It is my great pleasure to share this very special recipe with everyone! I got this from a co-worker who was about 82 years old at the time (named Irene). I had clocked out from work my 4th day on a new job. I was having a bad night (the stress was personal, not work-related). I sat down in the employee break room, and Irene noticed that I was feeling down... So she opened a Tupperware container with a HUGE rectangle of rich, dark chocolate cake inside, and asked me,
"Hun, would you like some chocolate cake? Its made from scratch, not from a box."
I gladly accepted, and she shared half of it with me. The cake was delicious! Moist, dark, and very chocolaty! I had never had a homemade cake recipe turn out this good before. So I BEGGED Irene for the recipe. The next day, she brought in the recipe she had written on old, weathered paper. I snapped photos of it with my smart phone, and typed it up after I got home-- and of course, made some more at home for myself! Now I would like to pass on this delicious recipe. Irene says you can use regular flour, and sometimes she does (I did the first time). But she prefers cake flour. So I tried that too, and it came out wonderful-- King Arthur Unbleached Cake Flour. I hope you all love it as much as I do!
Irene’s
Chocolate
Cake
Ingredients:
1
3/4 cups flour (cake flour is best)
3/4
cup cocoa powder (unsweetened)
2
tsp
baking powder
1
tsp baking soda
2
cups sugar
3/4
tsp salt
2
eggs (room temperature)
3/4
cup whole milk
1/2
cup vegetable oil
2
1/2
tsp vanilla extract
1
1/4
cups
boiling water
Icing:
8
tbsp butter, softened
2
3/4
cups powdered sugar
½
cup cocoa powder (unsweetened)
1/2
cup whole milk
1
tsp. vanilla extract
Directions:
1. Preheat
oven to 350 degrees.
2. Make
the icing first. Blend
the powdered sugar with the butter, very well. Add cocoa, milk and
vanilla. Keep the mixer on low, until everything is well
incorporated. Store in refrigerator until after
cake
has cooled. Stir again, before frosting.
3. Lightly
grease and flour 2 cake pans (9
inches),
or for
a 1-layer cake, use a
large pan (13x9-inch).
4. In
a mixing bowl, blend
together the flour,
cocoa powder, baking powder, and
baking
soda). Set aside.
5. In
a separate bowl, mix
together the
the sugar, salt, eggs (whisking in 1 at a time), milk, oil, vanilla,
and water; add
water
slowly, while mixing.
6. Add
dry ingredients to wet ingredients. With
an electric mixer, beat
on low speed for 2 minutes, until smooth. Pour batter into
pans, making sure the levels are even.
If
you are using 2 nine-inch pans, bake for 30 to 35 minutes. If using
one 13x9-inch pan, bake 35 to 40 minutes.
9. Remove
from oven and place on a protected surface. Allow
to cool completely
to room temperature, before removing from pan and/or frosting. Frost
cake with icing and serve.