Perfect Chocolate Cake

from McAll's Cooking Lessons (ingredients need to be edited)


CAKE
1 cup unsifted unsweetened cocoa
2 cups boiling water
2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
'/•> teaspoon salt
Vz teaspoon baking powder
1 cup butter or regular
margarine, softened
2Vz cups granulated sugar
4 eggs
1V: teaspoons vanilla extract
FROSTING
1 pkg (6 oz) semisweet
chocolate pieces
1/2 cup light cream
1 cup butter or regular
margarine
21/2 cups unsifted
confectioners' sugar
FILLING
1 cup heavy cream, chilled
1/4 cup unsifted confectioners'
sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 In medium bowl, combine cocoa with boiling
water, mixing with wire whisk until smooth. Cool
completely. Sift flour with soda, salt, and baking
powder. Preheat oven to 350F. Grease well and
lightly flour three 9-by-11/2-inch layer-cake pans.

2 In large bowl of electric mixer, at high speed,
beat butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla, scraping bowl
occasionally, until lignt—about 5 minutes. At low
speed, beat in flour mixture (in fourths), alternately
with cocoa mixture (in thirds), beginning
and ending with flour mixture. Do not overbeat.
Divide evenly into pans; smooth top. Bake 25 to
30 minutes, or until surface springs back when
gently pressed with fingertip. Cpol in pans 10 minutes.
Carefully loosen sides with spatula; remove
4 from pans; cool on racks. Frosting: In medium
saucepan, combine chocolate pieces, cream, butter;
stir over medium heat until smooth. Remove
from heat. With whisk, blend in 21/2 cups confectioners'
sugar. In bowl set over ice, beat until it
holds shape. Filling: Whip cream with sugar and 6 up. To frost: With spatula, frost sides first, covvanilla;
refrigerate. To assemble cake: On plate, ering whipped cream: use rest of frosting on top,
place a layer, top side down; spread with half of
cream. Place second layer, top side down; spread
with rest of cream. Place third layer, top side
swirling decoratively. Refrigerate at least 1 hour
before serving. To cut, use a thin-edged sharp
knife; slice witn a sawing motion. Serves 10 to 12.