Friday, April 4, 2008

Hershey's Black Magic Cake


This is, without a doubt, my favorite chocolate cake recipe. I've tried several. This one wins. I think the key to it is the coffee. It adds a depth of flavor that sets it apart from all others. Whenever I make it, I always make the coffee a little stronger than the recipe requires. I also like to double the amount of vanilla extract. And no, I didn't bake the cake in the picture and I have no idea how to make the chocolate butterflies that are on top. hee hee

2 cups sugar
1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup strong black coffee OR 2 teaspoons powdered instant coffee plus 1 cup boiling water
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract



1. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans or one 13x9x2-inch baking pan.
2. Stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt in large bowl. Add eggs, buttermilk, coffee, oil and vanilla; beat on medium speed of mixer 2 minutes (batter will be thin). Pour batter evenly into prepared pans.
3. Bake 30 to 35 minutes for round pans, 35 to 40 minutes for rectangular pan or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely. Frost as desired. Yields 10 to 12 servings.


Tip:
To make buttermilk, use 1 tablespoon white vinegar or lemon juice plus milk to equal 1 cup. Microwave for 15 seconds. The milk will curdle which is exactly what you want. If you don't have a microwave, you can just let it stand until the milk curdles. you'll get the same result. The microwave just speeds the process.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

OK - here's my take on how to make the butterflies. Melt some dipping chocolate (the kind that hardens up as it cools), put it in a pastry tube or ziploc bag with the tip cut off. On a piece of waxed paper, draw a bunch of butterfly wings -- half right, half left. Once dry, peel them off the waxed paper & put them into the cake, wedged into icing like a "V" -- got it?

Anonymous said...

Thanx for the tip! Now, the REAL question is: Who left the comment? Is there a mysterious masked cake decorator in our midst who wishes to remain anonymous???

Anonymous said...

It was your favorite sister. No, not MyJeanie. Not Reenie-bean either. And no, not the other one from that Godforsaken country.
hmmm ... who could it be?

Nancy Cecilio said...

OKay Joey... found it. You think substituting soy milk for the buttermilk will be okay? What if I used Chocolate Silk Soy Milk? I think all other ingredients are okay. Going to try this one and the LIckity Split ones and the Orange ones in my "Cupcake experiment" thanks! :-)

Unknown said...

I love this cake. Use the frosting from THIS recipe and it's heaven on a plate:

https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/2012/06/15/chocolate-fudge-cupcakes-with-salted-caramel-frosting/