So good.
Who says you need a birthday or special occasion to make a cake? Around here we don't, although my mom actually did make this cake for my birthday and it was so delicious. My birthday is in January and people are still talking about this cake. Everyone at my party had a choco-gasm. If you love chocolate, cake, or chocolate cake, you are gonna love this one. All of my favorite cake recipes happen to have buttermilk in them. It makes for moist, not-too-sweet cakes. This cake recipe is Ina Garten's Beatty cake, but my sister, mom, and I like to pair it with our favorite white icing recipe. The first time I used this icing recipe was in high school when I made my sister a red velvet cake for her birthday. One of my aunts {who shall remain nameless for the sake of identity protection} was literally eating the leftover icing by the trowel-full. She. could. not. get. enough. of this icing. Paired with this chocolate cake and you have yourself a choco-wanderlust.
Recipe
- Butter, for greasing the pans
- 1 3/4 cups flour plus more for pans
- 2 cups sugar
- 3/4 cups cocoa powder (I use dutch process)
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup buttermilk, shaken
- 1/2 cup canola oil
- 2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup freshly brewed hot coffee
- White icing, recipe follows
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter two 8-inch x 2-inch round cake pans. Line with parchment paper, then butter and flour the pans.
Sift the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and mix on low speed until combined. In another bowl, combine the buttermilk, oil, eggs, and vanilla. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry. With mixer still on low, add the coffee and stir just to combine, scraping the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool in the pans for 30 minutes, then turn them out onto a cooling rack and cool completely.
Place 1 layer, flat side up, on a flat plate or cake pedestal. With an icing spatula, spread the top with frosting. Place the second layer on top, rounded side up, and spread the frosting evenly on the top and sides of the cake.
Frosting
- 6 T. flour
- 1 1/2 c. milk
- 1 1/2 c. butter
- 1 1/2 c. sugar
- 1 1/2 t. vanilla
Cook flour and milk over medium heat, stirring until thick and smooth. Cool in refrigerator, stirring occasionally. Meanwhile, cream butter, sugar, and vanilla together. Add cooled milk mixture, beating 10-12 minutes until thick and creamy.