I spent an evening with some friends recreating other dishes from the Hulu series The Bear (in addition to a shortcut version of Marcus's chocolate cake). I think the main takeaway of the show should be that the food industry needs deep restructuring — shifting away from a culture that so negatively impacts mental and physical health (and with such little benefit for the majority of workers). The reason why Season 1 was so critically acclaimed was because it accurately highlighted the toxic nature of restaurants and how workers will always be the ones to get the worst of it. It’s triggering for a number of reasons, yet somehow I found myself (with friends) recreating a whole meal for the sake of saying we made food from The Bear. Maybe this is a deeper reflection of the influence of media and the romanticization of the culinary arts and industries, despite knowing and acknowledging its darker sides. Or maybe the food just looked really good.

 

The cake pictured above is the more extensive version of Marcus's chocolate cake, a truer recreation of what's featured in the show. I adapted the recipe from Constellation Inspiration, who in turn adapted it from Food & Wine, who based it off The Bear. It is a 6-inch, 3-layer cake that is so decadent it could serve 12 people easily. The biggest difference from Amy Ho/Food & Wine's recipe is that my chocolate frosting exterior is made with Italian buttercream, whereas theirs used American buttercream. It does add another few steps to an already very long baking process, but it's more accurate to the show and it just tastes better. If you have leftover Italian or Swiss meringue buttercream from another project (like I did), even better!​​

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Chocolate Mousse

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• 115 g (2/3 cup) dark chocolate, coarsely chopped

• 35 g (2 1/2 tbsp) unsalted butter

• 5 large egg yolks, room temperature

• 25 g (2 tbsp) granulated sugar

• 2 large egg whites, room temperature

• 60 ml (1/4 cup) heavy cream

 

Chocolate Cake Layers

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• 150 g (1 1/4 cup) all-purpose flour

• 55 g (1/2 cup and 2 tbsp) cocoa powder

• 1 tsp baking soda

• 3/4 tsp baking powder

• 1 1/4 tsp kosher salt

• 2 large eggs, room temperature

• 1 large egg white, room temperature

• 300 g (1 1/2 cups) granulated sugar

• 150 ml brewed coffee, room temperature

• 85 g unsalted butter, melted

• 180 g (3/4 cup) sour cream or plain yogurt, room temperature and whisked until smooth

 

Chocolate Frosting

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• 2 cups Italian buttercream frosting

• 25 g unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted

• 3 g kosher salt

• 60 g melted dark chocolate, cooled to room temperature

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Instructions

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Chocolate Mousse

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1. Bring 1 inch of water to a simmer in a small pot over medium-low heat. Place a medium-size heatproof bowl over pan; add chopped chocolate and butter to the bowl, making sure bottom of bowl does not touch water. Stir until mixture is smooth, about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove chocolate mixture from heat; let cool, uncovered, at room temperature until just warm to the touch, about 10 minutes. Reduce heat to low and keep water in the saucepan at a bare simmer.

2. Whisk together egg yolks and granulated sugar in bowl of a stand mixer. Place bowl over saucepan of simmering water, whisking constantly, until mixture registers 160°F on an instant-read thermometer, or until all the sugar has dissolved. Remove bowl from heat; transfer to a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat on medium-high speed until mixture is very pale yellow in color, thick, and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Fold egg yolk mixture into cooled chocolate mixture.

3. In clean bowl of stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat egg whites on medium-high speed until foamy, about 15 seconds. Beat on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form, 1 to 2 minutes.

4. In another bowl, beat cream until medium peaks form.

5. Fold egg white mixture into chocolate mixture in three additions. Fold in whipped cream just until mixture is combined and no dark or white streaks remain. Cover and chill at least 8 hours or up to 24 hours.

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Chocolate Cake Layers

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1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter three 6-inch round cake pans and line bottoms with parchment paper.

2. Whisk together flour, cocoa, baking soda, and baking powder in a large bowl; whisk in salt until combined. Set aside.

3. Beat eggs with a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment on medium-high speed until light and foamy, about 2 minutes. Gradually add granulated sugar; beat on medium-high speed until very pale and voluminous, about 5 minutes, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. (Mixture should fall off whisk attachment in ribbons and remain suspended briefly on the surface before sinking back into the batter.) With mixer running on low speed, add flour mixture in three additions alternately with coffee and melted butter, beginning and ending with flour mixture; beat until nearly combined, stopping to scrape down sides of bowl as needed. Add sour cream; beat on low speed just until combined, about 30 seconds, folding by hand toward end if needed.

4. Divide batter evenly among prepared baking pans. Bake in preheated oven until a wooden pick inserted in center of cakes comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cake layers cool in baking pans on wire racks 10 minutes; remove cakes from baking pans and let cool completely.

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Chocolate Frosting

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1. Beat buttercream, sifted cocoa powder, salt and melted chocolate together until fully incorporated and smooth. Taste and add more melted chocolate or cocoa powder if desired. (I eyeballed it.) Set aside until ready for assembly.

 

Assembly

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1. Trim cakes flat using a serrated knife, if necessary. Place one cake layer on a cardboard cake round or plate. Pipe a border of icing around edge of first cake layer. Spoon half of chocolate mousse onto center of cake, and spread evenly within border using a small offset spatula. Top with second cake layer, cut side down, and repeat process with remaining chocolate mousse. Top with third cake layer, cut side down. Spread remaining icing over top and sides of cake. Chill until set, about 15 minutes.

2. Cut slices and enjoy! Leftovers should be covered in parchment and placed in an airtight container. Store in the fridge for up to 3-5 days. Let cake slices sit out at room temperature for 15-30 minutes before enjoying.