Hey Awesomes! I’ve mentioned my favorite and AWARD-WINNING* chocolate cake a few times on the Sorta Awesome podcast. Here’s the recipe!
CAKE
1 cup butter
4 Tblsp. dry cocoa
1 cup water
2 cups sugar
2 cups flour
1/2 cup buttermilk
(I never have buttermilk on hand, so I usually add 1/2 T lemon juice to 1/2 c. milk and wait five minutes. DIY buttermilk!)
1 tsp. baking soda
2 beaten eggs
1 tsp. vanilla (Mexican vanilla is the BEST if you can find it!)
In a saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Add cocoa and water and bring to a boil.
(can also be done in microwave by melting butter 30 seconds, adding cocoa and water, and heating in microwave until it begins to boil)
Cool slightly and transfer to a large bowl.
Add sugar and flour and beat well with mixer.
Add buttermilk, baking soda, eggs, and vanilla.
Mix well with mixer.
Pour into sprayed baking pan. (9 x 13)
Bake 20 minutes at 425 degrees.
While cake is baking, make the frosting below:
FROSTING
1/2 cup softened butter
3 to 4 Tblsp. cocoa
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 box powdered sugar (at least 1 1/2 c. or to taste)
Add cream as needed for consistency
Combine ingredients. Beat well to buttercream frosting consistency. Divide in half.
Spread half of frosting on cake just as soon as it's out of the oven. It soaks into the cake and makes a delicious part-frosting, part-glaze. When cake is cooled, spread other half of frosting on top for a thin layer of chocolate glazey-frosting.
Add chopped pecans or walnuts if you want!
* Okay technically, this cake has won an award. This was the winning entry for Small Town Baptist Church Sunday School Class bake-off! I will always take pride in the fact that the tie-breaker vote came from a judge who said “I don’t even like chocolate cake, but that’s delicious.”
