I inexplicably needed something chocolate.
But not just a piece of chocolate.
Not chocolate ice cream.
Nor a gooey brownie.
No. Today I needed cake.
So I turned to the best chocolate cake recipe I have in my arsenal.
It's a recipe I've adapted from several different recipes I've tried in the past.
It's ridiculously easy, quick and the best dang chocolate cake I have ever tasted.
Perfect for a day like today.
Let's do it!
Here's what you need for the cake:
- 2 cups sugar
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- ⅓ cup unsweetened cocoa
- 1 Tbsp. Instant Coffee
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- ½ tsp. salt
- 1 cup butter, melted
- ½ cup buttermilk
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 tsp. vanilla
Okay now hurry up and make it!
Preheat your oven to 400℉.
I know.
It sounds hot but just trust me.
Do you trust me?
Good.
Now grab the bowl of your electric mixer (or a regular mixing bowl if you want to use hand beaters) and a sifting device.
Add the flour.
And the sugar.
And the cocoa.
And the baking soda and salt.
And finally add the instant coffee.
Grab a spoon and get sifting.
And this, my friends, is why we sift...
Dump this junk in the trash.
Now take the bowl 'o' good stuff...
and add the melted butter and water.
Mix just until combined.
No more!
Nobody likes a tough cake.
Now measure the buttermilk and crack two eggs into the measuring cup.
Add the vanilla, break the yolks and whisk it up a bit with a fork.
Dump the buttermilk mixture into the mixing bowl and beat until combined.
Now grab your cake pans.
I used two 10 inch rounds which is pretty much equal to a sheet cake.
I used two round pans as apposed to one sheet pan for two reasons:
1. The cakes only take 20 minutes to bake so if you need chocolate now this is the right thing to do.
2. Two cakes means you will need to put something in between them when stacked which means twice the icing. Sweet!
But you can use whatever makes you happy.
Okay, grease and flour the pans.
If you're like me and using two cake pans, divide your batter evenly into the two pans.
Pop them in your preheated oven and bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
When the cakes are done, put the pans on a cooling rack and allow to cool in the pans for 10 minutes.
After 10 minutes, invert the pans to remove the cakes and place them back onto the wire racks.
Allow to cool completely and frost with your favorite frosting.
OR
If you want an insane chocolate fix, do what I did and make some chocolate ganache!
All you need is 8 oz. of semisweet chocolate and a cup of heavy cream.
**Please excuse the lighting in the pictures from here on out. Apparently it gets dark earlier than I anticipated...**
Break up the chocolate and put it into a heatproof bowl.
Pour the cream into a saucepan and place over medium heat.
Heat until just before the cream begins to boil.
When tiny bubbles start to form around the edge, turn the heat off.
Pour the cream over the chocolate pieces and let sit for 15 seconds or so.
Grab a spoon and start stirring vigorously until the cream and chocolate become one.
Now take your cake and cooling rack and place it on top of a cookie sheet lined with parchment.
Pour half of the ganache onto the cake and spread it all the way out to the edge
Now put your second cake on top.
And pour the rest of the ganache on top.
Use the spoon to spread the ganache evenly over the top of the cake pushing it just to the edge of the cake so that it slowly oozes over the side.
Hello lover.
As the ganache starts to drip over the sides, use your spoon or a spatula to smooth it around the edges.
Carefully transfer the cake to a plate and serve ASAP!
Ideally you should let the ganache cool and set for a while before cutting into it.
But if you remember from the beginning of this post, I needed me some chocolate!
Meet my new best friend.
If you make this cake, it will be your new best friend too.
And why not have some ice cream with it.
This cake may not be the best looking thing you've ever seen but wait until you eat it.
Ohhhhh baby.
This just made my day.
And I hope it made yours better too!
No comments:
Post a Comment