Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Black Magic Cake with PB Frosting

Wedding planning has officially taken over my life, and the few moments I had to blog apparently!!  So to make up for it, I decided that I would participate in this months Crazy Cooking Challenge hosted by Mom's Crazy Cooking.  I had to sit out the last few months due to holidays and wedding planning, and this month I volunteered myself to make a cake for a fellow employee's birthday.  Perfect timing, because the challenge this month was finding THE ULTIMATE CHOCOLATE CAKE! 

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I set out to find the perfect most yummy sounding/looking Chocolate Cake, and I found one over at Edible Moments.  She called it Decadent Chocolate Cake with Creamy Peanut Butter Frosting.  The original recipe was adapted from Hershey's, which is called Black Magic Cake.  This cake is totally magical, so I decided to use the original name!! :) 



I was surprised the cake wasn't too sweet; it was perfect, and the same way with the frosting.  I thought maybe it would put it over the top, but it didn't. 



Confession time...after I whipped up the frosting, I realized that I didn't add in enough milk according to the recipe (only used 2 tbsp at first).  Which looking back, I should have left it as it was.  Anyways, so I proceeded to add another tablespoon of milk and something weird happened to it.  It's hard to explain.  So I added in a smidgen more milk and a little more powdered sugar thinking it would go back to normal.  Wrong.  It looked odd, but still tasted great.  Not really sure what had happened, but when I went to ice the cake it didn't spread well at all.  I made it work though, and it wasn't pretty at all.  So I decided to add the chocolate drizzle, along with some chopped Reeses PB Cups.  That helped the looks of the cake, and made it even more magical tasting!! 

So I had a minor mishap, but it still turned out to be amazing!!  Everyone loved it and was raving about it.  It was very moist, the perfect sweetness, and creamy!  Don't let my little mess up turn you away, this is definitely THE CHOCOLATE CAKE RECIPE to try!! ;)

Cake Ingredients:
2 cups sugar
1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk or sour milk*
1 cup strong black coffee OR 2 teaspoons powdered instant coffee plus 1 cup boiling water (I used fresh brewed coffee)
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
PB Frosting
Chocolate Drizzle
12 mini Reeses PB Cups, chopped

Cake Directions:
1. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans or one 13x9x2-inch baking pan.
2. Stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt in large bowl. Add eggs, buttermilk, coffee, oil and vanilla; beat on medium speed of mixer 2 minutes (batter will be thin). Pour batter evenly into prepared pans.
3. Bake 30 to 35 minutes for round pans, 35 to 40 minutes for rectangular pan or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely. Frost as desired, top with chocolate drizzle and chopped mini Reeses PB Cups.
4. Store covered in refrigerator until ready to serve.
*If you don't have buttermilk, add 1 tbsp white vinegar OR 1 tbsp lemon juice to regular milk (I used lemon juice)

Peanut Butter Frosting Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup creamy peanut butter
3 tablespoons milk, or as needed
2 cups confectioners' sugar

Frosting Directions:
Place the butter and peanut butter into a medium bowl, and beat with an electric mixer. Gradually mix in the sugar, and when it starts to get thick, incorporate milk one tablespoon at a time until all of the sugar is mixed in and the frosting is thick and spreadable. Beat for at least 3 minutes for it to get good and fluffy.

*You can also add in about 1/2 tsp Meringue Powder....just to help it stiffen up and crust a tad more. I didn't do this, completely optional

Chocolate Drizzle Ingredients:
1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 tbsp margarine
1tbsp light corn syrup

Chocolate Drizzle Directions:
Put all ingredients in a microwave safe bowl and put in microwave for 30 seconds.  Take out and stir, you might need to put back in for an additional 15 seconds and stir until melted down.  Don't put it in much longer than that, you will end up with burned chocolate.  Drizzle over cake as desired.





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27 comments:

  1. Oh my gosh! I need that right now for breakfast! It looks delicious!

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  2. What an amazing cake - that topping looks sensational! Lin xx

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  3. Black Magic cake is a favorite at our house also. Hard to go wrong with Peanut Butter Frosting! I am a CCC participant too.

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  4. Good job fixing the frosting. I hate it when things like that happen. But you can never go wrong adding more chocolate and some PB cups!

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  5. Isn't this just the best cake recipe?!? I made the Black Magic Cake w/ White Chocolate Buttercream Icing. Also, I would love for you to visit my new food blog, The Sweet Spot, and link up your recipes to my Mouthwatering Monday Link Party!

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  6. I think your cake is gorgeous, and I love the name! It's perfect!

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  7. Sure sounds and looks great; Good luck with all your wedding plans; lots of fun work ahead.
    Rita

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  8. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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  9. I love chocolate and peanut butter together! I make goofy cake that way all the time. Yum! Sounds like your cake came out beautifully.

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  10. I think this cake sounds amazing! I once made no bake cookies and didn't boil for the full 1 minute. Instead of eating them like cookies, we all grabbed spoons and dug in. Who cares what it looks like when it tastes great!

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  11. Love when you can turn a mistake into something wonderful. Delicious sounding cake!

    If you haven't already, I'd love for you to check out my Crazy Cooking Challenge entry: Double Chocolate Meyer Lemon Mousse Cake

    Lisa~~
    Cook Lisa Cook

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  12. It all looks the same in the tummy! Glad it worked out for you. Have to give this recipe a try some time.

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  13. Love the chocolate drizzle and PB cups.

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  14. This looks great, I love the combination of peanut butter and chocolate. Stopping by from CCC#45.

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  15. Peanut butter and chocolate, it does not get any better than that.

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  16. I love your presentation of this awesome recipe, it looks delicious. Thanks for sharing and hope you have a wonderful week!
    Miz Helen
    #7

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  17. Mmmmm you captured my favorite flavors into a great cake. That drizzle covered up any problems you had with the frosting. It looks delicious.

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  18. Can you see the drool dripping off my chin? I love peanut butter & chocolate! Jen #79

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  19. I LOVE anything that has to do with Reeses PB Cups, so I know this cake would be a winner.

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  20. That looks really yummy! Isn't it great how a mishap can actually turn into something even better? Wish I could say the same about my mishap last night, LOL. You can read about it on my blog if you are interested. I found you via the Somewhat Simple Link Party.

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  21. You sure did make it work! It looks and sounds great!

    Hope you can stop by and see mine at http://www.willcookforsmiles.com/2012/02/flourless-pecan-chocolate-cake-moms.html

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  22. Chocolate & Peanut butter? Count me in!

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  23. Oh peanut butter and chocolate is just pure heaven...

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  24. oh wow!! the ingredients make this cake sound as good as it looks!! delicious!!
    I am your newest follower..pls follow back if you can.

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  25. I still want a big, giant slice of this =o) I'm hosting a homemade card swap over on my blog and would love it if you would join us! http://makingmemorieswithyourkids.blogspot.com/2012/02/homemade-card-exchange-wanna.html

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