Black Magic Cake

April 20, 2023

This is an exceptionally delicious and easy to make chocolate cake. You can make it in a fluted tube pan, two 9-inch round cake pans as I did, or a 13x9x2-inch baking pan. The cake is very tender and moist and has just the right amount of sweetness. When you serve this cake, everyone will secretly be hoping you’ll send them home with a slice for the road. It’s not at all surprising this cake recipe from hersheyland.com gets rave reviews and a 5* rating.

No fancy ingredients are required for this recipe. If you don’t have buttermilk on hand, an acceptable substitution is to make your own by adding a tablespoon of white vinegar to a liquid measuring cup and filling with milk to reach the 1-cup marker. Stir to combine, and let milk sit for 5-10 minutes before using in your recipe.

The cakes baked in round pans are done in 30-35 minutes (up to 50 minutes for fluted tube pan). Let cool in the pan for 15 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.

Once again, no fancy ingredients required for the chocolate frosting. I used Earth Balance Buttery Sticks for my lactose free version, however, go ahead and use regular butter when making your frosting.

Frosting the cake adds the final touch to what has become my favorite chocolate cake. I used Hershey’s Perfectly Chocolate” Chocolate Frosting (recipe on the back of Hershey’s Cocoa box). If you choose to use a tube pan or make one layer in a 13x9x2-inch pan, frosting the cake is not required. You can simply choose to dust powdered sugar over the top before serving with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.

A slice of Magic Cake.

Black Magic Cake

Recipe by Kiyo

Servings

12-14

servings

The best chocolate cake! Adapted from hersheyland.com.

Ingredients

Cake: 2 layers, 9-inch cakes
2 cups (396g) granulated sugar
1 3/4 cups (210g) all-purpose flour
3/4 cup (63g) Hershey’s cocoa
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1 cup (227g) buttermilk or sour milk (sour milk: add 1 tablespoon white vinegar to a liquid measuring cup and add lactose free or regular milk to reach 1-cup marker. Stir and let sit for 5-10 minutes before using in recipe.)
1 cup (227g) strong black coffee or 2 teaspoons powdered instant coffee plus 1 cup boiling water
1/2 cup (99g) vegetable or canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Frosting
1/2 cup (113g, 1 stick) Earth Balance Buttery Sticks (or regular butter)
2/3 cup (56g) Hershey’s cocoa
3 cups (340g) powdered sugar
1/3 cup (76g) lactose free or regular milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Place parchment rounds in pan then grease and flour pans including the sides.
Stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. Add eggs, buttermilk or sour milk, coffee, oil and vanilla; beat on medium speed with a hand mixer for 2 minutes (batter will be thin). Pour batter evenly into prepared pans.
Bake 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool 15 minutes. Remove cakes from pan and transfer to 2 wire racks that comfortably hold each cake. I found it easiest to place a piece of plastic wrap over the top of the cake pan followed by a flat cutting board and turn the cake out then place a wire rack over the bottom of each cake and flip right side up. Cool completely.
Meanwhile, in a large bowl, melt Buttery Stick or regular butter in microwave just until most of the butter has melted. Stir to melt the remaining bits of butter. Whisk in cocoa. Alternately add powdered sugar and milk, beating to spreading consistency. Add a small amount of additional milk if needed. Stir in vanilla.
To assemble, place one of the cakes flat side up on a serving platter or cake board. Using an offset spatula, frost the top of the cake with 1/3 of the frosting. Place second cake rounded side up on top of the first layer. Frost the top and sides of the cake with the remaining frosting.

Notes

You may chill the cake in the refrigerator if made earlier in the day using a cake cover or by tenting foil over the cake being sure to secure the foil to the edge of the platter so that the cake does not dry out. Remove cake an hour before serving. Leftover cake can be frozen for a few months.

Dessert, Lactose Free, Recipes

Darkest Chocolate Cake with Red Wine Glaze

January 4, 2015

I was thumbing through my February 2014 issue of Bon Appetit and came upon an article titled “The Dark Side.” It immediately caught my attention, not just because of the quirky title, but due to the fact that the recipes were all about chocolate. Chocolate is one of the most popular foods in the world and I am one of its many admirers! The Mast brothers, owners of the Mast Brothers Chocolate in Brooklyn, shared some of their fabulous recipes in this issue. Darkest Chocolate Cake with Red Wine Glaze? I found the red wine glaze especially intriguing.

This is a beautiful cake to serve at a small party. It’s delicious and can be made 2 days in advance. If you have any leftovers, slice, wrap, and freeze the cake for one of those nights when you crave something from “the dark side.”

You’ll need a pound of chocolate for this recipe. Half of it goes into the cake batter, and the other half for the red wine glaze.

This particular cake fluffs up while baking and then deflates as it cools. Don’t worry, it will be just fine.

The red wine chocolate glaze is poured over the cake. The glaze might seem thin at first, but it sets up beautifully (see photo below).

This cake reminds me of a chocolate decadence cake I used to make many years ago. It’s rich but not too sweet, thanks to the bittersweet chocolate (and red wine). It’s now my favorite chocolate cake.

Darkest Chocolate Cake with Red Wine Glaze

Adapted from the Mast Brothers Bon Appetit Recipe

Serves 10

Cake

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into pieces, plus more for the pan (I used lactose free Earth Balance Buttery Sticks)

1/3 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for the pan

8 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped (I used 60% cacao that I had in my cupboard but the original recipe uses 70% cacao)

1 cup sugar

4 large eggs

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt (1/2 teaspoon if using Earth Balance Buttery Sticks)

Glaze and Assembly

8 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped (I used 60% cacao but you may use 70% cacao)

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter cut into small pieces (I used Earth Balance Buttery Sticks)

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1/3 cup red wine (such as Pinot Noir)

Special Equipment: A 9″ springform pan

Cake:

Lightly butter and flour pan.

Heat chocolate, sugar, and 1 cup butter in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water (bowl should not touch water), stirring, until chocolate is almost completely melted, about 3 – 5 minutes; remove from heat and continue to stir until chocolate is completely melted. Let cool completely. (I transfer the chocolate mixture to a clean bowl, cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for 10 minutes).

While the chocolate mixture is cooling, preheat the oven to 325°.

Using an electric mixer on medium speed, add eggs to chocolate mixture one at a time, beating to blend after each addition. Beat until mixture has a mousse-like consistency. Reduce speed to low and add salt and 1/3 cup flour; mix until smooth. Scrape batter into prepared pan.

Bake cake until top is firm and edges are slightly darkened, about 50 minutes (time varies depending upon individual oven temperatures). The original recipe mentions that a tester inserted into the cake’s center will come out clean before it is truly done (55 – 65 minutes). I followed the recipe exactly the first time I made the cake and it turned out a bit dry when I left it in the oven for more than 50 minutes so I now remove the cake from the oven when a tester inserted into cake’s center comes out clean. Set your timer for 45 minutes to see if your cake is done. If it needs more time, set the timer for a few more minutes and test again. Transfer pan to a wire rack and let cake cool completely in pan before turning out.

Glaze:

Heat chocolate, butter, and salt in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water (bowl should not touch water), stirring, until chocolate and butter are melted, about 5 minutes. Whisk in powdered sugar.

Meanwhile, bring wine just to a boil in a small saucepan.

Remove chocolate mixture from heat and whisk in wine; let cool until slightly thickened and a rubber spatula leaves a trail in mixture when stirring, 8 – 10 minutes.

Set cake over a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet. Pour glaze over cake and spread it across the top and over the edges with an offset spatula. Let cake stand at room temperature until glaze is set, about 2 hours.

Best Chocolate Cake

Black Magic Cake