So, I bet you're wondering why I have a picture of Aldo followed by a picture of grated butter leading off a blog post about chocolate cake. Well, grated butter is an emergency measure when your dog (Aldo) decides to eat the butter you had on the counter for the cake you wanted to make.
I didn't think it was possible to have two dogs who bring food sourcing to the level of an Ocean's 11/12/13 movie but we've managed to do just that. George and Aldo are remarkably resourceful when it comes to counter-surfing and if I'm not on my game (or they aren't sequestered), everything is up for grabs. And grating butter is a good tool to have in your back pocket when you have a hard stick of butter and a serious hankering for chocolate cake!
Buttermilk Chocolate Cake
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, room temperature
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup coffee, brewed
3 eggs
2 tablespoons vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup raspberry preserves, for the bottom layer of the cake
3 cups fresh raspberries, for the top of the cake
Frosting:
6 cups powdered sugar
3/4 cup cocoa powder
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/2 butter (1 stick) butter, room temperature
1 tablespoon vanilla
Preparation
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour two 9-inch round cake pans.
Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, to the butter/sugar mixture until thoroughly combined. Mix the coffee and buttermilk together in a bowl and set aside.
With the mixer on low, add half the flour mixture to the butter mixture and combine. Then add all the coffee/buttermilk mixture and mix thoroughly . Then add the rest of the flour mixture and beat on medium for about 2 minutes. Pour into your prepared cake pans and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Make the frosting: place sugar, cocoa powder, butter, and vanilla in the bowl of a stand mixer and bet on medium speed until combined. Add the buttermilk and beat until light and fluffy. Spread the raspberry preserves evenly on the bottom layer of the cake and then place the remaining layer on top. Frost the entire cake and place the raspberries in a circle on the top of the cake.
