Hellooooo Babycakes!

Babycakes, you are so beautiful!

This weekend I fell in love with a new cake recipe. A cake that smelled delicious while I was mixing the ingredients together, while it was baking in the oven, and while I was eating a piece. This cake recipe came from the book, "All Cakes Considered" by Melissa Gray. I have been working my way through this book each weekend. I bake for a group at my church and have affectionately named this job my butter fund. Each weekend I chose a recipe from the book and, since the author had included many baking tips along with the recipes, perfect my baking techniques while baking a new treasure to share.

The author created this book as a result of baking every Monday for her co-workers. Throughout the year, she researched recipes, baked cakes, and even re-baked recipes to perfect them. So, readers get the benefit of well-developed recipes that result in many oohs and aahs when done.

This weekend I chose a cake called Coffee Spice Cake. This cake is a mix between gingerbread and a mocha cake. The cake itself has cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg in it while the frosting is pure chocolate fudge delight. Bonus? Both have strong coffee added to them to add an extra delicious element. So good!

As I was mixing the ingredients together on Saturday, the smells took me back to Christmas morning with the gingerbread ingredients. Then to my morning cup of coffee with the addition of the coffee. Then to Christmas again. Then to morning coffee. And so on, and so on. What a great experience!

When I was mixing and baking it all together, I realized that this is a recipe I had to share because it was truly delicious and one to have in the recipe book. So here we go. Take some time, make this cake, and enjoy it with your cup of coffee. It will be a wonderful moment!

Coffee Spice Cake (from the book All Cakes Considered by Melissa Gray)

3/4 cup cold strong coffee
3/4 cup shortening
1 1/2 cups dark brown sugar
1/4 cup molasses
3 large eggs
2 1/2 cups cake flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger (Omit this if you are doing the chocolate frosting)
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1. Brew your coffee nice and strong. Cool.

2. Center a rack and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a 12-cup bundt pan or 10-inch tube pan. (Grease the pan then dust with flour, tapping out the extra)

3. Cream the shortening with the mixer on medium speed, and add the brown sugar gradually. Increase the mixer speed to medium-high speed and beat until fluffy, roughly 3 minutes.

Added note: My mixer, named Ramone by my hubby, gets a true workout when making these cakes because you spend a lot of time creaming the shortening and sugar together. Take your sweet time here so that it truly is fluffy.

If you haven't met Ramone yet, here he is!

4. Shift the mixer to low speed. Add the molasses, then the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

5. In a separate bowl, dry whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices together.

6. Add a third of the flour mixture to the creamed mixture, beat, then add 1/4 cup of the coffee and beat on medium until well blended. Repeat 2 more times. (Here's where I was having the flashbacks to Christmas morning vs. my morning cup of coffee!)

7. Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 45 minutes, or until the cake tests done. (Your house will smell divine at this time!)

8. Cool for 10 to 15 minutes in the pan, unmold onto a cake rack, and cool completely.

Waiting for the chocolate drizzle.

Chocolate Drizzle (Yes, a must!)

2- 1 oz. squares unsweetened chocolate

1 1/2 cups sweetened condensed milk

2 tablespoons cold strong coffee

1. In the top of a double boiler (or improvised one), melt the unsweetened chocolate over water at a medium boil until smooth.

2. Add the sweetened condensed milk. Stir until fully incorporated, and continue stirring for about 5 minutes, until the mixture has thickened. Then add the coffee.

3. Remove from the heat and stir occasionally until it's time to drizzle over the cooled cake. 

4. Use a teaspoon or a soup spoon and (here is my favorite quote of the book!) let your inner Jackson Pollock take over to the extent that your inner Martha Stewart doesn't freak out about the kitchen mess. (Love this author!)

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I did and let me know what you think. Did it become your favorite too?