Yummy Chocolate Cake w/ Butter Cream Frosting

So after being bugged to make him a chocolate cake with coffee, I finally had the time to make DH one. I had been searching recipe after recipe, never completely happy with what I was finding. What to do but to branch out and make your own right?

So let me tell you, I was so happy with how this turned out...I was jumpping up and down in my head I was so happy. It is moist, has a nice flavor and the frosting was a nice touch especially since I really don't like chocolate on chocolate. But that's my choice, if DH had his way chocolate would be on top of chocolate and more on top of that. I feel there is a limit to chocolate, call me crazy if you want but that's how I feel and how my taste bud feel. So without further adu, here is the recipe...


2 1/2 cups cake flour
2 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
1 box (5.1 ounce) of instant chocolate pudding
2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, melted
3 eggs
2 cups buttermilk
1/4 cup instant coffee, add hot water to make it a total of 1/2 cups of liquid.

Preheat your oven to 350
Combine your flour with brown sugar, baking soda and pudding in a large bowl. In a seperate bowl, melt your butter with the unsweetened chocolate squares in the microwave and stir together. Add your eggs and coffee mixture to the flour mixture along with the buttermilk, then add the butter and chocolate. Beat until combined.

Grease two 9 inch cake pans...I used miracle pan release recipe from http://apronofgrace.com/page/5/ It worked too!!

Pour batter into pans and bake for 30 minutes or until done. Let cool. I stuck mine in the frige for about 4 hours.

I love butter cream frostings, feel free to use your frosting, be it any flavor you desire but here is the recipe I used...

1 1/2 cups butter, softened (3 sticks)
4 1/2 cups confectioners sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

Slowly mix butter and sugar on low until combined, then mix on high for about 3 minutes, add vanilla and whipping cream and mix for another 2-3 minutes. Should be nice and creamy.

Frost cake and voila! Enjoy!

Please Forgive...

Please forgive any misspellings...it has been brought to my attention there were somethings misspelled...what can I say...sometimes my fingers aren't fast enough for my brain, sometimes, my fingers get dislexic and sometimes, the keyboard doesn't read all the keys I hit or I just hit the wrong key and don't proof everything I type...so please forgive me or if you'd like whip out that virtual red pen and let me know, I don't mind....it drives me nuts seeing people do the same thing...

Jalapeno Popper Dip Review

http://www.closetcooking.com/2009/03/jalapeno-popper-dip.html

I made this one day with lunch for DH. It was a little more time consuming than I had anticipated, one because I didn't have canned jalapenos, after all who used cans when it's the one thing in your garden that kept producing and producing. So I took the stems off of my garden fresh jalapenos, washed them cut them in half and threw them into my awesome Gordon Ramsay frying pan and fried them seed down first flipped em over to get that cooked look on the dark green skin and into my magic bullet they went for 2 reasons, one I wanted them indifferent size chunks since I thought it would be fin in this recipe and two I was just just too lazy to cut them up LOL. I also have to share I couldn't find parmigiano reggiano at the store so I used american parmesan cheese oh and Kraft Light Mayo, it tastes the same as regular mayo just better for you...Abra cadabra It's all mixed up, panko crumbs on the top in the oven it goes...
Here's where it took longer than I expected, way longer to heat up than the recipes states, but oh well. It was good, I liked it, the kids liked it (even the little ones) DH liked it even though he said it was just okay he ate half of the bowl. I think this would be good for a party. Went well with tortilla chips...I like the yellow ones best...happy eating

Cheesecake w/3 different cheeses REVIEW

http://www.gastrecipes.com/2011/01/mascarpone-ricotta-cheese-cake.html

I decided I wanted to make my first ever cheesecake, but I didn't want just your average cream cheese cheesecake, so I searched the internet for a cheesecake with mascarpone in it. I used this italian cream cheese in my tirmisu and I loved the taste and texture of it. I searched through recipes and I came upon this very seemingly simple recipe that not only called for cream cheese and mascarpone but also ricotta cheese. Just when you thought ricotta is only for lasagne right? So I was excited and with a trip to the grocery store to get all my cheeses I was set (or so I thought).

Dummy me I didn't realize it called for whipped cream cheese and here I am with regular cream cheese, oh well I'll just whip it first, after all that's all it is. So I follow the directions tasting as I go...yuumm!
So I get to the crust part, what's this some sort of bar and almonds, do I have any of this, nope...rats! But lucky me I have graham cracker crumbs...So here I go.
So I've got my 11yoDD helping with the crust, the recipe called for a deep pie pan or springform pan, so I use my cake pan, it's pretty deep and worked out well when I baked my pie inside a cake last year (another story). So a stick and a half of butter mike with graham cracker crumbs DD presses the crust into the pan...I go to pour my batter in to the pan and HOLY COW I wished I had a deeper pan, I had enough batter for 2 cakes. So insted of making 2 I made the one and am storing the rest in case it turns out not as yummy as the batter. Don't want 2 of something no one will eat right? I bake as directed and into the fridge it goes.

several hours later, I decide it's time for a peice.. The kids are in bed and I will get to enjoy my dessert without being asked for bites. It's firm but still a little soft but soooo good. I recommend leaving it overnight to firm up the whole way because the second night it was even better.
Now I loved it, DH said, it's good, but too rich for him...really from the person who eats chocolate like it's going out of style...oh well take it from me, this is worth making and is very simple...next time I do want to do the almond crust...

Buttermilk Brownie Review

http://www.bhg.com/recipe/brownies/buttermilk-brownies/

Alrighty, this one was easy to make. And I think buttermilk add something to any recipe that calls for milk. So as I was making the batter I was more reminded that the consistancy of the batter is more cake like than brownie like, but there are some that like their brownies cake like, I on the other hand don't. But to give everything a fair chance, I continued to make this after all if I didn't like it, my kids would just because it's chocolate :)
So into the oven it went, then the biggest mistake I could have done. I made the frosting. It was only to kill time while the brownie was baking. In my opinion and only my opinion, brownies should NOT ever have frosting. So this frosting had soooo much sugar in it, but I guess that's any frosting. It was funny it actually turned fudge like in consistancy and as per directions I put it on a warm brownie so it melted into it making it easier to spread. I let it sit and cool a bit, then I tried it. The "brownie" part of it okay, nothing to jump up and down about. The frosting, I could only take like 2 bites of before I just flipped it over and ate the cake part. It was sooo sweet it made me sick to my stomach. I let the kids have some the next day because I know that I wasn't going to eat it again, and neither was DH. The rest of it is still sitting in the fridge destined for the trash...C'set la vie.

Chocolate Tiramisu Review

Tonight I'm making a choclate tiramisu. I am making this from multiple recipes since tiramisu isn't done with a chocolate cake. So I will be posting this with a recipe and a final pic ad of coarse my review...

Oh goodness...it didn't turn out as I hoped, I'm not even going to waste your time putting up the recipe I used. I plan on tweaking things at a later date.

Crockpot Chocolate Lava Cake Review

http://www.life-as-a-lofthouse.blogspot.com/2011/03/crockpot-chocolate-lava-cake.html

Who's going to complain about a chocolate lava cake? NOPE. One made in a crock pot? Nope. It was AWESOME!! And so so easy. It was everything you'd hope it's be except that 2 hours is a bit to long to cook on high...I had a hard edge that stuck to my crock pot and required soaking overnight to clean...so I suggest maybe spraying with pam or using a liner to avoid the sticking, not cooking a long as directed other wise this was the best. There was enough for everyone (8 of us) and a littl bit left over which DH heated in the microwave the next day for dessert directly after he finished his dinner.

What can I say this was almost perfect. Will make again, maybe for the next family potluck!