Dear Reader,
“Hi Suzanne, I'm wondering since you love to bake from scratch, if you would have a divine, moist, chocolate cake recipe. My son was always gluten-free growing up...so all my recipes were gf. But every once in a while I get a craving for a good, non gf, chocolate cake...and many of the recipes are disappointing. Can't wait to see if you have a good one to share!” – Warmest Regards, Deanne W., Librarian I - Literacy Coordinator, OC Public Libraries
(Suzanne replies) Deanne, when I read your email I knew right away which moist and delicious chocolate cake recipe I wanted to share with you. When I found the recipe, I also found the column I wrote when I first baked the cake several years ago...
I love to bake. In fact, I've used the same chocolate cake recipe for over 25 years. Tried and true, it's always produced rave reviews. So I was surprised the other day when I decided to try a different one.
I've heard other people comment about a favorite food confessing, "I started eating it and just couldn't stop," but I could never relate. Food isn't that big of a deal to me. In fact, sometimes I get so busy I forget to eat. But now I know exactly what they're talking about. This new chocolate cake is good, I mean really good, I mean as good as it gets, and I too confess, "I just can't stop eating it."
I've gained two pounds since I baked it. My waistline is expanding but my pants aren't, so if I plan on getting them zipped up tomorrow morning, I've got to get this cake out of my house. There are only the two of us--me and my husband--so whenever I bake, each of us indulges a little bit and then we give the rest away to friends.
I've cut the leftover pieces, put them on paper plates and covered them with plastic wrap, but as I'm standing here licking chocolate cake off of my fingers and desperately trying to scrape every last crumb off the bottom of the pan, I don't know if I've got the willpower to do it. Truth is, sharing is overrated when it comes to good chocolate cake.
Hershey's Disappearing Cake
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter or margarine, softened
1/4 cup shortening
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup Hershey's Cocoa
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cups milk
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking pan.
In large mixing bowl, beat butter, shortening, sugar and vanilla until light and fluffy. Add eggs; beat well.
In separate bowl, stir together flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt; add alternately with milk to butter mixture, blending well. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake 35 to 40 minutes or until wooden toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack. Frost as desired. Homemade chocolate buttercream is my favorite..
Enjoy the cake!
(On second thought, I'd recommend opening a can of your favorite chocolate frosting, so you start eating this cake as quickly as possible.)
Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.
Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
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