A quick whirl through the past week:

A sweet visit from Matt's father Paul: who delighted the boys with t-ball and some catch and release (although I don't think anything was actually caught, much to my relief.) Always such a pleasure to watch my children learn something new from their wisdom of their elders.

A first performance on stage: with Mateo portraying Hephaestus, the Greek god of fire. He practiced, he learned his lines, and I think overcame a little of his shyness that he sometimes struggles with.

There has been lots of bookmaking. More bookmaking than I ever remember. I wish I could pin point the inspiration, but as it is with most play in our house, the boys inspire each other.

And to top it all off, a chocolate cake recipe that came out exactly as I'd hoped, and that I adored. Not too dry, not too sweet, frosting not too buttery. When I was asked to make one for a friend's birthday party last weekend, I researched a little harder than usual and ended up piecing together two recipes from the book, Baked Explorations. We came home with a piece to savor bite by bite. Oh my, is it good. 

Classic Chocolate Cake

{adapted from Baked Explorations}

3/4 cup dark unsweetened cocoa powder (I used Scharffen Berger)

2/3 cup sour cream

2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) softened unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch cubes

1/2 cup vegetable shortening

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar

3 large eggs at room temperature

1 Tbsp. pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 325 degrees, Butter two 8-inch round cake pans, line with parchment paper and butter the parchment. Dust pans with flour and knock out excess.

In a medium bowl, mix cocoa powder and sour cream with 1 1/4 cups of hot water and set aside to cool. 

In a large bowl, sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together and set aside.

Using a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and shortening together on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 5-minutes. Add the sugars and beat on medium until light and fluffy, about 5 more mintes. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing about 10 seconds after each addition until the egg is incorporated into the mixture, then turn the mixture to low, add the vanilla, and beat until incorporated.

Beginning with the dry ingredients, add the dry mixture and the cocoa mixture to the mixer bowl in three alternating parts, ending with dry.

Divide the batter among the prepared pans. Use an offset spatula to level the batter. Bake the cakes for 35 to 40 minutes, rotating pans halfway through the baking time, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Transfer the pans to a wire rack and cool for 30 to 45 minutes. The turn the cakes onto the rack and let them cool completely. Remove the parchment. At this point, I divided each layer in half, by first scoring the edge with a serrated knife, then gently pulling a piece of dental floss all the way through. Not easy people.  

Chocolate Frosting

1 cup (4 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted

2 Tbsp. pure vanilla extract

6 oz. good quality dark chocolate (60 to 72%), melted and cooled

In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with paddle attachment, beat the butter on high speed until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add the confectioners' sugar all at once and beat until completely blended, about 2 minutes. Add the vanilla and beat for 15 seconds. Scrape down the bowl and add the melted, cooled chocolate. Beat until smooth, continuing to scrape down the sides of the bowl until the frosting is uniform in color.

Next week, I may try this skillet snack cake. Easy enough right?