Home-Made Chocolate Cake with Frosting

I have trouble making a cake using a store bought cake mix. It will rise on one side of the cake pan, but stay thin on the other side. But when we make a cake from scratch, we never have that problem. The entire cake rises beautifully.

The other thing about store bought cakes is that you can eat the entire cake and not feel full. That is not good, especially when you read about how many calories are in a box cake. 

When we make a cake, we make it from scratch. In all honesty, it doesn’t take that much longer to make, and it tastes so much better.

Ingredients

1 3/4 c. flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
3/4 c. unsweetened cocoa powder
2 c. sugar
2 eggs
1 c. milk
1/2 c. vegetable oil
1 tsp. vanilla
1 c. boiling water
1 to 2 tsp. instant coffee

Cooked Vanilla Frosting

3/4 c. flour
3/4 c. milk
3/4 c. sugar
3/4 c. butter or shortening
1 tsp. vanilla

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°. Grease and flour two 9-inch round cake pans or one 13 x 9-inch cake pan. 

In a mixing bowl, combine sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  Whisk until thoroughly combined and there are no lumps of cocoa. 

Add the eggs, milk, oil, and vanilla.  Mix with a mixer on low speed to combine.  Turn the mixer to medium high and beat for 2 minutes. Turn the mixer off and scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl occasionally.

Combine the boiling water and instant coffee together.  Stir until the coffee dissolves.

With the mixer speed on low, pour in the boiling hot coffee.  The mixture will be very thin. Don't worry, as this is the way it is supposed to be. 

Pour in prepared cake pan. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes until done. Test the cake with a wooden toothpick to make sure it is done.  

Allow to cool. If you baked the cake in two round cake pans, allow them to cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then remove them to a rack to finish cooling. 

Frost when cool.

In a small saucepan, mix flour and milk together. Cook and stir over low heat until it becomes thick. It will be about the consistency of paste. Remove from heat and allow it to cool down. 

In a large mixing bowl, mix sugar, butter, and vanilla together until light and fluffy.

Add the cooled milk and flour mixture. Beat well.  The longer you beat it, the better and smoother the frosting will be. 

Frost the cooled cake.