Everyone has their favorite chocolate cake recipe that they swear by and this one is it for my family. I’ve had this recipe and the photos in the wings for quite awhile now, trying to decide when to post it.
Since this is my 50th post, now is the perfect time to put up this recipe since it’s not only the best chocolate cake and icing recipe ever, but it also stirs a lot of great memories. This is Bret’s precious Grandmother’s recipe and she passed away a few years ago at the age of 102. The story is that one year Grandmother made 365 cakes for people (including 100 Christmas fruitcakes)! We were so blessed to have her in our lives.
Grandmother made two of these cakes for our wedding – one for the groom’s cake and one to take with us on our honeymoon trip. That cake stayed moist throughout our week-long honeymoon and seemed to get better everyday! It’s a heavy, dense, moist cake and the icing is thick, chocolaty and fudge-like. (You can see from the photos how the icing melts into the top of the cake a little since you ice it while it’s still warm. mmmmm) This is so great with a tall glass of cold milk. I hope you try this one!
- 2 ½ C sugar
- 1 C Crisco (do not use butter)
- 2 eggs
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1 C buttermilk
- 2 ¾ C flour
- ½ C cocoa
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 C boiling water
- Chocolate Icing:
- 2 oz cocoa (about 2 heaping tablespoons)
- 2 C sugar
- 2/3 C evaporated milk
- ½ C Crisco (no substitutions)
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 tsp vanilla
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Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour a 13x9” cake pan.
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In a large mixing bowl, combine sugar and shortening, then add eggs and mix well. In a small bowl, put soda into milk and stir. Sift flour, salt and cocoa together into a large bowl. Pour milk alternately with flour and cocoa into the sugar/shortening mixture. Add vanilla.
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After all has been mixed, add boiling water and mix till blended. Pour into prepared pan and bake for 45 minutes or until the cake pulls slightly from the edges and a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool only 5 minutes, then ice warm cake.
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For the icing: Add Crisco, salt and milk together in a large saucepan on medium-low and stir for 1 to 2 minutes. Mix sugar and cocoa together and add to the saucepan. Bring to a rolling boil (stirring all the time) then boil for exactly 2 minutes gently. Remove from heat and add vanilla. Beat with mixer until ready to frost cake (it will set quickly, so keep beating until ready to frost). If it should get too thick, you can add a little evaporated milk and mix in. (You will need to beat the icing for a long long time to get the thick consistency correct, but worth it!!!!)
Tips and Stuff:
Go exactly by the recipe, including shortening and time listed to make the icing.
Depending on your oven, you may want to take the cake out earlier - you don't want to bake it too long.
We used the icing as fudge one Christmas and it was a big hit. Just press it into a 9x9" or larger parchment-lined pan and let it set at room temperate.
Be patient when beating the icing - it takes awhile to get thick and creamy.
By the way, the cake got it's name from the grandchildren - it was Grandmother's cake-in-the-pan that they got when they visited her!
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