Devil's Food Cake
Ready In: 55 mins
Yields: 10-12
Ingredients
- 1⁄2 cup best-quality cocoa powder, sifted
- 1⁄2 cup packed dark brown sugar
- 1 cup boiling water
- 9 tablespoons soft unsalted butter, plus some for greasing
- 3⁄4 cup superfine sugar
- 1 1⁄2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1⁄2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1⁄2 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 eggs
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line the bottoms of both cake pans with parchment paper and butter the sides.
- Put the cocoa and 1/2 cup dark brown sugar into a bowl with a bit of space to spare, and pour in the boiling water. Whisk to mix, then set aside.
- Cream the butter and superfine sugar together, beating well until pale and fluffy; I find this easiest with a free-standing mixer, but by hand wouldn't kill you.
- While this is going on - or as soon as you stop if you're mixing by hand - stir the flour, baking powder and baking soda together in another bowl, and set aside for a moment.
- Dribble in the vanilla extract into the creamed butter and sugar - mixing all the while - and then drop in an egg, quickly followed by a scoopful of the flour mixture, then add the second egg.
- Keep mixing and incorporate the rest of the dried ingredients for the cake then finally mix and fold in the cocoa mixture, scraping its bowl out well with a spatula. Divide this fabulously chocolatey batter between the two prepared pans and put in the oven for about 30 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean. Take the pans out and put them on a wire rack for 5 to 10 minutes, before turning the cakes out to cool.
- Make Ahead Note: The cake layers can be baked 1 day ahead and assembled before serving: wrap tightly in plastic wrap and store in airtight container. Iced cake will keep for 2 to 3 days in airtight container in a cool place.
- Freeze Note: Un-iced cake layers can be frozen on day of baking, each wrapped in double layer of plastic wrap and a layer of aluminium foil, for up to 3 months. Thaw for 3 to 4 hours on wire rack at room temperature.
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