Chocolate Cake Test Results

Photo Credit: Good Housekeeping

“Good Housekeeping” Recipe Notes

Beautiful. Moist, chocolaty crumb that is rich without being heavy. The frosting sets well but feels creamy. The frosting’s nearly pure chocolate, and tastes like it – perfect complement to the cake. Good Housekeeping claims that this is “the best chocolate cake you’ll ever have.” We can’t endorse that, but we can say that this is one of the most successful chocolate cakes recipes we’ve ever stumbled upon.

For the full recipe, click the pic. To sum it up: whisk dry ingredients. Cream butter and sugars for 7 minutes, ramping up to moderately-high speed (speed 6), scraping frequently. Add one egg at a time, then vanilla. Alternate flour and milk. Smack the pans to break large bubbles.   Bake at 350°F for 22-25 minutes.

Run testing toothpick around pan edge to help separate the side of the cake from the pans. Nonstick pans without parchment will work, even if it might seem a little touch-and-go at the moment of truth. These cakes don’t dome, so there’ll be no need to trim them before stacking them. Be careful if refrigerating frosting. It will move from spreadable to completely set quite quickly. If you use it when it’s at the soft peak stage, you’ll get a glossy finish. If you use it when it’s at a stiff peak stage, you’ll get more of a matte finish. Invert each cake. Spread each cake top with a minimal amount of frosting. Evaluate the remaining frosting amount, to make sure you have enough for the sides. If you have more than you need, add some more to the cake tops. Once you’re satisfied, stack them, carefully making sure they’re perfectly level. Finish frosting. Frosting will set to the texture of a fully-set ganache. Serve cake at room temperature. Freezes beautifully (and is quite good frozen, by the way).

I converted the volume measurements in the original recipe to weight, and slightly adjusted some of them to increase moistness. Would you be surprised if I told you that two sticks of Land O’Lakes butter weighed in at just under eight ounces? I had to grab a bit of extra butter from a third stick.

Cake Layers

8⅝ oz. cups all-purpose flour + ⅝ oz. cornstarch ♦ 2½ oz. natural unsweetened cocoa ♦ ¼ oz. baking soda ♦ ¼ tsp salt ♦ 6 oz. (1½ sticks) butter or margarine, softened ♦ 7⅜ oz. (dark) brown sugar ♦ 7⅛ granulated sugar ♦ 3 large eggs (5¼ oz.) ♦ ¼ oz. vanilla ♦ 2 oz. mayo ♦ 12 oz. low-fat buttermilk

Frosting

1⅛ oz. natural unsweetened cocoa ♦ 2¾ oz. boiling water ♦ 8 oz. (2 sticks) butter or margarine, softened ♦ ½ oz. confectioners’ sugar ♦ 12 oz. semisweet chocolate, melted and cooled

Suggestions for Further Reading:

• Exhibit № I: No-Bake Therapy
• Exhibit № II: No-Bake Cheesecake
• Exhibit № III: The Fudge Brownie Collective
• Exhibit № IV: The Fried Goat Cheese Alliance

Photo credits: Good Housekeeping. For more information, hover over photos. Click photos for an instant informational reward. Green text is special: hover, click. The miLam Curated Exhibits is proudly sponsored by Save some chocolate cake for the Children, the American Red velvet Cross, the National Rifling through my cupboards to find some chocolate chips Association, and viewers like you.