Why are you passionate about the Ada Jenkins Center? 

The Ada Jenkins Center is very special to our whole family  Cathy Bentz started working with the Ada Jenkins Center, as the United Way representative for it, more than 20 years ago.  It was so impressive to see the work done by the Center for our community and its careful stewardship of the money given to it! Jordan, the chef, grew up in Lake Norman and has seen the impact the Ada Jenkins Center has in helping underserved people in our community and has participated in service projects and fundraisers for it. It is our hope that the next generation of our family, including the chef's helper, Roman, will also appreciate and support Ada Jenkins!

Cathy Bentz

Cookie Dough Triple Threat Cake

Ingredients

Cookie Dough:

• 1/2 cup (110g) unsalted butter, room temp
• 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
• 2/3 cup (130g) light brown sugar, packed
• 1/4 cup (60ml) milk
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 cups (260g) all-purpose flour *SEE NOTES
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup (180g) mini chocolate chips

Cake:

• 1 1/2 cups (330g) unsalted butter, room temp
• 2 cups (400g) sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 cups (400g) all-purpose flour **SEE NOTES
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 cup (240ml) whole milk
• 1/2 cup (125g) 2% Greek yogurt (sour cream also works)
• 1 cup (180g) mini chocolate chips

Cookie Dough Buttercream Icing:

• 1 1/2 cups (330g) unsalted butter, room temp
• 5 cups (550g) powdered sugar
• 1 cup (130g) all purpose flour **SEE NOTES
• 3/4 cup (140g) light brown sugar, packed
• 1/4 cup (60ml) milk
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup (90g) mini chocolate chips

Chocolate Ganache:

• 4oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped
• 4oz (1/2 cup) heavy cream
• 2–3 tsp vegetable oil

Directions

Cookie Dough:

1. Using a hand or stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugars using the paddle attachment.
2. Add in the milk and vanilla and mix until combined.
3. Mix in the flour and salt and then fold in the chocolate chips.
4. Scoop (15) 1 1/2-tbsp sized balls and flatten slightly. I used a small cookie scoop to because it dispenses the perfect amount. Set the cookie dough “patties” on a plate lined with wax paper and place those and the leftover dough in the fridge.

Cookie Dough Cake:

1. Preheat the oven to 350F and prepare (3) 8 inch round cake pans. Coat them with non-stick spray and cut out 3 rounds of parchment paper to fit in the bottom of each pan.
2. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl and set aside.
3. In a measuring glass, pour in the milk and mix in the vanilla. Set aside.
4. In a large bowl using a hand or stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar using the whisk attachment. Mix on medium-high speed until light and fluffy (about 3-5 minutes). Don’t cut this step short! Make sure the butter and sugar are light and fluffy, otherwise the cake will turn out too dense.
5. Turn the speed down to medium and mix in one egg at a time, making sure each egg is fully incorporated before adding the next. Mix in the yogurt.
6. Using the flour and milk mixtures, alternate between the two by starting and ending with the flour mixture. This will be three additions of the flour mix and two of the milk.
7. Lastly, fold in the mini chocolate chips.
8. Divide the batter between the cake pans and spread it even.
9. By now your cookie dough should be chilled enough to handle. Push down 5 cookie dough “patties” in each cake pan. Spread the batter over top the cookie dough so that you can no longer see any dough.
10. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick in the center comes out clean. You may need to rotate the cakes halfway through to ensure they bake evenly.
11. Let the them cool in the pans for about 20 minutes. Then run a knife around the inside of the pans and turn the cakes out onto a cooling rack. Peal the paper off the bottoms.
12. To ensure there is no breakage while frosting the cake, transfer them to the fridge to chill for at least an hour before assembling the cake.

Cookie Dough Buttercream Icing:

1. Cream together the butter and brown sugar.
2. Gradually mix in the powdered sugar and flour 2 cups at a time. Pour in the milk between each addition.
3. Lastly, mix in the salt and vanilla. DON’T mix in the chocolate chips yet.

Assemble:

1. Spread an even layer of buttercream between each cake layer. Each layer uses one large heaping scoop using a standard sized rubber spatula.
2. Once the cake layers are stacked, pop the naked cake in the fridge for about 20 minutes. This helps the layers set so the cake doesn’t slide everywhere when you frost the outside.
3. Now mix in the 1/2 cup of mini chocolate chips to what’s left of the buttercream. After the 20 minutes, apply an even layer of the cookie dough buttercream to the outside of the cake.
4. Place the cake back in the fridge while you prep the ganache.

Chocolate Ganache:

1. Measure out the chocolate in a bowl and set aside.
2. In a glass measuring cup, pour in the heavy cream and heat in the microwave for 1 minute or until it starts to bubble.
3. Pour the hot cream over the chopped chocolate and whisk until smooth. To thin it out for the cake drip, add 2-3 tsp of oil. To test and see if it’s the right consistency, lift your whisk out of the ganache and watch how it drips back into the bowl. It it runs back into the bowl in a smooth stream, it’s ready to go. If it’s still too thick, add another tsp of oil.
4. Immediately pour the ganache in the center of the cake and use a small offset spatula to push the ganache towards the sides, allowing it to drip down.
5. Using the remaining cookie dough that’s left in the fridge, crumble pieces all over the top of the cake.
6. Now it’s ready to serve!