Lemon Layer Cake with Lemon Curd and Mascarpone

 By Heather

Another lemon dessert!  At the beginning of this year I started a little dessert club with some of my friends.  It's really a fun excuse to try new recipes that I would never make for my family, since half of them might dislike it and then I'd be forced to eat the rest of the dessert by myself.  This selfless service has been rendered in the past, but I'm hoping not to repeat it often.  I can no longer call my squishies "baby fat", when my smallest child is almost 3 years old.

So last month for dessert club the theme was "lemon."  And boy did we have a lot of absolutely delicious desserts.  There were so many good and beautiful treats that I'm still dreaming about them.  I was the lucky one that night, and won the prize for best dessert.  Hooray!  It was fun to win, but I only edged out two other desserts by one and two points respectively.  As I said, there were masterpieces present.

This cake was very delicious, with light spongy layers that became wonderful with the lemon simple syrup soaked in.  I made a couple of changes to the recipe (not reflected in the recipe below, though).  One, I had made a different lemon curd recipe and used that in the cake, merely because I was comfortable with that recipe and wanted to use it in another recipe I was making.  Second, I was too cheap to spend $15 on three tubs of mascarpone, so I bought one and used two 8-oz. blocks of neufchatel (light cream cheese) in place of the other two tubs.  I thought the frosting was really good, so I think you can get away with it if budget is an issue. I made the cake, curd and frosting over a couple of days and then assembled it all the day before serving.  I think that helped the flavors to meld well.  This would work really well as a special occasion cake for a citrus fan.  Or a chocolate fan - you may be surprised!


Lemon Layer Cake with Lemon Curd and Mascarpone

You'll need a pastry bag fitted with a 1/4-inch star tip to create the decorative rosettes. Begin making this cake two days before you plan to serve it.    Yield: Makes 10 to 12 servings

Ingredients:

Lemon curd:
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup fresh lemon juice
3 large eggs
3 large egg yolks
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

Cake:
6 large eggs, separated
14 tablespoons sugar
1 3/4 cups sifted cake flour (sifted, then measured)
1/4 teaspoon salt

Syrup:
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup boiling water
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

Filling and frosting:
2 cups chilled heavy whipping cream
3/4 cup sugar
3 8-ounce containers chilled mascarpone cheese* or a combination of mascarpone and cream cheese

For lemon curd:
Whisk first 4 ingredients in medium metal bowl. Set bowl over saucepan of simmering water (do not allow bottom of bowl to touch water). Whisk constantly until thickened and instant-read thermometer inserted into mixture registers 160°F, about 10 minutes. Remove bowl from over water. Add butter; whisk until melted. Transfer 1 cup curd to small bowl for spreading on cake layers. Reserve remaining curd for filling. Press plastic wrap directly onto surface of both curds. Chill overnight. (Can be made 3 days ahead. Keep chilled.)

For cake:
Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 375°F. Line bottom of two 9-inch-diameter cake pans with 1 1/2-inch-high sides with parchment paper (do not grease pans or parchment). Using electric mixer, beat egg yolks and 7 tablespoons sugar in large bowl until mixture is very thick and slowly dissolving ribbons form when beaters are lifted, about 4 minutes. Using clean dry beaters, beat whites in another large bowl until soft peaks form. Add remaining 7 tablespoons sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating until stiff and glossy. Fold half of whites into yolk mixture, then sift half of flour and 1/4 teaspoon salt over and gently fold in until incorporated. Fold in remaining whites, then sift remaining flour over and fold in just until combined, being careful not to deflate batter.

Divide batter between pans; smooth tops. Bake until tester inserted into center of cakes comes out clean, about 15 minutes. Cool in pans on racks.

Run knife around edge of pans to loosen cakes. Invert cakes onto 9-inch-diameter cardboard rounds, tapping on work surface if necessary to release cakes. Carefully and slowly cut each cake horizontally in half (layers will be thin). Peel off parchment.

For syrup:
Place sugar in small metal bowl. Add 1/2 cup boiling water; stir to dissolve sugar. Stir in lemon juice.

For filling and frosting:
Beat whipping cream and sugar in large bowl until peaks form. Add mascarpone to lemon curd in medium bowl; whisk until blended. Fold whipped cream into lemon-mascarpone mixture.

Place 1 cake layer, flat side up, on platter. Brush with 1/4 of syrup. Spread 1/4 cup lemon curd over, then 1 cup lemon-mascarpone filling. Top with second cake layer; brush with 1/4 of syrup and spread with 1/4 cup lemon curd and 1 cup lemon-mascarpone filling. Repeat with third cake layer, syrup, lemon curd, and filling. Top with fourth cake layer. Brush with remaining syrup, then spread remaining lemon curd over. Spoon 2 cups lemon-mascarpone filling into pastry bag fitted with 1/4-inch star tip (to be used for rosettes). Spread remaining lemon-mascarpone filling as a frosting over sides of cake. Pipe small rosettes of frosting over top of cake, covering completely. Cover cake with cake dome; refrigerate at least 6 hours and up to 1 day.

*Italian cream cheese available at Italian markets and many supermarkets.

Source: Slightly adapted from Epicurious

Perfect Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Frosting

Submitted by Heather

Just keeping it real with the picture above.  You know I can't get a fancy cake made without the rest of the house falling to pieces.  With 5 kiddos, it doesn't take long to trash the house.  But the taste of the cake made up for the chaos that ensued!

This is a really good chocolate cake.  I don't use the word "perfect" lightly, but this has become my "go-to" chocolate cake for special occasions. It has a light crumb, tastes like chocolate (unlike some cakes that only LOOK like chocolate) and cuts nicely.  I wish I had enough time to do a taste test with other chocolate cakes so that I could definitively say which one is the best, but just know that this one is very good and worth the time to make it.  I was making up excuses to level the cakes over and over just so that I could taste the cake again.  I started out with about 2 1/2 inch layers and was left with about 1 1/2 inch layers by the time I was done "testing"! Just make sure that you don't overcook this cake!  I made that mistake the first time and it was very dry.  I was so annoyed, that I immediately made the cake again - much to the amazement and happiness of my family. It was moist and wonderful the next time.

The frosting is also very good.  How can it not be, when it is mostly melted chocolate?  Make this cake for your next birthday or celebration and wait for the chocoholics to sing your praises.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, plus more for pans
3/4 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder, plus more for pans
1/2 cup boiling water
2 1/4 cups sugar
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
3 cups sifted cake flour (not self-rising)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk

Directions:
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Arrange two racks in center of oven. Butter three 8-by-2-inch round cake pans; line bottoms with parchment. Spray the pans with vegetable oil spray. Sift cocoa into a medium bowl, and whisk in boiling water. Set aside to cool.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter on low speed until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in sugar until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes, scraping down sides twice. Beat in vanilla. Drizzle in eggs, a little at a time, beating between each addition until the batter is no longer slick, scraping down the sides twice.

In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, and salt. Whisk milk, little by little, into reserved cocoa mixture until smooth. With mixer on low speed, alternately add flour and cocoa mixtures to the batter, a little of each at a time, starting and ending with flour mixture.

Divide batter evenly among the three prepared pans. Bake until a cake tester or toothpick inserted into center of each layer comes out clean (or almost clean), 30 to 45 minutes, rotating the pans for even baking. DO NOT OVERBAKE. Transfer layers to wire racks; let cool, 15 minutes. Turn out cakes, and return to racks, tops up, until completely cool.

Remove parchment from bottoms of cakes. Reserve the prettiest layer for the top. Place one cake layer on a serving platter; spread 1 1/2 cups chocolate frosting over the top. Add the second cake layer, and spread with another 1 1/2 cups frosting. Top with third cake layer. Cover outside of cake with the remaining 3 cups frosting. Serve.

Source: Moist Devil's Food Cake by Martha Stewart

FROSTING:

16 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped

8 Tbsp. unsalted butter (1 stick)

1/3 C. sugar

2 Tbsp. corn syrup

2 tsp. vanilla extract

1/4 tsp. table salt

1 1/4 C. heavy cream (cold)

Melt chocolate in heatproof bowl set over saucepan containing 1 inch of barely simmering water, stirring occasionally until smooth.  Remove from heat and set aside.  Meanwhile, heat butter in small saucepan over medium-low heat until melted.  Increase heat to medium; add sugar, corn syrup, vanilla, and salt and stir with heatproof rubber spatula until sugar is dissolved, 4-5 minutes.  add melted chocolate, butter mixture, and cream to clean bowl of standing mixer and stir to thoroughly combine.

Place mixer bowl over ice bath and stir mixture constantly with rubber spatula until frosting is thick and just beginning to harden against sides of bowl, 1 to 2 minutes (frosting should be 70 degrees). Place bowl on standing mixer fitted with paddle attachment and beat on medium-high speed until frosting is light and fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes.  Stir with rubber spatula until completely smooth.

Source: America's Test Kitchen Old Fashioned Chocolate Layer Cake (frosting)

Chocolate Mousse Dacquoise

Submitted by Heather

For a couple of years I've wanted to start a dessert club.  You know, get together with friends who love to cook and eat and share our latest recipes.  So this past month I finally set it all up and we had our inaugural meeting.  It was so much fun!  Because I wanted everyone to feel comfortable (or uncomfortable?), I had the dessert assignment be something you've never made before.  That opened up a lot of possibilities, without making it so that people could say "I don't know how to make that."  We were all trying something new.
It was really hard to decide on something to make.  I have a cake cookbook, though, with a number of cake recipes that are just different enough that I've never thought of attempting them.  I can't believe how many things I've never tried making!  The following recipe is one of those.  I'm so glad I chose it, because it was really different and fantastic.
It took a bit of work and pre-planning, but don't let all the steps scare you away.  They're really just there to guide you and help you from making mistakes.
This cake is really wonderful, because you get the crisp and crunchy texture from the dacquoise, and the smooth chocolate taste from the mousse and together it is definitely more than the sum of its parts.  After I had made just the dacquoise layer, I tasted it and thought, meh.  I wasn't sure my dessert was going to be anything special.  But after I put it together with the mousse, I was won over.  It was delicious!  If you have a fancy occasion and want to wow someone, this would be a perfect choice.  And one wonderful thing about this cake is that you can make the different parts days ahead of time, and then you're all ready to assemble a few hours before serving.

(In all of the craziness of the first meeting of Dessert Club, I forgot to take a close-up of my own dessert!  Here it is blown up a bit.  At the top of the post is a picture of a leftover piece I thankfully had saved.)

Dacquoise Cake Layer

6 large egg whites, at room temperature
1 1/4 C.  sifted superfine sugar (8 3/4 oz.; 250 g.)
2 Tablespoons sifted cornstarch
1/4 tsp. cream of tartar
1/8 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla extract

For dacquoise add:
1 C. (5 ounces; 140 g) toasted and finely ground hazelnuts and/or almonds
1/8 tsp. hazelnut or almond extract

Dab a little butter on a jellyroll pan and add parchment paper cut to fit the pan. Spray parchment with vegetable spray, then dust it with flour; tap out excess flour. Use a toothpick directly on the greased sheet to draw around a template marking three 8 or 9 inch rounds about 1 inch apart on the prepared pans.

Set aside 1/2 C. of the sugar. Combine remaining sugar with the cornstarch in a sifter and sift together onto wax paper.  If making a dacquoise, add the ground nuts to this sugar-cornstarch mixture.

Put the warm whites into the large bowl of an electric mixer, add cream of tartar and salt, and beat on low to medium speed until the whites begin to look fluffy.  Gradually add the reserved 1/2 C. sugar, while beating on medium-high speed (Kitchenaid #8) until whites are glossy and medium-stiff.  Add vanilla if used, and the hazelnut or almond extract.  Beat just a few seconds longer, until stiff but not dry.

In four or five additions, fold the cornstarch-sugar and nuts mixture into the whites by hand, using a flat whisk or rubber spatula.  Fold gently to maintain maximum volume.

Prepare a pastry bag by setting it, tip down in a four cup measure.  Spoon in the meringue.  Twist the bag closed and pipe meringue inside the 3 marked shapes on the pan.  Gently squeeze out an even column of meringue, holding the bag perpendicular to the pan and slightly above it.  Use up any leftover meringue by piping out small cookies or spooning out small nests or cups of meringue.  Bake the meringue in the preheated oven for 40-50 minutes, or longer, until the meringue is thoroughly set and a very light beige color.  Look in the oven after about 5 minutes; if the meringue is darkening too fast, reduce the heat to 250 degrees.  If the oven heat is too high, the color of the meringue will darken as the sugar caramelizes; this changes the flavor of the meringue.  To bake perfectly white meringues, you must bake the layers at 200 degrees for 90 minutes or longer until thoroughly dried out.

After baking the dacquoise, set the pans on a wire rack for a few minutes.  The baked shapes will be slightly pliable while warm.  At this stage, use a wide spatula to lift them from the sheet, take off the parchment, and set them on the wire rack to cool completely.  After cooling the layers on the racks for 15 to 20 minutes, they should be completely crisp.  Test a small cookie to test the texture - it should crack in half.  If your shapes are still soft when cold, set them back on the parchment and return to the oven for a little while to dry out further.

Once they are cold and crisp, trim the layers to be the same size so that they have a neat appearance.  Save the trimmings. Store the layers in an airtight container, separated by wax paper.  You may freeze, fill and frost or keep on the counter for several days.

CHOCOLATE MOUSSE, NEW STYLE
(This recipe is for those who do not want raw egg in their mousse, but would like the added richness that eggs add.  The eggs are cooked to remove any possible danger.)

12 ounces semisweet or bittersweet (not unsweetened) chocolate, chopped (2 C. morsels; 340 g.) or combine half semisweet and half bittersweet chocolate
4 Tablespoons light corn syrup
6 large egg yolks
1 C. heavy cream, at room temperature, plus 2 Cups, well chilled

Melt chocolate in top of the double boiler set over, not touching, hot water; stir, remove from heat, stir until smooth, and set aside to cool.
In small, heavy-bottomed pan set over medium-low heat, whisk together corn syrup, yolks, and 1 C. room-temp. cream.  Whisk and stir continuously for 5 to 7 minutes, or until mixture is thick, covers a spoon, and reaches 150 F for 2 minutes, or 160 for moment on an instant-read thermometer.
Strain the yolk mixture into the cooling chocolate and immediately whisk hard, making the chocolate shiny and satin-smooth.  Cool until warm, not hot, to the touch.
Using a chilled bowl and beater, whip remaining 2 Cups of chilled cream to soft peaks.  Check temperature of chocolate - it should feel warm but comfortable to the touch.  Fold chocolate into cream, cover, and refrigerate until ready to serve.  Bring to room temperature before spreading on cake or serving alone as a dessert.
Makes 6 Cups.

GARNISH
1 C. toasted and ground hazelnuts and/or almonds, or toasted and sliced almonds (add this to the leftover dacquoise pieces that have been crushed)
Chocolate curls (Note: my curls didn't work out.  I think the room/pan was too cold, because they turned into shards of chocolate instead.  But I still used them and actually got compliments on them! Maybe people were just being nice...)



ASSEMBLY
Prepare 3 dacquoise layers.  While the layers are baking, prepare the chocolate mousse.  Set the mousse in the refrigerator to chill until it reaches a spreading consistency.
Set out a bowl containing toasted sliced or chopped nuts and add any crumbs left from trimming the baked dacquoise layers.

On a 9 inch cardboard cake disk or a flat plate, put a dab of chocolate mousse in the center, then set down the first dacquoise layer.  spread about 1 1/4 C. of mousse on the first layer, top with a second dacquoise layer, and add mousse filling as before; repeat with remaining layers.  Align the sides of the cake neatly.  Frost the sides and top of the cake generously with the chocolate mousse.  You will probably have some mousse left over; it can be frozen and served at another time or piped through a pastry bag fitted with a star tip to make decorative rosettes around the edge of the cake.

To garnish the cake, lift it up and hold it over a piece of wax paper or a tray.  Scoop the toasted and ground nuts/crumbs into the palm of your other hand and press them gently onto the lower third of the cake sides.  If you plan to freeze the cake, do so at this time.

To complete the cake, cover the top with chocolate curls and sift on a fine dusting of confectioners' sugar.  Refrigerate the cake for 3 or 4 hours for easiest slicing, or until ready to serve.


Source: The Perfect Cake by Susan G. Purdy

Blackberry and Apple Cake Bake

Posted by Lisa

Source:

Adapted from : Easy Cranberry and Apple Cake

2010 Barefoot Contessa How Easy is that?

I saw Barefoot Contessa the other day and this recipe was being made and it looked delicious.  I knew my kids wouldn't come near it with cranberries so I switched it up a little and used some blackberries I had from the garden in my freezer.  I just tasted it and it was really good.  Ice cream with it would be great.  I did find it a bit sweet, so below I reduced the amount of sugar.  I am sure if cranberries had been used, the original sugar amount would have been just right.  This is a great comforting dessert for a cold evening inside with the family.  Enjoy!  Thanks Ina!

Ingredients

• 12 ounces fresh or frozen blackberries (thawed) (she used cranberries)
• 1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored, and diced
• 1/4 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed (she used 1/2 c )
• 1 tablespoon grated orange zest (2 oranges)
• 1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
• 1 1/8 teaspoons ground cinnamon, divided
• 2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Directions

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Combine the cranberries, apple, brown sugar, orange zest, orange juice, and 1 teaspoon of the cinnamon in a medium bowl. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the eggs on medium-high speed for 2 minutes. With the mixer on medium, add 1 cup of the granulated sugar, the butter, vanilla, and sour cream and beat just until combined. On low speed, slowly add the flour and salt.

Pour the fruit mixture evenly into a 10-inch glass pie plate. Pour the batter over the fruit, covering it completely. Combine the remaining 1 tablespoon of granulated sugar and 1/8 teaspoon of cinnamon and sprinkle it over the batter.

 Bake for 55 to 60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean and the fruit is bubbling around the edges. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Peanut Butter Cup Trifle Dessert

"Not fair!  You never make anything good for us!" quote from my boys.  What ever!  I made this for our Church Young Women's meeting last night BUT I also made one for home.  Very tasty.  The bowl was actually cleaned out.  When, not if, I make this again, I will probably not include the peanut butter.  Although it was gobbled up, I think I could save a bit and just enjoy it with the pudding and cool whip as is. 

Delish!

submitted by Lisa
Source The Sisters Cafe

Peanut Butter Cup Trifle Dessert

Submitted by Erin ~ The Sisters Cafe

Printable recipe

9×13 pan of brownies, cut into 1 inch pieces
5.1 oz box instant vanilla pudding mix
3 cups milk
½ cup creamy peanut butter
2 tsp vanilla
8 oz container thawed whipped topping (Cool Whip), divided
20 peanut butter cups, crumbled (buy in a 10-pack. Not the bite-sized)
6-8 peanut butter cups to garnish.

Combine pudding and milk. Beat for 2 minutes. Add peanut butter and vanilla, beat until smooth. Gently fold in 2 cups cool whip.

Layer in trifle dish ½ the brownies, ½ the crumbled peanut butter cups, ½ the pudding mixture.

Repeat. Top with cool whip and peanut butter cups. (Or shaved chocolate curls, as I did.) Chill until serving.

Peanut Butter Frosting

I used this frosting this weekend inside of a chocolate cake for my 14 year old's birthday party (chocolate peanut pave). It was a hit.  I did use crunchy instead of creamy because I wanted some texture and it was delicious.  

Source.  www.allrecipes.com 

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup creamy peanut butter
• 3 tablespoons milk, or as needed
• 2 cups confectioners' sugar

Directions

1. Place the butter and peanut butter into a medium bowl, and beat with an electric mixer. Gradually mix in the sugar, and when it starts to get thick, incorporate milk one tablespoon at a time until all of the sugar is mixed in and the frosting is thick and spreadable. Beat for at least 3 minutes for it to get good and fluffy.

Chocolate Peanut Pave (cake)

I made this cake for my son's 14th birthday party.  I wanted something a little bit different.  I have one very important tip.  The "frosting" that you make in the recipe is not really kid friendly in flavor.  I ended up using a small portion of it to cover the whole cake but used a "Fluffy Peanut butter frosting" for the layers and it was a hit!  I don't think it would have been otherwise.

  

source: www.delish.com 
Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cup(s) unsalted dry-roasted peanuts
• 1/2 cup(s) granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup(s) unsweetened cocoa, plus more for dusting cake
• 1/4 cup(s) all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon(s) salt, plus pinch
• 6 large eggs
• 1/2 cup(s) packed dark brown sugar
• 12 ounce(s) semisweet chocolate (50 percent to 60 percent cacao), finely chopped
• 1 cup(s) heavy or whipping cream
• 1 1/2 tablespoon(s) butter or margarine
• 1/2 cup(s) creamy peanut butter
• 2 tablespoon(s) creamy peanut butter
• 1/2 teaspoon(s) vanilla extract

---

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease 18- by 12-inch jelly-roll pan. Line with parchment paper, with overhang on 2 sides; grease parchment.
2. In food processor, pulse peanuts and 1/4 cup granulated sugar until finely chopped. Remove 1/2 cup peanuts; set aside. Continue pulsing remaining peanuts until finely ground. Add cocoa, flour, and 1/4 teaspoon salt; pulse until just blended.
3. In large bowl, with mixer on medium-high speed, beat eggs, brown sugar, and remaining 1/4 cup granulated sugar until mixture is tripled in volume and very thick and pale, and batter forms soft peaks when beaters are lifted. Gently fold in cocoa mixture, being careful not to deflate eggs.
4. Gently spread batter in even layer in prepared pan. Bake 17 to 19 minutes or until center springs back when lightly pressed. Using parchment overhang, quickly and carefully slide cake off pan and onto wire rack to cool completely.
5. While cake cools, place chocolate in heatproof medium bowl. In 2-quart saucepan, heat cream on medium until bubbles form around edge. Pour over chocolate. Let stand 1 minute, then stir until smooth. Transfer 1 tablespoon mixture to small resealable plastic bag.
6. In large bowl, with mixer on medium speed, beat butter, 1/2 cup peanut butter, and pinch salt until smooth and creamy. With mixer running, gradually add melted-chocolate mixture and then vanilla. Beat until blended. Refrigerate mixture 5 minutes or until consistency of frosting
7. Lightly dust top of cake with cocoa. Invert cake onto large cutting board lined with waxed paper; discard parchment. Cut cake to form four 4-inch-wide rectangles. Place 1 rectangle on serving platter. Spread one-quarter frosting evenly over cake, sprinkle with one-third reserved chopped peanuts, and top with another rectangle; repeat twice. Spread remaining frosting all over cake.
8. Place remaining tablespoons peanut butter in small resealable plastic bag. Microwave on high 10 seconds or until runny. Snip small hole in corner and pipe decorative pattern over cake. Snip small hole in corner of bag with reserved chocolate mixture. Decorate with chocolate. Let stand at least 1 hour and up to 2 hours, or refrigerate up to 2 days. Bring cake to room temperature before serving.

One Bowl Chocolate Cake

Submitted by Melanie


I love to bake on Sundays. A couple of weeks ago my husband and I were in the mood for chocolate cake. I didn't have a whole lot of ingredients on hand so I took an inventory of what I had and started looking for a recipe that would work with the ingredients I had on hand. I came across this recipe, and boy am I glad I did. This is one of the most moist cakes I have ever had. It's a great cake for a chocolate lover! It was so good, that I had to give some to my neighbors because I was afraid I was going to eat it all. I have since made this cake 2 other times.

Ingredients

• 2 cups white sugar
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup boiling water

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour two nine inch round pans.               
2. In a large bowl, stir together the sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add the eggs, milk, oil and vanilla, mix for 2 minutes on medium speed of mixer. Stir in the boiling water last. Batter will be thin. Pour evenly into the prepared pans.
3. Bake 30 to 35 minutes in the preheated oven, until the cake tests done with a toothpick. Cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.

Rich Chocolate Frosting

• 2 cups butter (no substitutes), softened
• 9 cups confectioners' sugar
• 2 1/2 cups baking cocoa
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup milk

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter. Gradually beat in confectioners' sugar, cocoa and vanilla. Add enough milk until frosting reaches spreading consistency.               

 Source: www.allrecipes.com

Strawberry Cake

submitted by Heather

When my sisters were visiting last month, we made this as a birthday cake to celebrate all of our birthdays. I love good excuses to make yummy desserts! I usually choose chocolate cake for my birthday, but this one looked so springy and delicious that we just had to try it.  It was very good.  I liked how it tasted like real strawberries, unlike boxed versions that give an artificial strawberry flavor.  The real star was the frosting, though.  It was very smooth, creamy and strawberry-y. It almost tasted like strawberry ice cream.  If you make this cake, make sure that the cake is cooled and ready to frost when you make the frosting.  We made the frosting and set it aside for a little while before frosting the cake.  While it still tasted wonderful, it didn't spread as beautifully as it would have, had it been used immediately.

Strawberry Cake

Ingredients:
For the cake:
2¼ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup cake flour
1 tbsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2¼ cups sugar
1½ tsp. vanilla extract
3 large eggs plus 1 large egg white
1 cup milk
2½ cups finely chopped fresh strawberries

For the frosting:
1½ cups fresh strawberries (8 oz.), rinsed, hulled and coarsely chopped*
4 large egg whites
1¼ cups sugar
3 sticks (1½ cups) unsalted butter, at room temperature

For garnish:
Additional fresh strawberries

Directions:
To make the cake, preheat the oven to 350˚ F.  Line three 8-inch cake pans with parchment paper rounds and butter the pan and the parchment paper.  In a medium bowl, combine the all-purpose flour, cake flour, baking powder and salt; whisk to blend.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter, sugar and vanilla.  Beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.  Beat in the eggs and egg white one at a time, mixing well after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.  With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture in two additions alternating with the milk, mixing each addition just until incorporated.  Gently fold in the chopped strawberries with a spatula.

Divide the batter between the cake pans.  Bake until light golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 25-28 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through baking.  Allow to cool in the pans a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the frosting, place the strawberries in a food processor or blender.  Puree until completely smooth.  Combine the egg whites and sugar in a heatproof bowl set over a pot of simmering water.  Heat, whisking frequently, until the mixture reaches 160° F and the sugar has dissolved.

Transfer the mixture to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment.  Beat on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form and the mixture has cooled to room temperature, about 8 minutes.  (The bowl should be cool to the touch.)

Reduce the speed to medium and add the butter, 2 tablespoons at a time, adding more once each addition has been incorporated.  If the frosting looks soupy or curdled, continue to beat on medium-high speed until thick and smooth again, about 3-5 minutes more (or longer – don’t worry, it will come together!)  Blend in the strawberry puree until smooth and completely incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.

Decorate the cake immediately for best results. Garnish with fresh strawberries

Source: Adapted slightly from Annies-eats.com who got it from Martha Stewart’s Cupcakes

 

Deep Dark Chocolate Cake

I really love cake.  Maybe this is something that doesn't really need to be said, since most people would probably say they love cake too.  I can take or leave pie, though.  No offense to all of you pie lovers, my husband being among them, but I just find it too much work to make the crust.  I'd pick a cake any day.

That's not to say that it's a "piece of cake" to make a cake.  Oh, I suppose you could get out a cake mix and a jar of frosting and call it good, but I wouldn't.  I have had some pretty tasty doctored up cake mixes, so I'm not saying they're all bad, but if I'm going to make a cake for a special occasion, I really want it to shine. I want to be wishing I could eat another deep, dark, chocolatey piece, instead of choking down something sweet, but mostly tasteless. Sometimes that means putting a little extra effort into making the cake and frosting.   

Therefore, I think you really need to have this recipe in your repertoire.  It's a moist chocolate cake with a deep chocolate frosting.  It ought to be screaming "CHOCOLATE!" with a pound of chocolate in the frosting alone!

So, don't be intimidated by this recipe.  Just embrace it and know that in the end you're going to have something so delicious that you'll be willing to do whatever it takes to get that last piece.  And if you're only cooking for yourself or a small family, don't let that stop you!  I've made a lot of friends and had very thankful  neighbors by simply cutting pieces of cake and delivering them around the neighborhood.  Enjoy!

Cake
12	tablespoons unsalted butter (1 1/2 sticks), very soft, plus extra for greasing pans
1 3/4	cups unbleached all-purpose flour (8 3/4 ounces), plus extra for dusting pans
4	ounces unsweetened chocolate , coarsely chopped
1/4	cup Dutch-processed cocoa (3/4 ounce)
1/2	cup hot water
1 3/4	cups sugar (12 1/4 ounces)
1 1/2	teaspoons baking soda
1	teaspoon table salt
1	cup buttermilk
2	teaspoons vanilla extract
4	large eggs
2	large egg yolks
Frosting
16	ounces semisweet chocolate , finely chopped
8	tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick)
1/3	cup sugar
2	tablespoons corn syrup
2	teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4	teaspoon table salt
1 1/4	cups heavy cream (cold)

Instructions

1. FOR THE CAKE: Adjust oven rack to middle position; heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease two 9-inch-round by 2-inch-high cake pans with softened butter; dust pans with flour and knock out excess. Combine chocolate, cocoa powder, and hot water in medium heatproof bowl; set bowl over saucepan containing 1 inch of simmering water and stir with rubber spatula until chocolate is melted, about 2 minutes. Add 1/2 cup sugar to chocolate mixture and stir until thick and glossy, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove bowl from heat and set aside to cool.

2.     Whisk flour, baking soda, and salt in medium bowl. Combine buttermilk and vanilla in small bowl. In bowl of standing mixer fitted with whisk attachment, whisk eggs and yolks on medium-low speed until combined, about 10 seconds. Add remaining 1 1/4 cups sugar, increase speed to high, and whisk until fluffy and lightened in color, 2 to 3 minutes. Replace whisk with paddle attachment. Add cooled chocolate mixture to egg/sugar mixture and mix on medium speed until thoroughly incorporated, 30 to 45 seconds, pausing to scrape down sides of bowl with rubber spatula as needed. Add softened butter one tablespoon at a time, mixing about 10 seconds after each addition. Add about one-third of flour mixture followed by half of buttermilk mixture, mixing until incorporated after each addition (about 15 seconds). Repeat using half of remaining flour mixture and all of remaining buttermilk mixture (batter may appear separated). Scrape down sides of bowl and add remaining flour mixture; mix at medium-low speed until batter is thoroughly combined, about 15 seconds. Remove bowl from mixer and fold batter once or twice with rubber spatula to incorporate any remaining flour. Divide batter evenly between prepared cake pans; smooth batter to edges of pan with spatula.

3.     Bake cakes until toothpick inserted into center comes out with a few crumbs attached, 25 to 30 minutes. Cool cakes in pans 15 minutes, then invert onto wire rack. Cool cakes to room temperature before frosting, 45 to 60 minutes.

4.     TO MAKE FROSTING: Melt chocolate in heatproof bowl set over saucepan containing 1 inch of barely simmering water, stirring occasionally until smooth. Remove from heat and set aside. Meanwhile, heat butter in small saucepan over medium-low heat until melted. Increase heat to medium; add sugar, corn syrup, vanilla, and salt and stir with heatproof rubber spatula until sugar is dissolved, 4 to 5 minutes. Add melted chocolate, butter mixture, and cream to clean bowl of standing mixer and stir to thoroughly combine.

5.     Place mixer bowl over ice bath and stir mixture constantly with rubber spatula until frosting is thick and just beginning to harden against sides of bowl, 1 to 2 minutes (frosting should be 70 degrees). Place bowl on standing mixer fitted with paddle attachment and beat on medium-high speed until frosting is light and fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir with rubber spatula until completely smooth.

6.     TO FROST CAKE: Place one cake layer on serving platter or cardboard round. Spread 1 1/2 cups frosting evenly across top of cake with spatula. Place second cake layer on top, then spread remaining frosting evenly over top and sides of cake. Cut into slices and serve.

     Source: Cook's Illustrated by way of my friend, Kylee.