Okay, it’s…another cake! This one’s a three layer cake. As it turns out, my third pan isn’t quite the same size as the other two, so it’s a lumpy three layer cake! Ah well…

Ingredients:

Cake:

• 4 whole eggs
• 2 egg yolks
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cups buttermilk
• 3 cups cake flour
• 2 cups sugar
• 4 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature

Frosting:

• 2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 6 tablespoons boiling water
• 1 stick of unsalted butter, at room temperature, cut into pieces
• 3 3/4 cups powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• pinch of kosher salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease three 9″ cake pans and line with parchment. Set pans aside

In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, yolks, vanilla, and 1/4 cup of the buttermilk.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add the butter and remaining cup of buttermilk and blend on low, until the dry goods are moistened, then raise to medium speed and beat until light and fluffy.

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Add the egg mixture in three additions, beating well and scraping down the bowl after each addition.

Divide the batter among the three pans and bake 23-28 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of one of the cakes comes out clean.

Let the cakes cool completely in the pans, then prepare the frosting.

Place the cocoa powder in a large bowl and pour the boiling water over it. Stir together until the cocoa is completely moistened, then add the butter. Beat on low speed until smooth.

This doesn’t actually look that smooth, just looks kinda gross…

Add the vanilla and salt and mix for an additional 30 seconds. Beat in the powdered sugar a cup at a time, scraping the bowl between each addition. After the last 3/4 cup, beat another 2 minutes until the frosting gets light and fluffy.

At this point, it’s still not a super thick frosting. Spread a thin layer over the bottom cake and top with the second cake. Spread another thin layer over the second cake and top with the third. Now you can do what I’m just going to call the “Dump and Slump.” Spoon/spatula the remaining frosting onto the top cake later in the middle, and just let it run down slowly down the sides. You can nudge it a bit if one area’s getting hogging all the frosting.

The pan for the middle cake was just enough bigger to look ridiculous.

Slice, and serve!

The cake’s not as tangy as I thought it might be, being a buttermilk cake, but it was good. People seemed even more excited about the frosting than the cake, though.

Buttermilk Cake With Chocolate Frosting

Adapted from Lick The Bowl Good and Dozen Flours.

Cake:

• 4 whole eggs
• 2 egg yolks
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cups buttermilk
• 3 cups cake flour
• 2 cups sugar
• 4 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature

Frosting:

• 2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 6 tablespoons boiling water
• 1 stick of unsalted butter, at room temperature, cut into pieces
• 3 3/4 cups powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• pinch of kosher salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease three 9″ cake pans and line with parchment. Set pans aside

In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, yolks, vanilla, and 1/4 cup of the buttermilk.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add the butter and remaining cup of buttermilk and blend on low, until the dry goods are moistened, then raise to medium speed and beat until light and fluffy.Add the egg mixture in three additions, beating well and scraping down the bowl after each addition. Divide the batter among the three pans and bake 23-28 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of one of the cakes comes out clean. Let the cakes cool completely in the pans.

To prepare the frosting, place the cocoa powder in a large bowl and pour the boiling water over it. Stir together until the cocoa is completely moistened, then add the butter. Beat on low speed until smooth. Add the vanilla and salt and mix for an additional 30 seconds. Beat in the powdered sugar a cup at a time, scraping the bowl between each addition. After the last 3/4 cup, beat another 2 minutes until the frosting gets light and fluffy.

Spread a thin layer of frosting over the first two layers of cake, then spoon the remaining frosting onto the top cake and let it spread out and down the sides, covering the cake.