Yummy Yellow Cake with Chocolate Frosting

Alright. This is a baking blog. Not a political blog. But if you've been paying attention to the news at all you've probably seen something about all the protesting going on in Madison. I'm not going to get into the nitty gritty of it all, but it currently seems to be overwhelming life and my thoughts. It's something that I and my fiance care a lot about, and we're constantly out there fighting for the rights of public workers. This is tiring. Exhausting. So sometimes you need a day off to bake a cake. And though I don't need an excuse to bake a delicious, decadent, 5 sticks of butter requiring cake...a birthday begs and pleads for this type of cake. So without further ado...a delicious cake.

I found the recipe for this cake in the cookbook flour, a wonderful book full

of lots of yummy treats and great baking tips.

Cake:

1.5 c unsalted butter at room temp

2 c granulated sugar

3 eggs

3 egg yolks

1 tsp vanilla

3 c cake flour

1 tsp baking powder

.5 tsp baking soda

.5 tsp salt

1 c lowfat buttermilk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour 2 8-inch round cake pans.

Cream together the butter and sugar for 3-4 min on medium speed(for a stand mixer) and 8-10 (for a handheld mixer). You want it to be really light and fluffy. In a small bowl whisk together eggs, yolks, and vanilla. Add it into the butter mixture and mix until incorporated. Scrape down sides and mix a little more.

Mix together dry ingredients in a separate bowl. Then on a low speed add 1/3 of the flour mixture. Pour in half the buttermilk. Mix. Add more another third of flour. Mix. Add the rest of the buttermilk. Mix. (Do not overmix! After each addition mix until just incorporated).

Fold in the rest of the flour. Then divvy out the batter between the two cake pans. Bake 40-50 min. I overcooked mine a little, so make sure to check before the full 40 mins is up (in case your oven runs hot like mine). You want a golden top and the cake should spring back when pressed in the middle with your finger. Cool the cakes completely on a wire rack.

Frosting:

12 oz semisweet choc chips

1 c heavy cream

1 c butter at room temp

1 c powdered sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp vanilla

Put the chocolate in a heatproof bowl. In a pan scald the cream over med-high heat (bubbles will start to form around the edge of the pan, but it won't be boiling). Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and let sit for a minute. Then whisk the chocolate and cream together until all the chocolate in melted and it's smooth. You can let this sit at room temp for 1-2 hours until cool. Or if you're impatient like me put it in the fridge for 30 min. Whisking every 10 min. (Make sure it's completely cool or else you'll melt your butter while making the frosting.)

Beat together the butter and sugar for 2 minutes until fluffy and smooth. Add the cooled chocolate and beat for another 2 minutes. Turn up the mixer to medium-high speed and beat for a minute. The frosting should become a lighter color and should be thick. If you are using a hand mixer you may need to increase the time.

Remove the cakes from their pans. I know a lot of cake makers at this point will cut their cakes so their level. However, I don't mind if my cakes are a little wonky. So if you're a perfectionist level your cake, etc. etc. If you're like me (without doing anything to the cake layers), put your first layer of cake on a plate, frost. Then put your second layer on. Frost the top and sides. I got a little fancy with the leftover frosting and did some decorating.

Eat with a big glass of milk. Yum!