Decadent Chocolate Cake
Chocolate cakes are our all time favourite dessert. I love trying out various recipes of the same, be it with or without eggs. What fascinates me is that each recipe has its own unique result. Recently came across a recipe of a gorgeous looking chocolate cake in Good House Keeping Magazine. I fell for the photographs of the cake that accompanied the recipe, so baked it yesterday. Though it didnt turn out as good as I expected it to be, it was good. mmmm... may be because I was a little too anxious to be done with it and also the power was off twice while the baking was in process :( 
For the cake:
2 cups flour
1 cup cocoa
1&1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup butter, softened
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup sugar, (I omitted brown sugar)
3 eggs
2 tsp vanilla essence
1 &1/2 cup buttermilk
For Frosting:
1/3 cup cocoa
1/2 cup boiling water
1 cup butter, softened
2 tbsp icing sugar
350 gms dark chocolate, melted and cooled
To Garnish:
1/2 cup crushed almonds, cashewnuts, almonds
Method:
1. For the cake ; preheat the oven to 170*C. Grease 2 round cake pans. line the bottom of the pan with butter paper;grease and lightly dust the pans with flour.
2. Sieve the flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Keep aside.
3. In a large bowl, with a hand beater at low speed, beat the butter and both sugars until well blended.
4. Increase the speed to high; beat for 5 minutes or until pale and fluffy, scraping the bowl with spatula occasionally.
5. Reduce the speed to medium-low;add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
6. Add vanilla essence and beat well until well blended.
7. Add a little flourmixture alternately with a little buttermilk, begining and ending with flour. Beat until the batter is smooth, occasionally, scraping the bowl with a rubber spatula.
Spoon the batterevenly among the two prepared pans. Bake for 22 to 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
8. Cool the cakes in their pans atleast for 10 minutes.
9. With a small knife loosen the cakes from the sides of the pans, invert it and remove it on a wire rack, peel off the butter paper and cool the cakes for about 45 minutes.
To Prepare the Frosting:
1. In a bowl, combine the cocoa and boiling water, stirring until smooth. Keep aside.
2. In a bowl, with a mixer at medium-high speed, beat the butter and icing sugar for five minutes or until fluffy.
3. Reduce the speed to medium-low add the melted chocolate. Mix well.
4. Then add the cocoa mixture ,beat until the batter is smooth, ocassionally scraping the bowl with a spatula.
To assemble the cake:
1. Place one cake layer, bottom side up, on a cake plate and spread some of the frosting over evenly.
2. Sprinkle some of the crushed nuts over the icing.
3. Top with the second cake, bottom side up. Spread the remaining frosting over the sides and the top of the cake. Carefully cover the sides of the cake with the remaining nuts.
