Aunt Joyce's Chocolate Cake

This cake has been in my husband's family forever. It is a deliciously thick and dense cake. I would say it's somewhere between a brownie and a cake. The secret to this cake's dense texture......NOT USING A  MIXER.  Make this cake and the icing with a wooden spoon and good ol' elbow grease (ie....stir by hand for those not familiar with "elbow grease"). Oh so yummy!

Aunt Joyce's Chocolate Cake

Cake

• 2 Cups Sugar
• 2 Cups Flour
• 1/2 t Salt
• 2 Sticks Salted Butter
• 3 T Cocoa
• 1 Cup Water
• 1/2 Cup Buttermilk
• 1 t Baking Soda
• 2 Eggs
• 1 t Vanilla

Preheat oven to 350*. Sift  together sugar, flour, and salt in a large mixing bowl. In a sauce pan over medium heat bring the butter, cocoa, and water to a boil. Pour chocolate mixture from the sauce pan over dry ingredients and stir by hand with a wooden spoon until all the ingredients are smooth and well incorporated. In a separate small bowl mix the buttermilk and baking soda (it will bubble and thicken some). Then, add the buttermilk/baking soda, eggs, and vanilla to the batter in the large bowl and mix until all ingredients are combined well. Pour into buttered 9 x 13 cake pan. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until cake starts to pull away from the edge of the pan and an inserted tooth pick to the middle of the cake comes out clean.

Icing

You will prepare this icing while the cake is in the oven because as soon as the cake comes out of the oven you will pour the icing over the cake.

• 1 Stick Salted Butter, melted
• 3 T Cocoa
• 6 T Milk
• 1 Box Powdered Sugar
• 1 t Vanilla

In a large mixing bowl combine all the ingredients and mix until smooth with a wooden spoon. When the cake comes out of the oven spoon the icing over the cake evenly, making sure not to dump all the icing in the middle of the cake (this will cause the middle of the cake to sink). Then, spread the icing evenly over the cake with the back of a spoon. Cool completely and serve.