Unbelievable Chocolate Cake

Ok friends, this cake is truly unbelievable.  I'm not a big cake maker, so I was expecting this to be a major let down, but boy was I wrong!  This was possibly the best cake I have ever eaten!  You might as well just cut a piece off and glue it straight onto my thighs because I have been eating all the leftovers.  The frosting does take some time because you have to let it completely cool before mixing in the butter, but it was worth it!

Here's my 2-year-old enjoying some for his 2nd birthday party this weekend:

Unbelievable Chocolate Cake

Ingredients:
*Makes two 8-inch or 9-inch cake layers or bake in 9 x 13 inch pan

• 1 ¼ cups unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 ½ cups all purpose flour
• 2 ½ cups sugar
• 2 ½ teaspoons baking soda
• 1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
• 1 ¼ teaspoons salt
• 2 large eggs plus 1 large egg yolk
• 1 ¼ cups warm water
• 1 ¼ cups buttermilk
• ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract

What you do:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees (180 C), making sure the baking rack is in the middle of the oven. Prepare your cake pans by cutting out a piece of parchment or wax paper to line the bottom of the pan. Grease the pans, place the parchment or wax paper in the bottom of the pan and lightly grease again. Dust the pans with flour (or cocoa powder if you don’t want the white dusting on the finished cakes). Set the pans aside.

Using a fine mesh strainer, sift together the cocoa, flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl. Add the eggs, yolk, warm water, buttermilk, oil and vanilla. Mix on low speed (with a handheld mixer or in the bowl of an electric stand mixer) until smooth, about 3 minutes.

Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans. Bake the cakes for about 32-35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean or with moist crumbs. Do not overbake! Remove the pans from the oven and set the pans on a wire rack to cool for 15 minutes. Gently run a thin knife around the edges of the pans and unmold the cakes, removing the parchment paper liners from the bottom of the cakes. Let them cool completely, top sides ups, on a wire rack.

Trim the tops of the cake layers with a long serrated knife to make them level. Frost as desired (I highly recommend this life-changing frosting).


Recipe Source: Mel's Kitchen Cafe

Peanut Butter Cookies (gluten-free)

My husband has celiac and has to eat gluten-free (can't have wheat, barley, oats, or rye), but the problem is that I really like things made with regular flour.  I don't really like gluten-free flour and honestly, I just don't want to eat gluten-free flour.  I don't want my hubby to miss out on yummy treats though, so it's great when recipes like this come along that just happen to be gluten free.  The recipe for these cookies comes from my neighbour and they are actually quite tasty!

Peanut Butter Cookies
yields about 18 cookies 

Ingredients:

• 1 cup crunchy peanut butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 egg beaten
• 1 cup chocolate chips

What you do: 

Mix together, spoon onto a tray, and bake for about 10 minutes (oven about 180 C/375 F).  Don't over cook, they easily burn!

Nutella Cuppy Cakes (only 3 ingredients!)

Ummm, what?!? Only THREE ingredients for these yummy bites of goodness! So easy and quick! Top with whipped cream and you have yourself the perfect little dessert!  I also made some for my hubby with gluten-free flour and he said they were good too. They are best straight out of the oven, but you can also pop them in the microwave the next day for like 10 seconds and they are still quite good. 

Nutella Cuppy Cakes
Yields 12 mini muffins

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup Nutella spread
• 1 large egg
• 5 tablespoons all purpose flour

Directions:

1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees (180 C). Line a 12-cup mini muffin pan with paper or foil liners.
2. Put the Nutella and egg in a medium bowl and whisk until smooth and well blended. Add the flour and whisk until blended.
3. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin tins (about 3/4 full).
4. Bake until a pick comes out with wet, gooey crumbs, 11 to 12 minutes. Let them cool for at least 5 minutes. Serve immediately or cover and store at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Recipe Source:  Yadira's Crafty Adventures

Banana Cake with Nutella Buttercream Frosting

I've tried many different banana bread and cake recipes.  This one is my favourite.  It's simple, moist, and very tasty.  It's perfect.  I served it with Nutella Buttercream frosting this time, but this cake can be served without any frosting and it's still awesome. 


Banana Cake
Yields 1 x20cm round cake or 1 x 30cm oblong fluted cake
The recipe can easily be doubled and baked in a 24cm round cake tin.

Ingredients

• 125 grams unsalted butter, softened
• 125 grams sugar
• 2 medium bananas, very ripe
• 2 eggs (about 60g each)
• 125 grams plain flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder

•  icing sugar, Nutella, or whipped cream for serving 

What you do

Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F.  Line a 20cm round cake tin with baking paper.

Beat the butter and sugar together in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy and the sugar has dissolved.  Cut the bananas into a few pieces and add to the butter and sugar and beat until the banana is fully incorporated into the batter.  Add the eggs and beat well.

Sift together the flour and baking powder and add to the batter, beating until the batter is light and fluffy.  Scoop the batter into the prepared cake tin and level the top.

Bake at 180°C/350°F for about 35-40 minutes or until golden and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.  When cooked, remove the cake from the oven and leave to cool on a wire rack.  When cool, remove carefully from the tin.

Dust with icing sugar to serve.  I used Nutella Buttercream frosting (see recipe below).

Recipe Source: Chocolate Chilli Mango



Nutella Buttercream Frosting
Ingredients

• 1/4 cup butter, room temperature
• 1/2 cup Nutella
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1 Tablespoon milk

What you do
Beat butter until smooth. Add the Nutella and beat until combined. Gradually add the powdered sugar and continue mixing. Add 1 tablespoon of milk. Add another tablespoon if necessary in order to reach the desired consistency.