double chocolate cake recipe

Here is my chocolate cake recipe like I promised!

Well…it is actually not REALLY mine. It is from The America’s Test Kitchen Family Cookbook…a.k.a. the best cookbook of all time! I love this cookbook. Thanks to my sister-in-law Janet who gifted it to me a few years ago.

All-Purpose Chocolate Cake {*simplified a bit by me}

Makes 2 8 or 9 inch layers or one 9×13 sheet cake
Serves 8-12

2 c. all purpose flour
3/4 c. Dutch-processed cocoa powder
2 tsp. instant espresso or instant coffee {we don’t drink coffee so I omitted this and it taste just fine}
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
12 TBSP. {1 1/2 sticks} unsalted butter, softened
1 3/4 cups sugar
4 large eggs, at room temperature
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/2 c. whole milk at room temperature

1. Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat over to 350 degrees. Lightly coat pans and line bottom of pan(s) with parchment paper. Whisk the flour, cocoa, instant espresso, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl and set aside.

2. Beat butter and sugar together in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3-6 min. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until incorporated, scraping down the bowl and beaters as needed. Beat in the vanilla.

3. Reduce the speed to low and beat in one third of the flour mixture. Beat in half of the milk. Repeat with half of the remaining flour mixture, then the remaining milk, and finally the remaining flour mixture.

4. Give the batter a final stir with rubber spatula. Pour the batter into the prepared pan(s) and smooth the top. Bake until a wooden skewer inserted in to the center come out with a few crumbs attached. 20-25 minutes for round layers or 25-30 for sheet cake. Rotate the pan(s) halfway through baking.

5. Let the cake cool in pan on wire racks for 10 min. Run a paring knife around the edge of the cake to loosen and then flip out onto rack. Flip cake upright and discard parchment. Let cool completely before frosting, 1-2 hours.

* I actually poured my cake into a cookie sheet. Once it was baked and cooled I cut it into a three layer 8×8 cake {the middle layer was in two equal pieces}.

Now the frosting!

Dark Chocolate Frosting *again simplified and adapted by me

8 oz. melted semi-sweet chocolate {I just set a bowl on top of a small pan of boiling water to melt my chocoalte}
1 tsp. vanilla
pinch of salt
2 c. powdered sugar
2 TBSP. cocoa powder
2 1/2 c. unsalted butter, softened

Stir vanilla, chocolate and salt together until salt dissolves. Beat the butter with electric mixer on medium-high speed until smooth, 30-60 seconds.Reduce speed to med-low, and slowly add powdered sugar and cocoa powder. Beat until smooth 2-5 minutes. Beat in chocolate mixture and increase speed to med-high. Beat until light and fluffy, 4-8 minutes.

***I also used a variation of this recipe to make a peanut butter chocolate cake a few months ago. Make a chocolate cake using the recipe above and then spread with peanut butter frosting:

This is my favorite kind of cake. The peanut butter frosting is to die for.

Peanut Butter Frosting *also simplified by me

2 TBSP. heavy cream
1 tsp. vanilla
pinch of salt
2 c. softened, unsalted butter
2 1/2 c. powdered sugar
1 c. creamy peanut butter {not old fashioned or natural peanut butter}

Stir cream, vanilla and salt together until salt dissolves. Beat the butter with electric mixer on medium-high speed until smooth, 30-60 seconds.Reduce speed to med-low, and slowly add powdered sugar and peanut butter. Beat until smooth 2-5 minutes. Beat in cream mixture and increase speed to med-high. Beat until light and fluffy, 4-8 minutes.

So delicious. Enjoy!