Two frostings are better than one

It’s said you can judge cooks by the way they roast a chicken. So how do you judge bakers? I say, by their devil’s food cake.

Like a roast chicken, devil’s food cake is a homey, crowd-pleasing, simple dish that will probably taste pretty good no matter what you do to it. But there’s a deep divide between a perfectly fine version and a sublime one.

Any baker needs to start with a great recipe, one that’s deeply fudgy in flavour but light and feathery in texture. Ideally, the batter should work equally well regardless of whether it’s baked into a traditional birthday-type layer cake, an office-party sheet cake or a batch of bake-sale cupcakes. Moreover, it has to be easy enough to whip up at a moment’s notice with ingredients any avid baker is likely to have on hand.

This recipe meets every requirement, with a few extra charms, to boot.

The first is the particularly rich chocolate flavour it gets from stirring the cocoa powder into boiling water before adding it to the batter. This helps the cocoa dissolve and distribute better than if you just mixed it with the dry ingredients. Make sure to use natural (not Dutch-processed) cocoa here. It has more of a bittersweet punch than the milder Dutched stuff, and it gives the crumb its distinctly reddish cast.

Then, instead of leaving the three cake layers whole, I split them to yield a monumental six-layer cake. This increased surface area leaves you more space for frosting — and the more frosting, the richer and moister the cake. More frosting also improves the cake’s keeping qualities. This one will last for at least five days, covered at room temperature, if you don’t eat it all before then.

This cake has two frostings, a mildly spiced vanilla bean and black-pepper-speckled buttercream to fill the layers, and a whipped fudge frosting to smooth over the top and sides. If that seems like too much to manage, you could choose either one and just double the quantity.

Serve this cake at any occasion that demands something extravagantly fudgy. And if you really want to flaunt your culinary prowess, a roast chicken would make a fine main course.

DEVIL’S FOOD CAKE WITH BLACK PEPPER BUTTERCREAM

Time: 2 1/2 hours

10 servings

For the cake

10 tbs/140g unsalted butter, softened, more for greasing pans

2/3 cup/70g unsweetened natural (not Dutch-processed) cocoa powder, more for pans

3/4 cup/180ml whole milk

2 cups/200g cake flour

1 1/2 tsp/10g baking soda

1/2 tsp/3g baking powder

1/2 tsp/3g salt, more as needed

1 3/4 cups/350g granulated sugar

3 large eggs

2 tsp/10ml vanilla extract 

For the buttercream

5 large egg whites

1 cup/200g granulated sugar

Large pinch salt

3 sticks plus 2 tbs/365g unsalted butter, softened

1 vanilla bean pod, split lengthwise, seeds scraped

1 tsp/5g coarsely ground black pepper 

For the fudge frosting

1 1/2 cups/300g granulated sugar

1 cup/240ml heavy cream

Pinch salt

170g unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped

8 tbs/112g unsalted butter, diced

2 teaspoons/10ml vanilla extract 

Steps

1 Make the cake: Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease three (8-inch) round baking pans, line the bottoms of each with a round of parchment paper and grease the paper. Use a little cocoa powder to coat the insides of the pans, rotating pans so the cocoa comes up the sides, then tap out excess.

2 In a small bowl, whisk together cocoa powder and 2/3 cup boiling water. Whisk in milk. In a separate bowl, whisk together cake flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.

3 In a large mixing bowl fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time, until incorporated. Beat in vanilla. With the mixer running on low speed, beat in a third of the dry ingredients, followed by half the cocoa mixture. Add remaining portions, alternating between two mixtures. Beat until smooth.

4 Divide batter evenly among prepared pans. Bake until the centres of the cakes are firm to the touch, 30 to 40 minutes. Cool cakes in their pans on a wire rack for 10 minutes; turn them out onto the rack to cool completely. (Peel off parchment paper if it sticks to the cakes).

5 Make the buttercream: Fill a medium pot halfway with water (or use a double-boiler) and bring to a simmer. In a heatproof bowl placed over pot (it should fit tightly on top), whisk together egg whites, sugar and salt. Cook, whisking constantly, until sugar dissolves and mixture reaches 140 degrees on a candy or instant-read thermometer, about 5 minutes.

6 Using an electric mixer, whip until completely cooled and thick, about 5 minutes. Beat in butter a little at a time, until the frosting is smooth and spreadable. Beat in vanilla bean seeds and pepper.

7 Using a serrated knife, slice each cake in half horizontally. Place one bottom layer on a large platter or cake stand. Top evenly with a thin layer of buttercream. Repeat, alternating between cake and frosting, ending with cake. Cover cake loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate while you prepare fudge frosting. (Cake can rest in refrigerator for up to 1 day).

8 Make the frosting: In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine sugar, heavy cream and salt. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until sugar completely dissolves, about 5 minutes. Scrape mixture into a bowl. Stir in chocolate, butter and vanilla until smooth. Set bowl over a larger bowl filled with ice. Use a hand mixer or an immersion blender with the whisk attachment to whip until mixture is thick and cool, about 5 minutes. Spread frosting over the top and sides of the cake.

Note: Measurements for dry ingredients are given by weight for greater accuracy. The equivalent measurements by volume are approximate.

New York Times News Service