Here’s the devil’s food cake, as promised. I’ve never been too keen on making cakes because I always mess them up, and this time was no exception. I was chasing daylight and didn’t cool the cakes enough before turning them out of their tins, resulting in a nice large crack on one of them. Luckily the frosting saved the day, as it will for you other novice bakers out there. So don’t worry and pile it on; swirl it or smooth it and it will conceal any and all flaws (with the 1 1/2 sticks of butter in it, you really can’t expect anything less).

I probably should’ve picked a recipe that’s less hefty to inaugurate the new calorie count “feature”. In any case, I’d like to share with you the cause for this celebration:

OSCE marks are out. A bit disappointed at the one for station 2 (90.9% marks for VCT for HIV patients - I thought I did better. Ah well, it’s a pass), but other than that I’m pretty chuffed to bits. So enjoy this, share it to lessen the guilt and try not to hate me or the anon who requested the calorie count.

DEVIL’S FOOD CAKE (recipe by David Lebovitz) :

[ 9 tablespoons cocoa powder + 1 1/2 cup cake flour (or all purpose flour, sifted) + 1/2 teaspoon salt + 1 teaspoon baking soda + 1/4 teaspoon baking powder + 1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter + 1 1/2 cup granulated sugar + 2 large eggs + 1/2 cup strong coffee + 1/2 cup milk ]

Adjust the oven rack to the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Butter two 9″ x 2″ cake pans and line the bottoms with circles of parchment paper.

Sift together the cocoa powder, cake flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder in a bowl.

In the bowl of a standing electric mixer, or by hand, beat together the butter and sugar about 5 minutes until smooth and creamy.

Add the eggs one at a time until fully incorporated. (If using a standing electric mixer, stop the mixer as necessary to scrape down the sides to be sure everything is getting mixed in.)

Mix together the coffee and milk.

Stir half of the dry ingredients into the butter mixture, then add the coffee and milk. Finally stir in the other half of the dry ingredients.

Divide the batter into the two prepared cake pans and bake for 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Meanwhile, make the ganache frosting:

GANACHE FROSTING:

[ 10 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped + ½ cup water (or cream) + ¾ cup (1½ sticks) unsalted butter ]

Melt the chopped chocolate with the water (or cream) in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water, stirring occasionally until melted.

Remove the bowl from the pan of water.

Cut the butter into small pieces and whisk them into the chocolate until completely melted and the ganache is smooth.

Cool until spreadable, which may take about 1-2 hours at room temperature (I actually just put it in the fridge to speed up the process)

Meanwhile, check on the cake:

When the cakes are done, take it out of the oven and cool completely before turning them out of their tins.

TO FROST THE CAKE:

Tilt one cake out of the pan, remove the parchment paper from the bottom and invert it back onto a cake plate.

Spread a good-sized layer of icing over the top.

Top with the second cake layer and spread the top and sides with the remaining icing as decoratively as you want.

Enjoy!

Estimated Nutritional Information:

9-inch diameter cake, serves approx. 10

Per Serving:

Total Calories: 485 Kcal

Fat: 16g (5g saturated)

Cholesterol: 31mg

Protein: 4g