Beatty's Chocolate Cake by the Barefoot Contessa

Happy belated birthdays to my two big sisters and my mom! Since they all fall so close together, we decided to celebrate the three together.  This is by far my sister Tina's favorite cake recipe, and she requests it every year.  It is a moist chocolate cake, but by no means the most decadent or rich one I've ever tasted.  The coffee component adds a nice touch but isn't overpowering, and the frosting? Just check out the ingredients - how could that combination not be delicious?!  

The one complaint I received was "Sunny, why were you so stingy with the frosting?!!!" Mea culpa.  I'll glop it on next time.

This was a funny picture that happened accidentally when my little sister and I 

tried to eat the cupcake with a fork.  He's not really sad; just delicious.  

 

I made cupcakes instead of a 2 layer cake just for portability, but either would work!

Beatty's Chocolate Cake adapted from Barefoot Contessa at Home 
(serves 8 as a cake, about 24 as cupcakes)
 

:: Butter for greasing the pans :: 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pans :: 2 cups sugar :: ¾ cups good cocoa powder :: 2 teaspoons baking soda  :: 1 teaspoon baking powder :: 1 teaspoon kosher salt :: 1 cup buttermilk, shaken  :: ½ 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 good semisweet chocolate such as Callebaut :: ½ pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature :: 1 extra-large egg yolk, at room temperature :: 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract :: 1¼ cups sifted confectioners’ sugar :: 1 tablespoon instant coffee powder

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter two 8-inch round cake pans (or 2 muffin tins.  I just buttered and floured mine without parchment paper). Line with parchment paper, then butter and flour the pans.

Sift the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and mix on low speed until combined. In another bowl, combine the buttermilk, oil, eggs, and vanilla. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry. With mixer still on low, add the coffee and stir just to combine, scraping the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Pour the batter into the prepared pans (or cups, only up to 2/3 full, as they will rise) and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean (about 20-25 minutes for cupcakes). Cool in the pans for 30 minutes, then turn them out onto a cooling rack and cool completely.

Place one layer, flat side up, on a flat plate or cake pedestal. 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. (For cupcakes, obviously omit the layering and just frost once cool.)

Chocolate Frosting

Chop the chocolate and place it in a heat-proof bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Stir until just melted and set aside until cooled to room temperature. (If you don't have a double boiler, you can microwave the chocolate while CAREFULLY watching it (i.e. microwave for 5 seconds at a time until JUST warm enough to melt.)

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! Spread immediately on the cooled cake.

 

I hope you enjoy this dessert as much as we have, and I promise you won't be disappointed once you make it!