Chocolate Cake (#1)

I had Sarah go through the recipe box and pick out what she wanted for a birthday cake. The finalists were Carrot Cake and Chocolate Cake. Carrot cake is generally my favorite, but chocolate cake seemed more birthday-appropriate, so that's what we went with.

It was good cake. Everyone said it was good - really good.

But it isn't my favorite. I'm realizing more and more just what a gourmande I am, as my French friend Marie-Hélène once dubbed me. I prefer baked goods that are moist, rich, and decadent, and this recipe doesn't quite meet those standards.

However, this cake is truly a good cake - it isn't dry, by any means; it has a good consistency and good flavor.

I had one variation to the recipe: because I didn't have instant coffee, I used about 1/4 cup of strong brewed coffee, but I don't think it was enough - I couldn't really taste it in the cake. I read that 1 tsp of instant equals 1 cup of brewed, but I was afraid of messing up the batter with too much liquid. I'm not sure what the solution is, other than hitting my grandmother up for some of her instant coffee granules next time.

The only problem with this recipe is that a half-pint of cream is not enough to cover this two-layer cake. I stretched it as far as I could, and only got the top done, as well as the in-between layer:

So I asked Sarah to pick up some more cream on her way over for her birthday dinner, and then I was able to finish frosting the cake.

I really like chocolate cake frosted only with sweetened whipped cream - though I used my own version rather than what this recipe called for. I also had some leftover chocolate frosting in the freezer, so I thawed it out and used it to decorate the top:

(Unfortunately, I did not have any birthday candles, so I improvised.)

Overall, it was a success, even though it's not at the top of my list of cakes to make again. The important thing here is that Sarah really liked her birthday cake, and enjoyed it even more with her coffee for breakfast the next day!

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Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup shortening
2 cups sugar
2 tsp vanilla
4 oz baking chocolate
5 eggs, separated
2-1/4 cup sifted cake flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp instant coffee
1 tsp salt
1 cup buttermilk

frosting:
1/2 pint heavy cream (I recommend 1 pint)
1 tbsp sugar (I recommend 4-8 tbsp powdered sugar)
1/2 tsp vanilla (I recommend1 tsp for a pint of cream)

Directions:
Let shortening [and butter] get to room temperature. Cream & add sugar slowly & chocolate that's been melted over water.
Beat egg yolks 'til light - blend in.
Sift flour, etc. [dry ingredients] 3 times.
Beat whites stiff.
Add flour mixture to sugar, mix[ing] alternately with buttermilk.
Fold in beaten whites.

2 greased & lined 9-in layer pans.
Bake at 350 degrees 35-40 min. Cool on wire racks.

Whip cream - add sugar. Stir in vanilla. Spread on both layers. Serve cold.
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