Chocolate Cake for Breakfast!

I don't know if any of you have seen the 1980 something Bill Cosby comedy show, but he does a little skit in there talking about giving his kids chocolate cake one morning when his wife made him "fix" breakfast. The most memorable line from that particular scene is the song that the kids sing as they are eating their breakfast... "Dad is great. He gives us chocolate cake." I just might have chocolate cake for breakfast in the morning!!

We had our annual Sunday school Christmas party tonight, and for dessert, I made Old-Fashioned Chocolate Cake with Peanut Butter Icing. I got the recipe from one of the Paula Deen Christmas mags, so she gets credit for the recipe. Here are some pictures of the cake before I left home. The recipe will follow.

Old-Fashioned Chocolate Cake

1 c. hot water

3 (1oz.) squares semi-sweet baking chocolate

2 1/4 c. all-purpose flour

2 1/2 c. sugar

1 c. unsweetened cocoa powder

2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

1 1/4 c. buttermilk

3/4 c. vegetable oil

3 large eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

To begin, preheat oven to 350 and grease and flour 2 (10 in.) round cake pans. Place 3 chocolate squares in a bowl and pour hot water over them. Let sit for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally as chocolate melts. *use really hot water*

In mixing bowl, add flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. On medium-low speed, mix in buttermilk, oil, eggs, and vanilla until blended completely. Then pour in melted chocolate and mix until blended completely.

Pour batter evenly into each cake pan. Bake for 23-27 minutes,* or until wooden pick inserted in center of cake comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then remove and let cool completely on wire racks. Ice bottom and top tiers with Peanut Butter Frosting. *I had to cook my cake, a lot longer than the recipe said. I think it had something to do with that chocolate/hot water thing that you pour in at the end. It made my cake really soupy, which is what I think made it take a lot longer to get done.

Peanut Butter Frosting

1 1/4 c. butter, softened

1 c. creamy peanut butter

1/4 c. heavy whipping cream**

5 c. confectioner's sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

Beat softened butter and peanut butter until well blended and fluffy. Add in whipping cream and mix until incorporated. With mixer still on, gradually add confectioner's sugar. Finally, add vanilla. **In following this recipe, I noticed that it was really dry and starting to clump up after a lot of the powdered sugar was added, so I had to guesstimate and add in more whipping cream, until it looked spreadable.

Hope you enjoy the recipe, and until next time, BE BLESSED! S ;)