organic standard and ensures that farmers are paid fairly for their harvest and can invest in their communities. And that's a big deal to me as it really hits home as a Midwesterner who grew up going to small family farms. And just a reminder you guys don't have to own a bakery to get high quality organic chocolate. You can buy Equal Exchange right on their website and I'm going to link it in the description for you guys. So we're going to be using these Equal Exchange semi-sweet chocolate chips in our pumpkin cake batter today. But for now we're going to put my chocolate jar back on the counter where it always lives and we're going to preheat our oven to 350 degrees. So I'm going to make the cake batter in my stand mixer today but if you guys want to use a hand mixer that also works too. So first we're going to start by adding our softened butter. Then we're going to add in our cane sugar and then of course some vanilla extract. Now we're going to mix on low until combined and there's no butter chunk. Next we're going to add in our pumpkin puree which is also acting as our egg replacer in this cake. Then we're going to add in half a cup of milk. Then we're going to add in our all-purpose flour. Then we're going to add in our pumpkin spice, our baking powder, and our salt. Now we're going to mix on low until combined and we have a smooth cake batter. Be sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl partway through mixing. This is going to ensure that everything is mixed thoroughly. Now we're adding in our equal exchange semi-sweet chocolate chips. Now we're going to mix on low until the chocolate chips are combined into the batter. So now we're going to line three six-inch cake pans with parchment paper. Then we're going to transfer the batter evenly and spread them out. I like to weigh them. They're going to weigh around 270 grams each. Now we're going to bake these at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes or until the cake looks done. So now that our cakes are cooled, it's time to make our frosting and our decorating frosting. So we're actually going to make the decorating frosting first because we're going to make this one white where the other frosting is going to be black. That way we don't have to wash our mixing bowl. And so a little trick for you guys, if you're trying to get organic white frosting, your best bet is to use an organic shortening as opposed to butter. So for the decorating frosting, since we're making ghosts, I'm actually going to be doing some shortening here. Now we're going to sift in our powdered sugar. So now we're going to mix this on low until everything is combined and then speed the mixer up to high and whip for a few minutes until it's light and fluffy. And if the frosting seems a little bit stiff, then we're just going to add in a little bit of water or milk to get the desired consistency. And you guys want to make sure you scrape down the sides of the bowl partway through mixing to ensure everything is mixed. So once our decorating frosting is ready, then we're going to fit two piping bags with decorating tips. So the first one I have here is a techo tip number 808. This is what I'm going to use for the ghost. And then the second one here is a techo tip number four. This is a super small tip. This is what I'm going to use to write the rest in peace on the gravestones for the cake. So we only need just a little bit in here, so I'm going to add that first. As you can see, just a super tiny bit. You guys can just eyeball this. We don't need much. Now we're going to set this one aside. Now we're going to fill the other piping bag with the rest of the frosting. Now we have our ghost frosting. We're going to set this aside too. So now we don't have to wash our mixing bowl or our paddle. We're just going to make our black frosting now. And so we're going to be using butter for the real frosting because I think butter always tastes better, but shortening for the decorating frosting is fine by me. If you guys want to use shortening for this frosting too, or if you guys want to make this cake vegan, you can totally do that by using shortening and then just using your favorite plant-based milk. It's super easy because the equal exchange chocolate is already naturally vegan. You just want to make sure that your butter, your vegan butter, or your shortening is soft. Now we're going to sift in our powdered sugar. So next we're going to add in our food grade activated charcoal, which is going to be our natural black dye. And then we're going to add some vanilla extract. And then we're also going to need a few tablespoons of milk. Now we're going to mix on low until everything is combined and then speed the mixer up to high. You want to make sure you scrape down the sides of the bowl partway through mixing. This is going to ensure that you get a smooth and creamy frosting. Now we're going to transfer our black frosting to a piping bag with a Teco tip number 827. And this is just a big open star tip, so if you guys have a different one you can totally use that too. So now that our cake is cooled and we have our frosting made, we need to decorate our tombstones for this graveyard cake. So I'm going to be using the equal exchange dark chocolate minis for the tombstones on this cake. This is the perfect size for a graveyard tombstone and they're going to be so delicious because of course it's organic dark chocolate. So we're going to open up a few minis and grab the decorating frosting with a Teco tip number four. So we're going to place them upside down so it's flat to write on. Now we're going to grab our piping bag with a Teco tip number four and we're just going to write RIP on top of the little chocolate. So now that we have our tombstones decorated, it's time to put together this cake. So go ahead and grab your cake plate or your cake stand, whatever you guys plan to serve this on. So first we're going to add a little dollop of frosting right on top of the cake plate. This little bit of frosting is going to help keep our cake in place. And if you guys are bringing this to a party or something and you want to use a cake round, you could do that too. So I always like to place my first cake layer bottom side down because that means it's going to be flush with the cake plate. So I'm just going to pipe a spiral starting at the outer edge of the cake and going all the way around into the center. Then you're going to place your second cake layer bottom side up. Repeat the spiral design with the buttercream on this layer as well. Start at the outer edge and then work your way into the center. Then we're going to repeat the same process with the last cake layer. Place it bottom side up and then spiral the frosting on the outer edge going into the center. Now this part is optional but I like to just take a little bit of store-bought cookies and just crush them up on top. This is going to help our graveyards look like dirt. Now it's time to add our headstones and you guys can add these anywhere you like, just push them into the frosting. And then last we can fill in with our ghosts anywhere that you guys like. And to make the ghost you're just going to start by piping out the frosting and then kind of just pull it straight up and you'll get like a cute little ghost. And then if you guys want to give the ghost some eyes and a mouth you can transfer some of the remaining black frosting into a piping bag with a techo tip number two. I'm obsessed with how spooky and adorable this halloween graveyard cake is. This is going to be the perfect recipe to bake for your halloween party. And so if you guys have extras these dark chocolate minis are the perfect candy to put up for trick-or-treaters. And anyone that ever visits my house knows that any treats coming out of here are always organic. I've actually been petitioning the HOA in my neighborhood to only do organic candy in our neighborhood for halloween. I haven't convinced them yet but I'm not going to stop trying. So now Jon Jon and I are ready for halloween at our house but since dogs can't have chocolate I have Jon Jon's homemade cookies that he's going to have a little treat. Aren't you? You have the treat? You ready for halloween? Yeah we always have dog treats at our house ready and waiting. Approved? These are the ones we're going to serve to the dogs? Jon Jon has his favorite treats. I have my favorite treat. Happy halloween everyone. Oh no you can't have that one. No that's not for you. This one's for you.