Our friend, London, had two requests for his recent birthday: chocolate and fun. So, what’s more fun gay than an Ina Garten cake recipe and 10 grown men roller skating?! Not much, friend. Not much.
Much like looking like a normal human being while dribbling a basketball, baking an intact layer cake is a skill that has always eluded me. More on that later. But, I did it! And London loved it! Yes, he eats cakes like this and looks like he does. Sometimes God gives with both hands, folks.
This cake is a delicious and simple chocolate masterpiece whose cake and icing are infused with coffee. Everyone loved the cake, except for my roommate, who actually turned up his nose to the idea of anything coffee-flavored. Mind you, this is the same person who tried to eat bittersweet baker’s chocolate after taking an Ambien.
PS – Few things in my life compare to gayness of icing a chocolate layer cake resting on a vintage cake stand while aggressively and passionately belting out Mariah Carey’s ‘Always Be My Baby.’
cake
- 1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
- 2 cups sugar
- 3/4 cups cocoa powder
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup buttermilk, shaken
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup freshly brewed hot coffee
chocolate frosting
- 6 ounces semisweet chocolate
- 2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 large egg yolk, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/4 cups confectioners’ sugar
- 1 tablespoon instant coffee powder*
*I used the Nescafé individual instant coffee. Two to be exact.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Butter and flour two 9″ cake pans (or just use Pam like a regular person). Then line with parchment paper. THIS you should do because I have personally experienced the heartache of cakes that won’t come out of pans. Again, more on that later.
Combine the dry cake ingredients: flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on low speed until combined.
In another bowl, combine the wet cake ingredients: buttermilk, oil, eggs, and vanilla. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry. Then add the coffee and stir just to combine.
Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool in the pans for 30 minutes, then turn them out onto a cooling and cool completely. Cooling time is perfect for drinking making the frosting!
Chop chocolate and place it in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Stir until just melted and set aside to cool.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium-high speed until light yellow and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the egg yolk and vanilla and continue beating for 3 minutes. Turn the mixer to low, gradually add the confectioners’ sugar, then beat at medium speed, scraping down the bowl as necessary, until smooth and creamy.
Dissolve the coffee powder in 2 teaspoons of the hottest tap water. On low speed, add the chocolate and coffee to the butter mixture and mix until blended. Don’t whip it, y’all! Spread it immediately!
Place 1 layer, flat side up, on a flat plate or cake stand. With a knife or offset spatula, spread the top with frosting. Place the second layer on top, rounded side up, and spread the frosting evenly on the top and sides of the cake.