Recipe: Basic White Cake with Chocolate Frosting

BASIC WHITE CAKE WITH CHOCOLATE FROSTING

1 tablespoon butter or nonstick spray
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 cup butter (1 stick), softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup minus 1 tablespoon cold water*
2 1/2 cups cake flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
Chocolate Frosting (recipe below)

Heat oven to 375 degrees F. Spread 1 tablespoon butter all around bottom and sides of 2 (8-inch) round cake pans, or coat with nonstick cooking spray. Put about 1 tablespoon flour in each pan. Shake and tilt pan to distribute flour evenly over bottom and sides. Invert pans over wastebasket; tap bottoms to shake out excess flour.

Put 1/2 cup butter in medium bowl; add sugar and vanilla, and beat with electric mixer or large spoon until well-blended. Add water; continue to mix for a minute or so. (Batter will look curdled, but it will smooth out when you add flour.)

In separate, smaller bowl, mix together cake flour, baking powder and salt. Add butter and sugar mixture; beat until smooth and blended. Crack 1 egg at a time into batter, beating well after each, until the batter is smooth. When all eggs have been added, beat one final time just until batter is creamy and uniform in color and texture.

Pour half of the batter into each cake pan; put them in lower third of oven. Set timer for 20 minutes.

While cake is baking, make the frosting (recipe below).

Insert toothpick in center of each cake after 20 minutes. If it comes out clean, with no batter sticking to it, cakes are done. If not, bake another 5 minutes and check again. (Some ovens are hotter on one side than the other, so it pays to check both cakes.)

Remove cakes from oven; cool in pans 5 minutes on wire rack. Run knife around inside rim of each pan; invert pans onto cake racks or wax paper. Let cool completely, upside down.

Arrange strips of wax paper around rim of a serving platter (to catch excess frosting). With spatula, transfer 1 layer to serving platter, still inverted. Using spatula or table knife, spread top layer with 1/2 cup frosting. Put other layer on top, bottom side down; spread top of second layer with 1/2 cup frosting. Spread sides with remaining frosting. Remove wax paper.

*To make a moister cake, use milk instead of water.

Makes 1 (2-layer) cake; 12 servings

CHOCOLATE FROSTING

10 tablespoons butter (1 1/4 sticks), softened to room temperature
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 cups confectioners' sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

Mix butter, salt and confectioners' sugar in small bowl with large spoon, stirring until smooth. Add cocoa, milk and vanilla; stir briskly until creamy. If frosting is too stiff to spread easily, add 1 or 2 tablespoons milk; blend well.

Note:
If you have any leftover frosting, cover and refrigerate it. Spread it on graham crackers when you need something sweet. The frosting will keep for weeks in a covered jar in the refrigerator.

Makes 2 cups
Adapted from source: Learning To Cook With Marion Cunningham By Marion Cunningham