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Devils Food Cake with Brown Sugar Buttercream Recipe

Ingredients

How to make it

  • For cake:
  • Preheat oven to 350 F. Butter three 8 X 2-in. round cake pans and line bottoms of each with rounds of wax or parchment paper. Butter paper and dust pans with flour, knocking out excess.
  • Whisk together boiling water and cocoa powder in a bowl until smooth, then whisk in milk and vanilla. Sift together flour, baking soda, and salt in another bowl.
  • Beat together butter and sugars in a large bowl with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy, then add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in flour and cocoa mixtures alternately in batches, beginning and ending with flour mixture (batter may look curdled).
  • Divide batter among pans, smoothing tops. Bake in upper and lower thirds of oven, switching position of pans halfway through baking, until a tester comes out clean and layers begin to pull away from sides of pans, 20 to 25 minutes total. Cool layers in pans on racks 10 minutes, then invert onto racks, remove wax paper, and cool completely.
  • Buttercream:
  • Combine egg whites and salt in a large bowl.
  • Stir together brown sugar and water in a small heavy saucepan and bring to a boil over moderately high heat, washing down side of pan with a pastry brush dipped in water.
  • When sugar syrup reaches boil, start beating whites with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until frothy, then add lemon juice and beat at medium speed until whites just hold soft peaks. (Do not beat again until sugar syrup is ready.)
  • Meanwhile, put candy thermometer into sugar syrup and continue boiling until syrup reaches 238–242 F. Immediately remove from heat and pour into a heatproof 1-cup glass measure. Slowly pour hot syrup in a thin stream down side of bowl into egg whites, beating constantly at high speed. Beat meringue, scraping down bowl with a rubber spatula, until meringue is cool to the touch, about 6 minutes. (It’s important that meringue is properly cooled before proceeding.)
  • With mixer at medium speed, gradually add butter 1 piece at a time, beating well after each addition until incorporated. (If meringue is too warm and buttercream looks soupy after some of butter is added, briefly chill bottom of bowl in a large bowl filled with ice water for a few seconds before continuing to beat in remaining butter.) Continue beating until buttercream is smooth. (Mixture may look curdled before all of butter is added, but will come back together before beating is finished.) Add vanilla and beat 2 minutes more.
  • To assemble:
  • Put 1 cake layer, rounded side up, on a cake plate and spread with about 1 cup buttercream. Top with another cake layer, rounded side up, and spread with another cup buttercream. Top with remaining cake layer and frost top and sides of cake with remaining buttercream.

Reviews & Comments 7

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  • snomama 15 years ago
    Saved and Beautiful..Oh my word! 5 forks.
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  • desertgal 15 years ago
    Beautiful!
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  • momoften 15 years ago
    Sounds good.
    Was this review helpful? Yes Flag
    " It was excellent "
    jett2whit ate it and said...
    yummy! I love the sound of the frosting
    Was this review helpful? Yes Flag
    " It was excellent "
    magali777 ate it and said...
    mmmm.. a keeper!
    Was this review helpful? Yes Flag
    " It was excellent "
    divaliscious ate it and said...
    wonderful post!
    Was this review helpful? Yes Flag
    " It was excellent "
    elgab89 ate it and said...
    Delicious! Saved!
    Was this review helpful? Yes Flag

The Cook

mountainmama Heaven, WV

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