Rule #24: If chocolate were a love language, this cake is the ultimate smooch.
This really is the Best Ever Chocolate Cake recipe, y’all. I can’t stop it. I found the recipe years ago and made it for my Daddy-O when he was going through chemo. He never loved sweets like a regular sweet-toothed-feller, so this cake was his jayum! He loved this cake because it was sweet, but not too sweet. It’s the perfect mix of bittersweet chocolate and semisweet chocolate goodness!
The homemade frosting is what really sets this cake over the top.
I like to garnish the frosting with some shaved unsweetened chocolate, too! Just use an old vegetable peeler and shave off little bits for a great touch.
Cake
To make this gorgeous cake, let’s start with the dry mix. Sift together 2 cups flour, 2 tsp. baking powder, 2 tsp. baking soda, and 1 tsp. table salt (like Morton’s). Now, preheat your oven to 350.
Put 2 cups of sugar and 2 cups of water in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat just until sugar dissolves, stirring occasionally.
Meanwhile, place 4 oz. bittersweet chocolate and 6 tbs. of unsalted butter in a large, heat-proof bowl (glass works great).
Once the sugar is dissolved in the water, carefully pour the mixture over the chocolate and butter. Let the heat melt the chocolate and butter, stirring occasionally. Allow to cool slightly.
Meanwhile, spray a couple of cake pans (8″ x 1 1/2″) with baking spray. Then, line the bottoms with parchment paper.
Once the chocolate and butter mixture has cooled slightly, add in 1 tsp. of vanilla extract.
Next, whisk in two large eggs that have been slightly beaten.
Then, dump in the dry mixture all at once.
Whisk everything until it’s well blended.
Divide the mixture evenly between your two prepared cake pans. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes, rotating halfway through, until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
Allow the cakes to cool in their pans for about 25 more minutes, then invert one of the cakes onto your cake platter.
Frosting
While them cakes cool, let’s make us some homemade frosting! In a medium saucepan, combine 1 1/3 cups of heavy cream with 1 1/2 cups of sugar. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the mixture has thickened (about 6-8 minutes).
Meanwhile, put 6 oz. of semisweet chocolate and 1 stick plus 2 tbs. of butter in a large, heatproof bowl*.
*This bowl will have to be set into an even larger glass bowl to whip the icing in an ice bath, so keep this in mind for sizing purposes.
Now, pour the cream and sugar mixture into the chocolate and butter. Allow to melt and slightly cool (about 5 minutes).
Stir occasionally to melt everything together.
Now then, place the melted chocolate mixture into an even larger bowl filled with ice water (more ice than water).
Be careful to not fill the bowl with too much water so that it doesn’t overflow into your frosting.
Now mix the frosting together on a high setting with a hand mixer.
After about 8 minutes, this is what yours will look like. If it doesn’t, keep on whippin’ or add more ice to the bottom bowl.
Now, we frost.
Put a little frosting in between the two layers.
Then spread a dollop on top and start smoothing the sides first and then the top of the cake. I like to use one of these spatulas to get the frosting just right.
After I frosted the entire cake, I let one of my favorite taste testers try it out. He was a fan, lemme tell ya! Would’ve dove face-first into the bowl if I’d let him.
Just keep dolloping and smoothing until the frosting covers all of that gorgeous chocolate cake underneath. Garnish with extra shavings of dark chocolate, if you prefer!
Now, if that’s not love on a cake plate, then I don’t know what is!
I hope you can give someone a good ole metaphorical SMOOCH with this delicious, Best Ever Chocolate Cake!
Best Ever Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 2 tsp. baking soda
- 1 tsp. table salt
- 2 cups sugar
- 4 oz. unsweetened chocolate
- 6 tbs. unsalted butter room temperature, cut into 3 pieces
- 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs lightly beaten
For the Frosting
- 1 1/3 cups heavy cream
- 1½ cups sugar
- 6 oz. semisweet chocolate
- 1 1/4 sticks (10 tbs.) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- Pinch of table salt
Instructions
Make the Cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350. Spray two 8-by-1 ½-inch round cake pans with baking spray. Line the bottoms with wax paper.
- In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; set aside.
- Put the 4 oz. of unsweetened chocolate and butter in a large, heatproof bowl; set aside. In a medium saucepan, combine the 2 cups of sugar with 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil over high heat and stir until the sugar dissolves; then pour into the bowl with the chocolate and butter. Let sit, stirring occasionally, until melted and slightly cooled (about 5 minutes). Then, stir in the vanilla.
- Beat the eggs into the chocolate mixture at medium speed until combined. Add the dry ingredients all at once and beat at medium speed until smooth. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans and bake for about 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool the cakes in their pans for about 25 minutes.
While the cakes cool, make the frosting:
- In a medium saucepan, bring the cream and sugar to a boil over moderately high heat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the liquid reduces slightly, 6-8 minutes. Put the chocolate, butter, vanilla, and salt in a large bowl. Slowly pour in the cream and sugar mixture. Let stand, stirring occasionally, until the chocolate and butter are melted (about 5 minutes).
- Set the bowl in a larger bowl of ice water (more ice than water; be careful not to let the water spill into the frosting). Using a hand-held electric mixer, beat the frosting on medium speed, scraping the sides occasionally with a rubber spatula, until thick and glossy, about 10 minutes. Use at once.
- Place one of the cake rounds on a cake platter and cover with 1/3 of frosting. Place second cake on top and continue frosting from the top of the cake and down around the sides. Garnish with chocolate shavings if desired.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy only and should be construed as an estimate rather than a guarantee. Ingredients can vary, and Pineapple House Rules makes no guarantees to the accuracy of this information.
Looks tasty!
Thank you!
Yummy!!!
Mmmm cake.