As I told my friend a few weeks ago, after apologizing for not being in touch for so long, I feel like I’ve been running for, if not the entire year, the past five months.
Things are finally slowing down a bit but since we’re close to the end of the year and it’s pathetic I’ve only posted once in 2018 I thought I’d add to my recipe arsenal and also make use of some of the food photography I’ve done this year.
I managed to set up a photoshoot of my favorite chocolate cake, in the form of cupcakes, this summer and added a bit of glamour to them with golden sprinkles and given that New Year’s is coming up they feel extremely appropriate for this last post of the year. Sadly my golden sprinkles are unlikely to make another appearance here as I had to leave them behind in Lisbon when I moved, but I thought they were gorgeous. Maybe I’ll buy them again when I’m there...
In any case, this chocolate cake recipe is now my favorite and absolute go to when I’m making anything with at chocolate cake base and, in fact, I think I may have used it to make Hiro and Matteo’s wedding cake, which is a whole other post that I should do sometime, if only just to show off my handiwork of making a four layer cake. It was a challenge and I’m still quite proud of it. But I digress.
What makes this chocolate cake so good, and better than a lot of chocolate cake out there, is that it really tastes like chocolate instead of just the suggestion of it, which I found often in Europe. The other thing I love about these cupcakes is their frosting which I modified to make, wouldn’t you know it, even more chocolatey. Through a bit of testing, I’ve learned that the secret to not too sweet but still chocolatey frosting is to substitute cocoa powder for some of the confectioners sugar. This recipe calls for a full 1½ cups of powdered sugar but I reduced that to about half and added around ¾ of a cup of cocoa powder as well.
You can adjust the amount of cocoa powder you used base on taste and based on whether or not you have unsweetened chocolate. Since I just couldn’t find unsweetened chocolate in Europe, 100% of the times that I made this recipe I used bittersweet chocolate or chips, typically the Ghirardelli and then just added a healthy dose of cocoa powder. But if you do use the unsweetened chocolate, you probably won’t need so much cocoa, if any, so watch out for that.
Without further ado, here’s the recipe and I hope you enjoy it. I have no doubt it deserves to be your go-to when you want to make any sort of chocolate cake or cupcake and it dresses up or down, based on your occasion, even a New Year’s party.
In any case, this chocolate cake recipe is now my favorite and absolute go to when I’m making anything with at chocolate cake base and, in fact, I think I may have used it to make Hiro and Matteo’s wedding cake, which is a whole other post that I should do sometime, if only just to show off my handiwork of making a four layer cake. It was a challenge and I’m still quite proud of it. But I digress.
What makes this chocolate cake so good, and better than a lot of chocolate cake out there, is that it really tastes like chocolate instead of just the suggestion of it, which I found often in Europe. The other thing I love about these cupcakes is their frosting which I modified to make, wouldn’t you know it, even more chocolatey. Through a bit of testing, I’ve learned that the secret to not too sweet but still chocolatey frosting is to substitute cocoa powder for some of the confectioners sugar. This recipe calls for a full 1½ cups of powdered sugar but I reduced that to about half and added around ¾ of a cup of cocoa powder as well.
You can adjust the amount of cocoa powder you used base on taste and based on whether or not you have unsweetened chocolate. Since I just couldn’t find unsweetened chocolate in Europe, 100% of the times that I made this recipe I used bittersweet chocolate or chips, typically the Ghirardelli and then just added a healthy dose of cocoa powder. But if you do use the unsweetened chocolate, you probably won’t need so much cocoa, if any, so watch out for that.
Without further ado, here’s the recipe and I hope you enjoy it. I have no doubt it deserves to be your go-to when you want to make any sort of chocolate cake or cupcake and it dresses up or down, based on your occasion, even a New Year’s party.
Chocolate Cake and Frosting (adapted from Smitten Kitchen)
Yield: 12ish frosted cupcakes. Could also yield: 1 8×8-in cake. 1 8 or 9-in round cake, or it could be doubled and baked in a 9×13-in pan. Could also be scaled and stacked as a birthday cake. There’s really a lot you can do with it.
Cake Ingredients:
6 tablespoons (85 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup (145 grams) firmly packed dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons (25 grams) granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
3/4 cup (175 ml) buttermilk (I typically use whole milk, or whatever I have on hand, with a large squeeze of lemon)
1 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla extract
1/2 cup (41 grams) cocoa powder
1 cup (125 grams) all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon table or fine sea salt
Frosting Ingredients:
2 ounces (55 grams) chocolate, melted and cooled
3/4 (90 grams) powdered sugar
4) Add the egg, yolk and 1 teaspoon vanilla and beat until combined, then the 3/4 cup (175 ml) buttermilk and mix again. Scrape the bowl down well and don’t worry if the batter looks uneven.
5) Place your 1 cup of flour, ½ cup of cocoa, ¼ teaspoon of baking soda, ½ teaspoon baking powder and ½ teaspoon salt in a sifter (or in a bowl and stir, mixing well with a fork) and shake it over the batter bowl. Stir on low until just combined; scrape down bowl a final time.
6) Scoop batter into prepared pan and smooth flat, or scoop into cupcake pans. Bake for 18-22 minutes (10-14 minutes to start for cupcakes) or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out almost clean.
7) Let cool for 5 to 10 minutes in cake pan on cooling rack, then flip out onto rack or serving plate to completely finish cooling before frosting.
Frosting Directions:
1) Melt 2 ounces (55g) unsweetened or bittersweet chocolate in a double boiler. Set aside.
Yield: 12ish frosted cupcakes. Could also yield: 1 8×8-in cake. 1 8 or 9-in round cake, or it could be doubled and baked in a 9×13-in pan. Could also be scaled and stacked as a birthday cake. There’s really a lot you can do with it.
Cake Ingredients:
6 tablespoons (85 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup (145 grams) firmly packed dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons (25 grams) granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
3/4 cup (175 ml) buttermilk (I typically use whole milk, or whatever I have on hand, with a large squeeze of lemon)
1 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla extract
1/2 cup (41 grams) cocoa powder
1 cup (125 grams) all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon table or fine sea salt
Frosting Ingredients:
2 ounces (55 grams) chocolate, melted and cooled
3/4 (90 grams) powdered sugar
3/4 cup (90 grams) cocoa powder
1/2 cup (4 ounces or 115 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
Pinch of fine sea salt (optional)
1 tablespoon cream or whole milk
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Cake Directions:
1) Start here or see Step 3. Line the bottom of an 8-inch square cake pan with parchment paper, and either butter the parchment and exposed sides of the pan, or spray the interior with a nonstick spray.
2) In a large bowl, use a hand or stand mixer to beat the 6 tablespoons (85 grams) butter, 3/4 cup (145 grams) dark brown sugar and 2 tablespoons (25 grams) granulated sugar until fluffy; scrape down bowl.
3) Heat oven to 350°F (175°C). (I put this here because I'm a pokey cook but if you're super fast or your oven takes a year to heat up then you may want to start with this step)
1/2 cup (4 ounces or 115 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
Pinch of fine sea salt (optional)
1 tablespoon cream or whole milk
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Cake Directions:
1) Start here or see Step 3. Line the bottom of an 8-inch square cake pan with parchment paper, and either butter the parchment and exposed sides of the pan, or spray the interior with a nonstick spray.
2) In a large bowl, use a hand or stand mixer to beat the 6 tablespoons (85 grams) butter, 3/4 cup (145 grams) dark brown sugar and 2 tablespoons (25 grams) granulated sugar until fluffy; scrape down bowl.
3) Heat oven to 350°F (175°C). (I put this here because I'm a pokey cook but if you're super fast or your oven takes a year to heat up then you may want to start with this step)
4) Add the egg, yolk and 1 teaspoon vanilla and beat until combined, then the 3/4 cup (175 ml) buttermilk and mix again. Scrape the bowl down well and don’t worry if the batter looks uneven.
5) Place your 1 cup of flour, ½ cup of cocoa, ¼ teaspoon of baking soda, ½ teaspoon baking powder and ½ teaspoon salt in a sifter (or in a bowl and stir, mixing well with a fork) and shake it over the batter bowl. Stir on low until just combined; scrape down bowl a final time.
6) Scoop batter into prepared pan and smooth flat, or scoop into cupcake pans. Bake for 18-22 minutes (10-14 minutes to start for cupcakes) or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out almost clean.
7) Let cool for 5 to 10 minutes in cake pan on cooling rack, then flip out onto rack or serving plate to completely finish cooling before frosting.
Frosting Directions:
1) Melt 2 ounces (55g) unsweetened or bittersweet chocolate in a double boiler. Set aside.
2) Beat 4 ounces (115g) butter, 3/4 cup powdered sugar, 3/4 cup cocoa powder and salt, if using, in a large bowl with an electric mixer until fluffy.
3) Pour in chocolate, milk and vanilla, beat until combined, then one more minute to whip it further.
4) When cupcakes are cool, scoop the frosting onto them (or use a pastry bag) and swirl it around. Finish with sparkly gold sprinkles for a festive look or rainbow sprinkles for a birthday party.
