Chocolate Cake...yes please.

I bet you've been wondering where all of cooking experiments have gone.  I can hear you all now..."Did her kitchen burn down?  Is she on some crazy diet?  Did she forget her way around the kitchen?"  Well, not exactly...let's just say life has gotten in the way a little bit of my culinary adventures.  But have no fear, my kitchen still stands, I am not on a diet and of course I remember my way around the kitchen.

To celebrate my return, I will be making...drum roll please...ok, so the title gave it away...chocolate cake!  One of my favorite things!  What's the reason?  Well, it's two-fold really.  The first reason is because, as I just told you, it is one of my favorite things.  The other reason is that my brother and his fiance are coming up tomorrow for a visit.  I couldn't let them down!

So, there's some pressure riding on this cake recipe...let's keep our fingers crossed.  It's a new one I found on the box of King Arthur Flour and it sounds pretty delicious.

Moist Chocolate Cake
King Arthur Flour

Ingredients

2 cups King Arthur Unbleached Cake Flour Blend
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, very soft
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup milk
1/2 cup brewed, cooled coffee, or water
4 large eggs

Directions

1) Place a strainer over a large mixing bowl. Measure in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cocoa, and sugar. Sift/shake the dry ingredients through the strainer into a mixing bowl, to eliminate any lumps.

Please don't skip this step!  I promise your hard effort at sifting will be worth it.



2) Add the butter and mix at low speed for 1 minute. With the mixer running, add the oil and continue mixing until the mixture looks like sand.

3) Combine the vanilla with the milk and coffee or water, and add all at once. Mix for 1 minute at low speed, stop and scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl, then mix for 30 seconds.

Yum, looks like cake batter....

4) Add the eggs one at a time, beating well at medium-high speed between additions. (Personal note: be sure get the bottom stirred too if you are using a stand mixer.) The batter will be thin.

5) Pour the batter into the prepared pan of your choice (one 9" x 13" pan, two 9" round pans, or three 8" round pans). Bake in a preheated 350°F oven for 34 minutes for a 9" x 13" pan; 28 to 30 minutes for 9" layers; or 24 to 26 minutes for 8" layers. The cake is done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and cool on a rack before frosting.

Check out more great recipes at http://www.kingarthurflour.com/

Ta da!

Verdict?  It's good!  :)