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Beatty's Chocolate Cake

Ina Garten's classic chocolate cake, finished with our family's cooked-milk vanilla frosting.

Cake from Ina Garten, Beatty's Chocolate Cake (opens in a new tab). Frosting from a family handwritten recipe.

Two 9-inch rounds

Ingredients

Cake

What I make: two 9-inch rounds plus roughly 12–24 cupcakes.

  • 1¾ cups flour3½ cups flour
  • 2 cups sugar4 cups sugar
  • ¾ cup cocoa powder1½ cups cocoa powder
  • 2 tsp baking soda4 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp baking powder2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp kosher salt2 tsp kosher salt
  • 1 cup buttermilk2 cups buttermilk
  • ½ cup vegetable oil1 cup vegetable oil
  • 2 extra-large eggs4 extra-large eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla2 tsp vanilla
  • 1 cup freshly brewed hot coffee2 cups freshly brewed hot coffee

Family vanilla frosting

What I make with the 2× cake.

  • 4 tbsp flour½ cup flour¾ cup flour (12 tbsp)
  • 1 cup milk2 cups milk3 cups milk
  • ½ cup butter1 cup butter1½ cups butter
  • ½ cup Crisco1 cup Crisco1½ cups Crisco
  • 1 cup granulated sugar2 cups granulated sugar3 cups granulated sugar
  • Vanilla, to taste (I go heavy)Vanilla, to taste (I go heavy)Vanilla, to taste (I go heavy)

Steps

Cake

  1. Mix the dry ingredients. Mix the wet ingredients separately.
  2. Combine, then mix in the hot coffee.
  3. Bake at 350°F. The original recipe says 35–40 minutes for two 8-inch pans; check doneness earlier for 9-inch pans.
  4. Cool fully before frosting.

Frosting

  1. Cook the flour and milk together until thick. Cool completely (the family card says to refrigerate).
  2. Separately, beat the butter, Crisco and sugar.
  3. Add the cooled cooked mixture and the vanilla; beat for 10 minutes until fluffy.
  4. Frost between the layers, on top, and around the sides.

My notes