My Favorite Chocolate Cake

Hello everyone! It's time that I share with you all the most incredible chocolate cake recipe that you've ever tasted...

It's no surprise that one of my favorite cake recipes of all time comes from one of my favorite culinary ladies of all time - Ina Garten! This recipe, my friends, is one of those tried and true-keep for your entire life-everyone asks for it everytime you make it recipes. 

This particular cake was made for no real "special" occasion, but it had been long over-due since it was made last. The making of this delicious piece of chocolate heaven actually came about because Patrick needed something to shoot for his photography class, hence the gorgeous pictures we all get to gawk at to go along with this gorgeous recipe. Thanks Patrick! Your pictures are always, always welcome on this blog...

Anyways, I guess I better give you the recipe after all that hype, hey?

Beatty's Chocolate Cake

Recipe from Ina Garten's Barefoot Contessa at Home

butter for greasing the pans
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for the pans
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup good cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup buttermilk, shaken
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 extra-large eggs, at room temp
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup freshly brewed hot coffee

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Butter two 8 inch round cake pans.
Line with parchment paper, then butter, and then flour the pans.
Sift the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into the bowl of an eletric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and mix on low speed until combined.
In another bowl, combine the butter milk, oil, eggs, and vanilla.
With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry.
With the 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 35-40 minutes, until toothpick comes out clean. 

Cool in the pans for 30 minutes, then turn them out onto a cooling rack and cool completely.
Place one layer, flat side up on a flat plate or cake pedestal.
With a knife or offset 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.

Chocolate Frosting

Recipe from Ina Garten's Barefoot Contessa at Home

6 ounces good semisweet chocolate
1/2 pound unsalted butter, at room temp
1 extra large egg yolk, at room temp
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/4 cup sifted confectioners sugar
1 tablespoon instant coffee powder

Chop the chocolate and place it in a heat proof bowl set over a pan of simmering water. 

Stir until just melted and set aside until cooled to room temp.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium high speed until light yellow and fluffy, about 3 minutes. 

Add the egg yolk and vanilla and continue beating for 3 minutes. 

Turn the mixer to low speed, gradually add the confectioners sugar, then beat at medium speed, scraping the bowl as neccesary, until smooth and creamy. 

Dissolve the coffee powder in 2 tablespoons of the hottest tap water. 

On low speed, add the chocolate and coffee to the butter mixture and mix until blended. 

Don't whip! 

Spread immediately onto cooled cake.

And there you go! If you're worried about the copious amounts of coffee in this cake - don't worry! You can barely taste it, and the coffee is just in there to enhance the flavor of the chocolate and make the cake really moist. And boy does it ever...

The cake - and the photos - turned out beautiful!

Thanks to the master photographer and wonderful helper.

Patrick has a bunch more photos of the baking extravaganza on his blog - 1hundo. - so definitely check those out! I hope you all enjoy this cake as much as we did (and always do)!

xoxo

Mariel