"Let them eat cake!"

Remember before when I stated how I hated to bake? Well, I still hate it. However, sometimes....I have to just suck it up.

I sucked it up and baked a cake.

Don't get too excited and think I turned over a new leaf, or anything silly like that. No. This is really a super easy peasy cake. It's a chocolate cake made rich from cocoa powder, chocolate chips and coffee. It tastes like a dense devils food cake sort of. Love it because I usually have everything on hand, except the cocoa powder which I only use for this cake so I try to keep some in the pantry.

I get the cake all baked and then Antonio goes, when are you going to frost it? Uhhhhhhhh, shoot. I didn't bother to look and see if I had any frosting (in the tub of course...duh! I hate to bake remember?) I try to get him to just eat it without the frosting to which he replies, "uh mom, I hate to tell you this...but I can't eat cake without frosting!". Of course he can't. Cakes are supposed to have frosting, and to Antonio, it won't be happenin without frosting. To him, there is only 1 way to do most things and cake must have frosting.

If you have ever met my son, Antonio, you aren't surprised by that.

So now I have Antonio on a scavenger hunt around the garage pantry while I scower the kitchen for frosting. I have to have some around her somewhere, right? I mean...I stock up on everything. Remind me to write about the "tub of pasta" incident.

No frosting. Well, that figures. I am going to have to - gasp! Make some.

Dun, dun, dunnnnnnnnn.

I knew just who to call. Amy! My neighbor/friend who has descended down from a long line of bakers. She will know just what to do, and boy did she. She gives me her moms..moms frosting recipe and let me tell you - it is my favorite kind of frosting recipe, easy and yummy. Even though I would choose a bag of chips over candy any day, I can tell a good frosting from bad. This is one of the best ones I have tasted.

When it was all said and done, the cake had the taste of a Hostess chocolate cupcake and the frosting reminded me alot of the filling. What's not to like?

Cake

1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon table salt
1/2 cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder
1/4 cup chocolate chips
1 cup fresh black coffee, hot
2/3 cup mayonnaise
1 large egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract


1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray 8-inch-square baking dish with nonstick cooking
spray.

2. Whisk flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt together in large bowl. In separate bowl, combine cocoa and chocolate; pour hot coffee
over cocoa mixture and whisk until smooth; let cool slightly. Whisk in mayonnaise, egg, and vanilla. Stir mayonnaise mixture into
flour mixture until combined.

3. Scrape batter into prepared pan and smooth top. Bake until wooden skewer inserted into center of cake comes out with few crumbs
attached, 30 to 35 minutes.

4. Let cake cool in pan on wire rack, 1 to 2 hours. Dust with confectioners’ sugar, cut into squares, and serve straight from the pan; or
turn cake out onto serving platter

Amy's Frosting

1. Mix (electric mixer) 2 heaping cups powdered sugar and 2/3 cup shortening.

2. Add 1 egg and mix

3. In a saucepan, combine 4 Tbl sugar and 2 Tbl water. Bring to a boil and boil for 1 minute. Pour into powered sugar mixture. Mix immediately.

4. Add 1 tsp vanilla – mix. Done!