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Prep Time: 0 Minutes Cook Time: 40 Minutes |
Ready In: 40 Minutes Servings: 16 |
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A perfect cake for birthdays or other special occasions. Garnish with piped whipped cream and shaved chocolate for a pretty, festive look. Ingredients:
1 1/2 sticks (6 ounces) butter, softened |
3 cups sugar |
3 eggs |
2 tsps vanilla extract |
4 (1-ounce) squares unsweetened chocolate, melted |
3 cups flour |
3 tsps baking soda |
1/2 tsp salt |
3/4 cup buttermilk |
1 1/3 cups boiling water |
chocolate ganache |
3/4 to 1 cup diced roasted almonds |
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350. Grease two 9-inch round cake pans. Dust with flour; tap out excess. (Or you can use cocoa powder to dust).
2. In a large bowl, beat together butter and sugar with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes. Add eggs and vanilla and beat until well blended. Add chocolate and beat 1 to 2 minutes.
3. Mix together flour, baking soda, and salt. Add to chocolate mixture in two additionas alternately with buttermilk. Beat until well blended. With mixer on low speed, add boiling water adn beat until smooth (batter will be thin). Pour batter into prepared pans.
4. Bake 35 to 40 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in center comes out clean. Let cool in pans 10 to 15 minutes, then unmold onto racks and let cool completely.
5. Cover a cake layer with a little more than one third of Chocolate Ganache. Set second layer on top. Frost top and sides of cake with remaining ganache. Press almonds into side of cake. Refrigerate cake 3 to 4 hours, or until ganache is firm, before serving.
6. For the Chocolate Ganache you will need:
7. 18 ounces semisweet chocolate chips or semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped (3 cups)
8. 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
9. 2 T butter, cut up
10. 1 tsp vanilla extract
11. In a 2-quart glass measure, combine chocolate chips and heavy cream. Heat in a microwave oven on HIGH 3 minutes, or until melted and smooth when stirred. Stir in butter and vanilla.
12. Cover and refrigerate 1 to 1 1/2 hours, or until ganache holds its shape and is thick enough to spread on cake.
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