Catalogue Cake

The catalogue from Penzy's Spices comes filled with customer provided recipes, and I'm sorry to say I never tried any-until today. Called, "Great Chocolate Cake"  it is well named. I skipped the frosting recipe provided and just went for an unadorned cake. This cake really doesn't need more than a dusting of icing sugar at most, though I'm filing away the frosting recipe for the next carrot cake I bake. Barb and Joe Onofrey of Gettysburg, PA-you bake Great Chocolate Cake! Thanks for taking the time to submit it to the catalogue. We've already clipped it out, and affixed it in my blue recipe book to join other well loved recipes held in place with yellowed Scotch tape. This one is a keeper.

I admit, I'm a sucker for cakes made with cooking oil as all that beating butter and sugar together is work. Any cake I can manage with a couple bowls and a wooden spoon is my kind of cake. They stay fresh longer as well. I have no doubt that the cake will taste as good Friday, as it did today-that's what you get baking with oil.

You Will Need:

3 cups plain flour
1/2 cup natural cocoa powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil (I used a combo of soy, and corn)
1 cup buttermilk
1 large egg
2 teaspoons baking soda (bicarb)
1 cup boiling water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 9x13 pan. In a large bowl, combine flour, cocoa, salt. In another bowl, combine sugar, oil, buttermilk, and egg. Beat well (I did this with a wooden spoon rather than the mixer). Add the dry ingredients, mix well. Add the baking soda, then the boiling water. Mix well, and stir in vanilla-the bather will be thin. Pour into pan, and bake 40-45 minutes. Let cool about 15 minutes in pan before turning out onto a rack (The recipe didn't say to do this, so I followed my baking instincts. You may be able to cool it in the pan, I don't know).

We froze half for, "Emergency Cake" which becomes more important as the various holidays start creeping in. This would be cute with orange frosting for Halloween.

Here's the frosting recipe provided:

3 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup powdered sugar

Cream together the cheese and butter. Add vanilla, and powdered sugar (icing sugar) until light.