Queen Bee Fudge Cake & Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
With dairy free options
Adapted from Ghirardelli Grand Fudge Cake recipe
This is a great tasting traditional moist chocolate cake that can be used for
birthdays or special occasions.
It tastes even better the second day!
Whisk together in medium bowl and set aside:
2 cups Queen Bee Cakes, Cookies, Muffins Flour
¾ cup unsweetened Cocoa
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
1 cup softened butter, margarine or room temp non-hydrogenated shortened
1 ¾ cups organic sugar OR 1 cup organic sugar & ¾ cup coconut palm sugar
2 tsp vanilla OR 1 tsp vanilla & 1 tsp coffee flavoring
2 large eggs
1 ⅓ cup milk OR nondairy milk such as almond milk
Optional: Stir into batter ¾ cup chocolate chips
Chocolate Buttercream Frosting, see below
Preheat oven to 350°. Grease two 9”x 1 ½” round cake pans then line bottom of pans with parchment rounds; grease parchment.
In a large bowl, cream butter or shortening and sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. If using coconut palm sugar and organic sugar, mixture will not be as fluffy as when using conventional white sugar.
Reduce speed to low and add vanilla or coffee extracts and eggs one at a time, scraping bowl after each addition. Alternately, mix in ¼ of the flour mixture and then ⅓ of the milk (starting and ending with the flour mixture), while mixing on low speed. Continue to mix until smooth.
Pour into prepared pans.
Bake for 35-40 minutes or until a cake tester inserted in the center of cake comes out clean. Cool cake layers in pan on wire rack for 10-15 minutes. Carefully remove cake from pan after cooling, carefully remove parchment paper, and continue cooling on wire rack.
Cool completely before frosting.
To Frost:
Place one cake layer top down onto plate then frost top with about ¾ cup frosting. Place second cake layer, bottom down, onto frosting. Spread thin ‘crumb layer’ of frosting around sides of cake. Place the cake in the frig for about 20 minutes to set ‘crumb layer’ of frosting.
Frost sides a second time and use remaining frosting for the top of cake.
Let cake sit in frig to set the frosting before slicing.
CUPCAKES: Fill liners ⅔ full of batter (yields about 24); or fill cups ½ full for smaller cup cakes (yields about 30). Bake 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in middle comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pans then remove and place on wire racks to cool. Cool completely before frosting.
Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
(For vanilla frosting, leave out the cocoa powder)
6 Tb butter, softened; for nondairy try margarine or non-hydrogenated shortening
Hint: Nutiva Organic Vegan Superfood shortening
2 ⅔ cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
½ cup unsweetened cocoa, sifted
⅓ cup milk or nondairy milk
½ tsp vanilla or 1 tsp coffee flavoring
In bowl, beat butter or shortening until light and fluffy. In a separate bowl, mix confectioners’ sugar with cocoa powder. Blend sugar/cocoa mixture with butter alternately with a few Tb of milk, beating well after each addition. Beat until smooth; blend in vanilla or coffee extracts.
This is a very creamy frosting.