Email to Gillian Scarlett      

Recipe Categories: gilly's HOME PAGEAPPETIZERS BarCookies BBQ Beans BEVERAGES BREAD BREAKFAST BROWNIES BRUNCH burgers CAKESandPIES CANDY CASSEROLES Cheesecakes chicken CHILI COOKIES CROCKPOT DESSERTS DIABETIC EGGS ETHNIC FISHandSEAFOOD LOWCARB MEATS MUFFINS NACHOS PASTA PASTASALAD PASTRIES PIES PIZZA Potatoes potatoes POTATOSALADS POULTRY QUICHE RICE SALADandDRESSING SANDWICHES SAUCES SNACKS SOUPSandSTEWS Stuffing TARTS VEGETABLES VEGETARIAN

Chocolate Birthday Cake




Source of Recipe


CELEBRATE! BY SHEILA LUKINS


Recipe Introduction


Here is the ultimate birthday dessert—a big chocolate cake slathered in orange buttercream—a grand finale to a festive meal.




List of Ingredients




Melted butter, for greasing the pans
Flour, for dusting
3 ounces good-quality unsweetened chocolate
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 1/4 cups (packed) dark brown sugar
3 large eggs
2 1/4 cups cake flour, sifted
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 cup boiling water
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
Orange Buttercream (recipe follows)

ORANGE BUTTERCREAM:
4 large egg whites, at room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
Pinch of salt
1 1/4 cups (2 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into pieces, at room temperature
3 tablespoons Cointreau or other orange-flavored liqueur
1 tablespoon finely grated orange zest



Recipe



1. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Butter the bottom and sides of two 9-inch cake pans with melted butter. Line the bottoms with circles of wax or parchment paper, and butter the paper. Dust with flour, tapping out any excess, and set the pans aside.

2. Melt the chocolate in the top of a double boiler over simmering water. Set it aside.

3. Using an electric mixer, cream the butter and brown sugar together in a bowl until light and fluffy. With the mixer on low speed, add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in the melted chocolate.

4. Sift the cake flour, baking soda, and salt into another bowl. With the mixer on low speed, and alternating between the two, add the flour mixture (one third at a time) and the buttermilk (1/4 cup at a time) to the chocolate mixture, starting and ending with the flour. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat on medium speed for 2 minutes. Then slowly add the boiling water and vanilla and continue mixing until combined, 1 minute more.

5. Pour the batter evenly into the prepared pans and bake until a wooden toothpick inserted in the center of the layers comes out clean, 45 to 50 minutes. Let the layers cool in the pans on wire racks for 10 minutes. Then remove the layers from the pans and place them on the racks to cool completely. Carefully peel off the paper.

6. Assemble the cake: Place one layer on a serving plate top side up. Spread it with one third of the buttercream. Top with the remaining layer, top side up. Frost the sides and top with the remaining buttercream.

ORANGE BUTTERCREAM:
1. Place the egg whites, sugar, and salt in a heatproof mixing bowl. Set the bowl over a pot of simmering water and whisk constantly until the egg whites are hot (about 140°F on an instant-reading thermometer) and the sugar has completely dissolved, about 4 minutes.

2. Remove the bowl from the heat and beat with an electric mixer on high speed until the egg whites are thick, glossy, and completely cooled, about 7 minutes.

3. Still beating, add the butter, a few pieces at a time. Continue to beat until the buttercream is thick and spreadable, about 3 minutes. Beat in the Cointreau and the orange zest and frost the cake.

Makes about 3 cups