My Favorite Chocolate Cake

I made this cake about three months ago, (and photographed it with my broken old point-and-shoot camera)-- but never got around to blogging it.  I have no idea why, but I can tell you that our dinner guest went back for seconds and was happy that I sent her home with an extra slice.  (Now that I think about it, I didn't like the photos of the finished cake.)  I've made this cake recipe several times, and it always turns out very moist and  tender.  I'm sure that the buttermilk and oil has a lot to do with it! Yes, there's coffee in the recipe, but you can't really taste it.  If you've never added coffee to a chocolate cake recipe you will be surprised at how much richer the chocolate tastes.  I didn't take a lot of detailed photos, because my guest was almost here and I was rushing through the whole process I would hope that most everyone knows how to bake a cake. Right?  We start with flour and sugar and leavener, and Dutch Process Cocoa and a few extra goodies (the recipe card is at the bottom of this post).

Add eggs, coffee, buttermilk, oil, & vanilla. Beat at medium speed for 2 minutes.Now, we add the cooled coffee.  The batter will be a bit thin, but no worries.  I decided to bake the cakes in a 9" baking pan, which I lined with parchment paper (my best friends).  Baking time varies, of course.  28 minutes is the suggested time, but I always check my cake 4-5 minutes beforehand.  I don't like dry cake.  Then again, who does?!

Cool the cake -- you know the drill.  For the frosting,  I decided to do something a little different.  I want to fill the center with whipped cream.  Only, I wanted to stabilize it.  I did a little research and I read that powdered sugar helps.  I also read that unflavored gelatin helps.  Then, I saw a recipe that used both.  Why not?

1/4 cup ice cold water, 1 teaspoon unflavored gelatin, 1/4 cup confectioners sugar, 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract and 1 cup heavy cream.  The cold water is added to the gelatin to "bloom" it.  I ended up microwaving it for about 10 seconds, just to make it pourable into the whipped cream. Otherwise, I risk having lumps in my whipped cream.  
NOTE: I always chill my bowl and beaters before whipping my cream. It's foolproof.

You can see that the whipped cream has the texture of frosting.  So far, I've never made butter by over whipping my cream. Whew! Done.

Our family loves a white frosting, to contract the chocolate flavor.  I had an idea.   I had made a Grand Marnier Sauce for a Fig Brulee and I had some left over.  Hmmmm....

I never measure when I make frostings. I just create it by texture.  One stick of butter, and powdered sugar, and vanilla extract.  I like to add a little half & half to make the frosting silky.  So, I drizzled 4 ounces of the caramel flan sauce into the frosting... 

When frosting my cakes, I like to build a wall around the bottom layer with a piping bag. Then I filled it in with the whipped cream frosting center..., using

That way, when I add the frosting on top and the sides, the whipped cream won't leak out.   On a whim, I drizzled the very last of the caramel sauce over the cake.  The cake isn't photogenic, I thought to myself.

But, our dinner guest thought so. She patiently waited while I cut and photographed dessert.

This cake wouldn't win for good looks, compared to my Tuxedo Cake...

 ...this has a white chocolate mousse filling. (Slurp.) But, I never got to taste it. I gave it away.

But, the inside looks good to me! Rich chocolate and a whipped cream filling...

VERDICT:  Moist. Tender. Chocolatey.  The whipped cream balances out the sweetness of the buttercream.  The caramel in the frosting is very subtle.  Everyone has seconds!  The cake was gone the next day.  I speak the truth-- this is an excellent scratch cake. Who needs cake mix?  Really?

So, now I've written two posts about cakes, which is unusual for me.  I have a wicked sweet tooth.  Did I ever tell you that?  That's why I don't bake cakes very often.  I'd be a glutton. When nobody is looking.  

I'm posting the original recipe for the cake, and how I made the Caramel Sauce below my signature.  This cake is the star of this dessert.  You can use any kind of frosting that strikes your fancy-- but, please... no canned frosting!  Homemade buttercream is so easy to make, and doesn't have all those stabilizers and hard-to-pronounce ingredients in them!

Cheers!