Chocolate Birthday Cake

For Benjamin's 5th birthday, I baked a chocolate cake from the book Southern Cakes, adapted from a rond three layers cake to a rectangular two layers cake. The filling is cream based and I made a confectioner's sugar frosting to cover the cake before putting the fondant on.

This book was a present from my friends Sylvain and Emmanuelle and although they are not your usual kind of cakes, I have been trying a few of them and they are pretty good. That chocolate cake is really a keeper. Not too sweet (I reduced the amount of sugar), just moist enough, not too heavy, it was a pretty good cake.

Helen Hudson Whiting's Celestial Chocolate Cake
From the Southern Cakes

For the Cake:
2 cups boiling water
1 cup cocoa
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
2 cups sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extrat
4 eggs

Cream Filling
1 cup very cold heavy cream or whipping cream
1/4 cup confectioners' sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract

Confectioners' sugar frosting
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
3 cups confectioners' sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp milk

TO MAKE THE CAKE, heat the oven to 350F and grease and flour a big rectangle pan.

POUR THE BOILING WATER over the cocoa. Sir well with a fork until smooth, and set aside to cool. Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl, and stir with a fork to mix well.

COMBINE the butter and sugar in alarge bowl, and beat with a mixer at high speed until well combined. Add the vanilla and then the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each one until the mixture is smooth and light. Add the flour mixture in 4 batches, beating after each addition only until the flour disappears.Add the cocoa mixture in 3 batches, beating just enough after each addition to combine everything into a smooth, luscious batter, stopping once or twice to scrape down the sides of the bowl.

TRANSFER the batter in the pan. Bake at 350F for 25 to 30 minutes, until the cake springs back when touched lightly in the center and are beginning to pull away from the sides of the pan.

COOL THE CAKE for 10 minutes in the pan the gently turn them out onto wire racks or plates to cool completely , top side up.

TO MAKE THE FILLING, in a medium bowl, combine the whipping cream, confectioners' cream, and vanilla, and beat until thick and luscious. Cover and refrigerate until you are ready to complete the cake.

TO MAKE THE FROSTING, in a medium bowl,  beat the butter with a mixer at medium speed until creamy and smooth. Add the confectioners' sugar, vanilla and salt, and beat for 1 minute. Add the milk and beat well at high speed, stopping often to scrap down the bowl, until the frosting is smooth and creamy and a nice texture for spreading on your cake

TO COMPLETE THE CAKE, cake the cake in two layers of equal width, place the first layer top side down, on a cake or serving plate, and spread the whipped cream filling almost to the edge. Cover with the second half, top side down.

SPREAD the confectioners' sugar frosting in a thin layer on top and around the cake and apply the rolled out fondant.