Yummy In My Tummy Chocolate Cake

Chocolate cake! Who doesn't like chocolate cake?

Okay I admit I'm not a cake fan. At least not usually. But this one took me by surprise. I was once again surfing pinterest trying to find a decent chocolate cake recipe. I was actually planning to use it for cupcakes, but hey, they are technically still cake.

Finally I came across one that looked promising. And so I gave it a go. It turned out beautifully in cupcake form. Just a bit of crunch to the outside while the inside was so perfectly moist and crumbly. Because it worked so well for the cupcakes I used it again to make a cake for miss K's cake smash. And later for her birthday. And they turned out pretty darn good.



So now I've been asked to make a cake for another birthday. This one is a bit more of a deal because it is, in a way, a commission. Or whatever the right word is. Ha ha!

If you want to check out the recipe for yourself here is the link:
http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/cocoa-cake

Now I usually prefer cheesecake or pie, but here we go...

The ingredients are:
- 1 1/2 cup flour
- 1 cup sugar
- 3 tbsp cocoa
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp white vinegar
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 6 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 cup cold water

It's kinda weird that there are no eggs or butter in this recipe isn't it? But it works really well.
Start off by mixing all the dry ingredients into a bowl. Make 3 wells and pour the oil, vanilla, and vinegar into each well. Then pour the water over everything. Mix on low until thoroughly mixed.

I was totally taken by surprise when the batter actually came out as thin and smooth as the recipe writer-person had mentioned. But I guess that means I was doing things right.

Now, because this cake is supposed to be a big rectangular cake I had to double the recipe... Actually, I ended up tripling it. Just to make sure I had enough to fill my pan.

It's a big cake!

So now into the oven it goes! And then I waited. I started off with the maximum tike mentioned in the recipe just because it is such a big cake. It surprised me because apparently that time was almost all it needed. So I shut the oven off and as the oven cooled the cake finished.

And silly me forgot to take a picture after I took it into the oven. Oh well!

Into the fridge it went! Overnight.

The next day I took it out and prepared to decorate it. I almost attempted a marshmallow fondant but then I figured that might be a bit much. Instead I made a pretty picture and transferred it onto the cake. (After I iced it of course.)

Now it's time for a few finishing touches and then it's all set for the birthday party! Go me! *happydance*

If you want to know how I did the picture here is a link to the instructions I found and followed:
http://www.brasstacksandbasics.com/2011/08/super-fancy-cake-decorating-tutorial.html?m=1

I know the picture really isn't all that pretty. But in my defense I really have not had much time or opportunity to practice my cake - decorating skills. I do plan to work on that next week a whole bunch so that the next time I post about a cake I'll actually be proud of the end result. Ha ha! Don't get me wrong, under that not-so-great icing job it tastes amazing.

Next week's post will either be about the crocheted sheep I'll finally have finished or another kind of yummy treat. We'll see!