cake

Chocolate Cake with Nutella Buttercream Frosting

When life puts you in quarantine BAKE!

So I was intensely craving cakery chocolate cake *cry cry cry* luscious, moist & delicious. And it’s not like I’m getting to devour that anytime soon ( I know 🤦🏻‍♀️) So I decided to make some of my own. Hence I made a super moist a little dense and a whole lotta delicious cake with a to-die-for frosting, it looked soooooo insane & delectable (if I may say so). Warning: This might turn you into the fat kid from Matilda.

And then came in all the messages asking me to share the recipe! Hence I decided to put the recipe up. I hope you enjoy making and then gorging it like I did!

Love,

MS

Cake Ingredients

  1. 1 1/2 cups (300g) granulated sugar
  2. 1/2 cup (110g) packed light-brown sugar
  3. 3/4 cup (70g) unsweetened cocoa powder (scoop and level to measure)
  4. 1 tsp baking soda
  5. 3/4 tsp salt
  6. 1 cup (235ml) boiling water*
  7. 3/4 cup (175ml) vegetable oil or canola oil
  8. 1/4 cup (56g) unsalted butter, melted
  9. 2 large eggs
  10. 3 large egg yolks
  11. 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
  12. 2 cups (256g) all-purpose flour (spoon and level to measure)
  13. 1/2 cup (116g) sour cream
  14. 1/3 cup (80ml) milk 

Instructions

  1. Preheat your oven to 180 degrees. Grease and dust two 9 inch pans.
  2. Take a large bowl whisk the granulated sugar, brown sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. It’s always a good idea to sift the granulated sugar before adding as that gets rid of any crystals left behind. Pour in the boiling water be very careful with it. Whisk it in and then let it cool for a few minutes.
  3. Blend in the oil and melted butter using a hand mixer, you can use a whisk also if you don’t have an electric one. Add in the eggs, the yolks and vanilla. Whisk it in enough just to blend it all in. Then add flour, blend that in. Then finish by adding milk and sour cream.
  4. Divide the mixture evenly between the two pans. If you just have one pan you can always bake one at a time. Bake the cakes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with crumbs. The baking time will be between 30-35 minutes.
  5. Run a knife around the edges of the cake to dislodge it. Remove the cakes onto a wire rack and let them cool completely.
  6. Trim any uneven edges of the cake and level them. Frost one cake and then top it with the second one, then frost that too. Make sure to get all the edges and sides. Put it in the fridge to cool down for a few minutes or until you serve.

Notes:

  1. Measure the water after boiling if you measure before boiling it will not be the same amount as some of it will evaporate.
  2. The heat in the water makes the cake all the more chocolatey so do not skip that.
  3. Make sure you use good quality cocoa powder, this can make or break your cake.
  4. Vegetable oil is what makes the cake super moist you can use canola too.
  5. Make sure you level all dry ingredients.
  6. Use whole milk.
  7. Use good quality vanilla and if essence is what you have you you can put 1 1/2 Tbsp of that.
  8. Butter is what adds a lot of flavour and a sort of melt in the mouth texture combined with vegetable oil and sour cream.
  9. Salt is what brings it all together, it binds in all the flavours.
  10. You do not want to overwhisk your batter as that leads to a toughened up cake.

Frosting Ingredients:

  1. 5 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened
  2. 10 Tbsp granulated sugar, sifted
  3. 7-8 Tbsp nutella
  4. 1 Tsp vanilla extract
  5. 2 Tsp cocoa powder
  6. 1 Tbsp cream or whole milk
  7. 1/4-1/2 Tsp salt

Instructions:

  1. In a bowl cream butter and sugar using an electric hand held mixer, If you don’t have one just crush the butter with the back of spoon and then whisk it in with sugar.
  2. Once the butter and sugar are combined add in the Nutella and blend.
  3. Add in the cocoa next followed by the milk, vanilla and the salt.
  4. Voila!

Notes:

  1. Star with 7 Tbsp of Nutella and once the frosting is made you can adjust it to your taste by adding in more.
  2. Cocoa powder gives the frosting a rich and decadent taste while adding more colour.
  3. I add 1/4 Tsp of salt because I don’t like it to be too salty.
  4. The sugar has to be sifted or you will have crystals in the frosting which will lead to an uneven and gritty texture.

Hello World!

Welcome to my Blog ‘The Prodigal Cook’, I am 22 (almost), My love for cooking started 10 years ago I was in the 8th grade when I started (Woah! what a bright kid! jk). I have always been passionate about food, be it cooking or eating. I was eating (lots & lots of food) my way through life & Covid-19 struck the world! And then my cravings & never-ending love for food got me to make all the delicious food I enjoy at home. So I was cooking up a storm, something new each time. With the oohs, the aahs and the wows I got a lot of messages asking for the recipes. And by my 9278172518182th dish I’d sent too many people too many recipes. So I said to my mama “that if this keeps going at this rate, I will just have to come up with a blog!” & then well she said “why not? You’re good and you like it & you have all the time in the world because of the quarantine, do it!”. And we all know mama knows best so here I am typing away at my new blog.


I am very very bad at coming up with names or titles for anything yet the name for the blog struck me like lightning! THE PRODIGAL COOK is so relevant because I cook because I love it & whenever I feel like it ( or when my mom wants something special, more ladoos mom? ). And I absolutely have no portion control when it comes to cooking or ordering and especially eating ugh..!! Hence I go all out and over the top extravagant each and every time but whatever you only get one life ( quarantine got me thinking ), and it’s not like these calories transfer on to the next life!! So eat away babies.

I am going to share all my favourite recipes and document my culinary journey (the best kind if you ask me!)

So get yourself a cup of Joe or lassi ( the best way to beat the heat ) or perhaps some wine and join me in creating happiness.

Love,

MS