Instructions

1. Put a piece of parchment paper or a silicone baking mat on the counter. Invert the cake onto it and peel off the parchment or mat from the bottom of the cake. Use the cake ring to stamp out 2 rounds from the cake. these are your top 2 cake layers. The remaining cake “scraps” will come together to make the bottom later.
2. Clean the cake ring and place it in the center of a sheet pan lined with clean parchment or a silicone baking mat. Use 1 strip of acetate to line the inside of the cake ring.
3. Put the cake scraps together inside the ring and use the back of your hand to tamp the scraps together into a flat even layer.
4. Use the back of a spoon to spread a quarter of the chocolate ganache in an even layer over the cake.
5. Sprinkle one-half of the popcorn crumbs evenly over the popcorn pudding. Use the back of your hand to press them lightly into the pudding, anchoring them in place.
6. Spread another quarter of the chocolate ganache on top of that, spreading lightly so you don’t disturb the crumb too much.
7. Set a cake round on top of the ganache layer. If one of your cake rounds is jankier than the other, use it here in the middle and save the prettier one for the top.
8. Repeat the layering: ganache, crumb, ganache.
9. Nestle the remaining cake round on top. Warm the corn fudge in the microwave in 10-second increments, stirring in between, until it becomes easily spreadable, about 20 seconds. Cover the top of the cake with corn fudge and spread it evenly. Garnish the fudge with popcorn and chocolate chips.
10. Transfer the sheet pan to the fridge and refrigerate for at least 3 hours. When you pull it out of the fridge to serve, remove the acetate immediately. The fillings may stick to the acetate.
11. The cake will keep, well wrapped in plastic, in the freezer for up to 2 weeks. At least 3 hours before you are ready to serve the cake, pull the sheet pan out of the freezer and, using your fingers and thumbs, pop the cake out of the cake ring. Gently peel off the acetate, and transfer the cake to a platter or cake stand. Let it defrost in the fridge for a minimum of 3 hours. (Wrapped well in plastic, the cake can be refrigerated for up to 5 days.)