The Best Chocolate Cake Recipe For A Chocolate Lover or Chocoholic!

Hershey's has always been one of my favorite chocolates. I know. I love Ghiradelli and See's, Godiva, Dove and all of the others and I am aware of the Great Chocolate Wars waged by chocoholics and chocolate lovers across the world, but from the time I was a little girl, Hershey bars were the best. My daughter and I were just talking about how her grandma (my mom) used to bring her Hershey bars everytime she came to see her when she was little. I do the same with my grandchildren.

I make the most incredible chocolate cake with Hershey's Cocoa! I don't remember where the recipe came from and I know the original calls for some Swiss brand that I have never heard of. I used to make wedding cakes many years ago and this was one of the cake recipes I had. It resurfaced a few years ago, when I was trying to think of a birthday cake for a miniature chocoholic that I know. A yellowed, chocolate smeared paper fell out of my favorite, old cookbook and then I remembered this wonderful treat! It is not the easiest of cakes to make, but the effort is well worth it! It can be made as a layer cake using two 9 or even 10 inch round pans or in a 9 X 12 inch pan. As a layer cake, it is at its best, but much easier in a baking pan. The batter makes a little too much for 2 --9 inch pans, that is why I suggest 2 --10 inch if you have them. REMEMBER to use only about 3/4 of the batter with standard 9 inch pans. When I made wedding cakes, 9 inch round wedding pans were deeper, so this recipe worked well. Use the remaining batter for cupcakes. The cook or the kids will love them!

• 2 cups of flour

• 2 cups plus 2 Tablespoons of sugar

• 1 cup of Hershey's cocoa
• 2 teaspoons of baking soda
• 1 teaspoon of baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup of cold, strong coffee
• 1 cup of buttermilk (if you don't have buttermilk, try this. It works! To one cup of milk, add a tablespoon of lemon juice or white vinegar, stir it a little and Voila! I recommend the lemon...)
• 1/2 cup of canola oil

In a large bowl, sift together the dry ingredients. Make sure they are well mixed. Make a large well in the center of the bowl and add the eggs, coffee, buttermilk and oil (I use canola oil, just as my preference). At this point, I also add 1 teaspoon of vanilla, even though it is not in the original recipe that I have written, just because vanilla is always in cakes. You can make your own decision regarding the vanilla, but I highly recommend it. Blend the ingredients well. Then medium speed for about 2 minutes until batter is smooth and shiny! Pour the batter into well-sprayed pans and bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes for two 9 inch pans. When finished baking, the center will spring back if lightly touched or a toothpick inserted in the center will come out clean. The original recipe does not give a time for a 9 x 13, but I usually bake it for about 30 minutes and look through the oven door for about 5 more minutes, then check it with a toothpick. Each oven is different and you are familiar with yours.

• 2 sticks of melted butter
• 1 and 1/3 cups of Hershey's cocoa
• 6 cups of sifted powdered sugar
• 2/3 of a cup of room temperature milk (you may need to add up to 1/3 cup of warm milk for easier spreading)
• 1 Tablespoon of vanilla

 Mix the melted butter with the cocoa until it is smooth. Alternately add some of the powdered sugar and some of the milk, mixing well with each addition. Add and mix in the vanilla. At this point, you will be able to determine if you need to add extra milk.

Make sure that your Blackout Cake is completely cooled prior to frosting it.