- Hey everyone, it's Natasha
of natashaskitchen.com,
and today we are making a
decadent and moist chocolate cake
with a rich chocolate frosting.
Both the cake and the
frosting are so easy to make.
This recipe is a keeper and
always gets rave reviews
and it makes for a stunning birthday cake.
We'll start with some quick prep.
Preheat your oven to
350˚F,
then butter two nine-inch cake
pans on the sides and bottom,
also line the bottoms with
a ring of parchment paper.
Now in a large mixing bowl,
we'll combine our dry ingredients,
that's three cups of all purpose flour,
two cups of sugar, half a
cup of unsweetened cocoa,
two teaspoons of baking
soda, and a teaspoon of salt.
Whisk those together,
breaking up any large lumps of cocoa.
A few tiny lumps are okay.
Now in a second bowl,
we're going to combine
the wet ingredients,
that's two cups of warm, not hot, coffee,
2/3 cup of light olive oil,
two tablespoons of vinegar,
and a tablespoon of vanilla extract.
Whisk to combine.
Now this sounds like a lot of coffee,
but you cannot taste the
coffee in the finished cake,
but it really amplifies
the flavor of chocolate.
Now pour your wet ingredients
into the dry ingredients
and whisk just until they come together.
Your batter will still be slightly lumpy,
and the finished batter is somewhat thin,
but don't worry, it rises really well.
(upbeat music)
Divide the batter evenly
between your two prepared cake pans,
and I love using a digital kitchen scale
to make sure I have the
same amount of batter
in each cake pan,
that way they rise evenly and perfectly.
Once you have those evenly portioned,
bake on the center rack
of a preheated oven
at 350 degrees Fahrenheit
for about 35 minutes,
or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Once they come out of the oven,
let them rest in the pans
for about 15 minutes.
After 15 minutes,
the cake pans should be
cool enough to handle.
Run a knife or a thin
spatula around the edges
to loosen them from the pan.
Invert the cakes onto a wire rack.
Gently peel back the parchment paper
and it should come off easily.
Now let the cakes rest
until they are completely
at room temperature
before applying frosting.
Once the cakes have
reached room temperature,
we're gonna make the frosting.
In the bowl of your stand mixer,
combine 12 ounces of softened cream cheese
and one cup of unsalted,
room temperature butter.
Beat those together on medium-high speed
with the whisk attachment
for about three minutes.
Scrape down the bowl as needed
to make sure everything
is really well-combined,
and the mixture should
look fluffy and creamy.
Next, use a sifter to sift in
five cups of powdered sugar
and one cup of unsweetened cocoa powder.
Sift in batches as needed
until you have all of the
powdered sugar and cocoa
in the bowl, and sifting is important here
so you don't get lumps of
cocoa in your frosting.
Next, add half a teaspoon
of salt, and do not skip it.
The salt cuts the sweetness
and balances the frosting.
Start the mixer on low
speed until well-combined.
Scrape down the bowl,
then increase to medium-high
speed and beat another minute
or until the frosting
is smooth and whipped.
Finally, add two teaspoons
of vanilla extract
and continue beating on medium-high speed
for another minute, scraping
down the bowl as needed.
The chocolate frosting
should be uniform in color
without any streaks,
smooth, whipped, and fluffy.
Our cake layers have completely
cooled to room temperature,
and now we can assemble the cake.
Place the first cake layer
with the flat side down
on a cake platter.
Spread the top with a generous one third
of your chocolate frosting,
and I love a thick layer
of frosting in the middle,
so don't skimp on this step.
Add the second layer with the flat side up
so you have an even top.
Add most of the remaining
frosting to the top of the cake
and spread it around.
Apply the last of the frosting
to the sides of the cake,
and I love this offset spatula,
it makes frosting cakes so much easier,
and I'll leave a link to
this in the description.
And we're not going for perfection
in decorating this cake,
but we want more of a rustic look
because that's exactly what I think of
when I think chocolate cake.
Wipe off any excess frosting
with a damp paper towel
from the cake platter.
Now use a spatula or the back of a spoon
to create swirls and waves
in the top of your cake.
Okay. (laughs)
Do you know what time it is? (laughs)
It is time for the taste test,
and I cannot wait,
because I have this fierce craving
for chocolate cake right now,
and all this chocolate is
just staring me down. (laughs)
I just can't any longer. (laughs)
All right, we're gonna
cut right into this,
here we go!
And I do like to clean my
knife with a paper towel
between slices to keep the cake pretty.
And a big ol' honking
slice for me. (laughs)
(laughs) Yes, look at those layers.
(giggles) Moist and
decadent chocolate cake, ah.
This is the stuff my dreams
are made of. (laughs)
Oh my goodness, let's get on with this.
I am getting way too impatient.
Mmm. (giggles)
Okay.
Oh, wow.
Okay, here we go.
It is really soft and moist,
this is the chocolate cake of
all chocolate cakes. (laughs)
Come to mama! (laughs)
Mmm, mmm, mmm.
Mmm.
Mmm! (giggles)
Like bite after bite,
this is decadent and intensely chocolatey,
but it's not overly sweet.
It's just really enjoyable, yum. (laughs)
And I love how simple this is,
I mean, it's a rustic
and pretty decoration,
but this comes together fast,
and it would make just the
most stunning birthday cake.
This is a winner. (laughs)
Make this and you will be
known for your chocolate cake.
If you guys enjoyed this video,
give me a great big thumbs up below,
make sure to subscribe to our channel,
and we'll see you next time.
All right, who likes chocolate?
(laughs)
If you're like me and love chocolate,
check out some of our
favorite chocolatey recipes
right over and right down there,
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We'll see you next time.
