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Yellow Layer Cake with Chocolate Frosting

Source of Recipe

From "The Home Cook: Recipes to Know By Heart" by Alex Guarnaschelli


Recipe Introduction

"I used to find myself thumbing through cookbooks to find a simple, reliable cake that belongs anywhere. I settled on this recipe a few years ago and have never looked back. It's truly one of my staple recipes. Who doesn't need a good yellow cake recipe as a go-with for an array of seasonal fruits? While I recommend topping this cake with brandied cherries (because I love them), this cake could go with anything from a goopy marshmallow frosting to a dark chocolate ganache or buttercream."

List of Ingredients

Cake:
â—¦  ½ pound (2 sticks) plus 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
â—¦  2 cups all-purpose flour
â—¦  2 teaspoons baking powder
â—¦  ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
â—¦  2 cups sugar
â—¦  6 large eggs
â—¦  Grated zest and juice of 1 large lemon

Frosting:
â—¦  14 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
â—¦  1 ½ cups sugar
â—¦  2 cups heavy cream
â—¦  1 teaspoon vanilla extract
â—¦  12 tablespoons (1 ½ sticks) unsalted butter, cubed

â—¦  ½ cup drained brandied cherries


Recipe

Preheat the oven to 350° F.
Grease the bottom and sides of two 9-inch round cake pans with the 2 tablespoons butter.

Make the cake batter:
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the remaining 2 sticks butter and the sugar on medium speed until smooth, 5 to 8 minutes. Add the eggs, one by one, and then add the lemon zest and juice. Remove the bowl from the mixer and stir in the flour mixture.

Bake the cake:
Fill each prepared cake pan with half of the batter. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of each cake emerges clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Unmold each cake onto a plate. Allow the cakes to cool for 30 minutes. Using a long serrated knife and a gentle sawing motion, split each cake in half horizontally to form four cake layers. Let cool completely.

Make the frosting:
In a medium bowl, mix the chocolate and sugar. In a medium saucepan, bring the heavy cream and vanilla to a simmer. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate mixture and stir until all of the chocolate has melted. Gently whisk in the butter cubes. Set aside to cool.

Frost the cake:
In the (clean) bowl of the stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the frosting to lighten it, 1 to 2 minutes. Put one cake layer, right side up, on a cake plate and spread some of the frosting over it. Place the second layer, right side down, neatly stacking it on top of the first, and spread frosting over it. Repeat with the remaining two layers, and then frost the entire outside of the cake. Top with the brandied cherries.

Serves 8 to 10