Black cocoa powder substitute: If you do not have black cocoa powder, you can use an equal amount of dutch process cocoa powder, making it a total of 63g or ¾ cup.




Make the cake layers ahead of time. This cake stays moist for dayyyys, so you can make ahead of time. Store at room temperature wrapped tightly and stored in an airtight container for 1-2 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. If frozen, be sure to leave the cake layers out a room temperature overnight, then decorate the next day.




Use an immersion blender to mix the ganache. It can be easy to over-mix ganache, resulting in a split, grainy texture. I recommend using an immersion blender, as it will mix it efficiently without aggravating it to the point that the milk solids separate.




Allow the ganache to sit for one hour, but no longer! The ganache needs one hour to thicken up into a spreadable consistency, but any longer and it may be too thick to spread or even split and appear grainy.