If you love Ferrero Rocher, you'll love this supersized pound cake! It's moist and rich with delicious chocolate hazelnut flavor.
3 cups cake flour or White Lily All Purpose Flour
1 cup Dutch-processed cocoa
1 pound (4 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
4 cups granulated sugar
8 large eggs, room temperature
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon hazelnut emulsion (optional, if you can find it)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup hazelnut coffee creamer, room temperature
Preheat oven to 300°F. Prepare Old Country Kitchenware square tube pan by brushing with chocolate pan coat (if using two piece pan, fit with a parchment paper square between the two pieces first). Sift together cake flour and cocoa powder. Beat butter and sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer until creamy and it sticks to the bowl (about 6 minutes at medium speed). Add extracts, salt, baking powder, and 1/2 cup cocoa flour mixture, beat until combined. Scrape the bottom and sides of the mixing bowl. With the mixer running on low, add one egg at a time, beating well after each addition until fully incorporated. Beat about in a third of the cocoa flour mixture until it just disappears, then drizzle in about half the creamer with the mixer running on low. Beat in the next third of the dry mixture, then the remaining creamer. Beat in remaining flour mixture just until it disappears. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl and beat for another 10 seconds. Pour batter into prepared tube pan and gently shake to settle the batter. Place on middle rack of oven with a baking sheet on the rack below it to catch any drips. Bake 1 hour 45 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean. Let cool until the pan is comfortable enough to handle. (If using two-piece pan, place it over a metal can and press down to remove the outer piece first). Transfer the cake to a wire rack in two steps: first, turn the cake up on its side, then invert fully. Let cool completely.
Chocolate Hazelnut Icing
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 teaspoons hazelnut extract
4 cups powdered sugar
1 1/2 cups chopped hazelnuts
8 Ferrero Rocher candies
In a medium saucepan, bring milk, cocoa powder, butter, and extracts almost to a boil. Remove from heat and beat in powdered sugar with an electric mixer. Stir in pecan pieces. Pour over cooled cake. Top with Ferrero Rocher candies.
