Good food doesn’t just make good times great; it can also lift spirits in tough times and remind them of better days ahead. Cemetery Cake is an elegant yet simple chocolate cake baked to a perfect tender moistness and then frosted with a homemade creamy, luscious chocolate buttercream. Chocolate has been proven to elevate moods, and with an indulgent amount of chocolate in each bite, Cemetery Cake can bring smiles to even the weariest faces. Share this when everyone could use a sweet pick-me-up and reignite the spark of joy.
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 1 3/4 cups plain or all purpose flour
- 3/4 cup cocoa powder, unsweetened
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda, bi-carb
- 2 cups white sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup milk, non-skim
- 1/2 cup vegetable or canola oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup water, boiling
For the chocolate buttercream:
- 1 1/8 cups unsalted butter, softened
- 3 3/4 cups soft icing sugar or powdered sugar
- 3/4 cup cocoa powder, unsweetened, Dutch processed, and sifted
- 6 tablespoons milk, plus more as needed
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract, optional
Directions
Step 1 –Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F with the oven rack in the middle position.
Step 2 –Grease two 9-inch cake pans with butter, then line the bottoms with parchment paper.
Step 3 –Sift the flour, 3/4 cup of the cocoa powder, the baking powder, and the baking soda into a large bowl.
Step 4 –Add the white sugar and the salt to the flour mixture, whisking briefly to combine.
Step 5 –Add the eggs, 1 cup of the milk, the oil, and 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract to the dry mixture and whisk well until lump free, about 30 seconds.
Step 6 –Add the boiling water and whisk to incorporate. The batter should be very thin.
Step 7 –Pour the batter into the prepared cake pans.
Step 8 –Bake until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, about 35 minutes.
Step 9 –Cool the cakes for 10 minutes before turning them out of the pans onto wire racks.
Step 10 –While the cakes cool, place the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment.
Step 11 –Beat the butter on medium-high speed until pale, about 3 minutes.
Step 12 –Add 1/2 of the icing sugar and 1/2 of the remaining cocoa powder and beat, starting slow and gradually increasing the speed to medium-high, about 3 minutes in total.
Step 13 –Add the remaining icing sugar and the remaining cocoa powder to the butter mixture, beating again for 3 minutes.
Step 14 –Add the remaining milk and the remaining vanilla extract to the butter mixture, beating again on medium-high speed until incorporated, about 1 minute.
Step 15 –When the cakes have cooled completely, frost them to your taste with the chocolate buttercream.
Step 16 –Serve.
