Basic chocolate cake
- Unsalted butter, for pans
- 1  1 / 4 cups unsweetened cocoa powder, plus more for dusting
- 2 Â 1 / 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 1 / 2 cups sugar
- 2 1 / 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 1 / 4 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1 / 4 teaspoons salt
- 2 large eggs plus 1 large yolk
- 1 1 / 4 cups warm water
- 1 1 / 4 cups buttermilk
- 1 / 2 cup plus 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 1 / 4 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- Vanilla or Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 350 F, with racks in the uppe and lower thirds. Cut 2 8-inch rounds of parchment paper to line the bottoms of 2 8-inch (2 inches deep) round cake pans. Butter and line the pans. Butter the linings. Dust the pans with cocoa, tapping out excess. Set aside.
- Sift together the cocoa, flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into the bowl of an electric mixer. Return the bowl to the mixer. Fit the mixer with the paddle attachment. Add the eggs, yolk, warm water, buttermilk, oil, and vanilla. Mix on low speed until smooth, about 3 minutes.
- Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans. Bake, switching the positions of the pans and rotating them halfway through, until a cake tester inserted into the centers comes out clean, about 40 minutes. Let cool in the pans on wire racks 30 minutes.
- Run a thin knife around the edges of the cakes to loosen. Unmold; peel off the parchment. Let cool completely, top sides up, on the racks.
- Trim the tops of the cake layers with a long serrated knife to make them level. Using a small offset spatula, cover the top of one cake layer evenly with 1 1 / 2 cups frosting; spread the frosting so it extends just beyond the edges of the cake.
- Place the second layer, cut side down, on top; press gently to level. Frost the top and sides of the assembled cake with the remaining frosting.
- The cake layers can be wrapped well in plastic and refrigerated for up to 2 days; trim tops just before assembling.