Now that it's not quite so sunny I can move this blog along from engagement announcements back to some homey stuff again.
Like birthday cake! With a secret for easy elegance, which who wouldn't want? {Don't worry, I won't forget about kids' chores and sibling rivalry and all sorts of other things I want to write about!}
But that sun, let me tell you. We are so starved for it. When it comes out, I hardly know what to do! Since Bridget's ankle was healing and she couldn't run around as she usually does, we took Roxie for walks on a hill near us where she can just run, frolic (even over-frolic!), and socialize — off-leash — with friends, always a consideration for the home schooled canine. And yes, it was tank-top weather! What a blessing.
Someone in the comments asked if our family has a favorite birthday cake, and we do! I'm going to share it with you!
Why? Because I want you to swear off box mixes.
There is really no need for them! Yes, there are cakes that are a bit complicated to make, and well worth the effort to master, like this Four-egg Cake of deliciousness. The texture, buttery flavor, and, well, texture of this confection is hardly to be imagined. Even so, it's just not all that hard.
But there are many cakes that are every. single. bit as easy to whip up as a box cake, but so so so so much better that you have to ask yourself just how committed you really are to paying more, eating a bunch of weird chemicals, and ending up with an inferior product. Because if the answer is you are that committed, well, Auntie Leila can't help you!
On the other hand, there is Easy Chocolate Buttermilk Cake. I make it all the time! It replaces a Depression-Era cake that I used to make that doesn't have butter, eggs, or milk in it. You know the one I mean? It's okay, if you have nothing to work with. But it's a little heavy and kind of weird, if you ask me.
I like this recipe, which has all those missing ingredients. I will admit to you that it seems to come out just a little differently each time I make it. I'm not sure why, but before you get all nervous (it's really easy, trust me), you have to remember (and you will readily do so, if you are a follower of my recipes, loosely called) that I am the hastiest cook ever, and often wake up from making something with a start — and not much recollection of what it was that I did this time.
Never mind all that. Just try it. It's moist, chocolate-y, and happy. It's the one that gets asked for the most. Not being one to fear a complicated recipe, I will declare that this one is superior to much more involved chocolate cake recipes I've tried. Classic ones always turn out dry and disappointingly not chocolate-y. Not this one.
Since chocolate cake is always appropriate, and a big one is sometimes not that versatile, after a long search I have found two small bundts, shown here with a mug for scale:
Aren't they cute? They make it so that I can send them to the kids at college, or put one in a meal for two elderly ladies, or what have you.
For birthdays or large gatherings, of course I just go ahead and make a big bundt or 9″ layer cake. By the way, 9″ layer pans are a good investment, because kids of course prefer frosting, usually, and enjoy thinner slices of cake rather than tall ones made from 8″ layers. The cake goes further and isn't wasted on the plates. And there's more scope for decorating the top.
Not that I'm one for lots of decorating, usually. Having four birthdays in December (now five, with Pippo!), I always sort of felt spent having just made the cake at all, never mind getting fancy! But this is where my secret comes in —
The secret of easy elegance!
Have you ever had a petit four? Or a Sacher Torte? Well, the main idea there is apricot jam in the center and a firm chocolate shell.
Sha-ZAM!
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| A heart -shaped pan comes in so handy for Valentine's Day, Marian feasts (this was for Our Lady of the Rosary), and any time you want to say I love you! |
What could be easier? Just always make sure you have a nice jar of apricot jam in the pantry (without high-fructose corn syrup, of course) and chocolate chips. If you start your kids early on this style of cake, they will always beg for it and scorn the fluffy-frosting kind. I'll tell you what to do in the recipe.
Quick overview of what to keep on hand so that you can Just Say No to box mixes:
- Butter (buy it on sale and keep it in your freezer.)
- Cocoa powder (I like Ghirardelli but have used Hershey's or Nestle's too. I'm not a fan of store brands, I have to say, in this case.)
- Buttermilk (I use it all the time in cakes and pancakes using my homemade mix — but you can also use yogurt in this recipe, so don't let a buttermilk shortage stop you, and of course there's always milk and lemon juice or vinegar.)
- Chocolate Chips (they melt really well and who wouldn't prefer a thick chocolate glaze to frosting? Well, maybe not a seven-year-old boy, but mine were on board.)
- Apricot Jam
- Cream (why not? cream is so good in your tea…)
Put those things on your list and you will be good to go!
Here's the recipe. I've adapted it from my trusty Good Housekeeping Cook Book
(I like the edition I've linked to here.)
Easy Chocolate-Buttermilk Cake Like Mother, Like Daughter
Oven: 350°
A large bundt pan or two 9″ layer pans; or 2 smaller ones plus another 7-8″ pan, all greased, floured, and waxed papered (butter the wax paper too) in the case of layers.
{This recipe also makes about 3 dozen cupcakes. Bake for 20 minutes or until nicely puffed.}
2 cups sugar (the original recipe calls for 1 3/4 cups of sugar, but since I prefer my cake sweeter and my icing less so, I adjusted. If you are going to pile heaps of fluffy frosting on this, then go back to the lesser amount of sugar probably.)
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, melted (the original recipe calls for oil, and I have used olive oil and coconut oil. You have to melt the latter for mixing without tiny lumps, although they don't seem to adversely affect the texture even so. I don't think vegetable oils – other than those two — are good for you and no longer use them.)
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweeted cocoa (good quality)
2 tsp. baking soda
1 1/4 tsp. salt
3 large eggs
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups buttermilk (you can use yogurt, which you then have to use your common sense to see if it needs a little milk added for liquidity, or milk plus 1 1/2 tablespoons of lemon juice, adding up to 1 1/2 cups.)
Mix the sugar and melted butter together in your mixing bowl. Add the dry ingredients and the buttermilk, vanilla, and eggs — you can alternate adding them if you like, but just dumping everything in works also. Don't over mix but just blend them all together until smooth and then stop.
If you use oil instead of butter, you can truly just dump everything in and mix, which is just what you do with a box mix, right?
Pour the batter into your pans, spreading evenly. Bake for 30 minutes for layers and 40 minutes for a large bundt, or until the toothpick comes out clean. For the smaller bundts, 30 minutes.
Let bundts cool completely before inverting. Layers cool for 10 minutes.
Sacher Torte Treatment for Easy Elegance
Take your layer and carefully slice it in half (see photo above). Warm up about a cup of apricot jam and spread it on one half. Replace the other.
Ganache Shell Icing
6 oz. semi-sweet chocolate (chips are the easiest, good quality)
1/4 cup heavy cream (milk is fine, so is coffee or any liquid, really)
1 Tbsp. butter
Melt all together, mix well. When slightly cool, pour and smooth over the top of your cake.
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| You will note that I sort of didn't have enough glaze for the sides, and in this case I only had milk chocolate when I was making the ganache. But you know what? It was delicious. |
