This recipe makes either two 9" (23cm) or three 8" (20cm) round cake layers. The same cake layers can be iced, filled, and decorated in a variety of different ways to produce very different finished cakes.

Chocolate Cake Layers

Slightly adapted from The Perfect Cake by America's Test Kitchen

Ingredients

• 125g unsweetened chocolate, chopped
• 1/2 c. hot water
• 1/4 c. Dutched (alkalized) cocoa powder
• 1 3/4 c. sugar, divided
• 1 3/4 c. all-purpose flour
• 1/2 Tbsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt, ground
• 1 c. buttermilk¹
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 5 large eggs²
• 12 Tbsp. unsalted butter, cut into 1-Tbsp. pieces and softened

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F) and grease and flour your cake tins (either three 8" or two 9").
2. Place chocolate, hot water, and cocoa in a heatproof bowl, set over a pot of boiling water, and stir until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth.
3. Mix 1/2 c. of the sugar into the chocolate mixutre and stir until thick and glossy (~2 minutes).
4. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
5. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt.
6. In a measuring cup, combine the buttermilk and vanilla.
7. In yet another bowl, beat eggs on medium-low speed for 10-20 seconds.
8. Add remaining 1 1/4 c. sugar to the eggs and beat on high speed until light and fluffy (~3 minutes).
9. If you have a stand mixer, switch from wisk to paddle at this point. Add the cooled chocolate mixture to the egg mixture and mix on medium speed for ~1 minute.
10. Add the butter, one piece at a time, mixing for a few seconds after each one.
11. Add 1/3 of the flour mixture, followed by 1/2 of the buttermilk mixture. Repeat until all flour and buttermilk have been added, beating for 20-30 seconds between each addition.
12. Reduce speed to medium-low and beat for another 15-30 seconds.
13. Give a final stir by hand.
14. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared tins and smooth the top.
15. Bake at 180°C (350°F) for 20-30 minutes.
16. Transfer to wire rack and let cool in tins for 10 minutes.
17. Remove from tins and allow to finish cooling on wire racks.
18. Stack and decorate as desired once completely cooled.

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¹ Or 1 Tbsp. vinegar or lemon juice + milk to make 1 c. ^Back
2 The original recipe called for 4 large eggs + 2 large egg yolks. This would certainly make for a richer and more luxurious batter, but I didn't want to have to deal with separating eggs and trying to figure out what to do with the left over whites, so I just substituted an additional whole egg for the egg yolks. If you have surplus egg yolks to use, feel free to revert this recipe to its original form! ^Back