Birthday Season and Chocolate Fudge Cake
Our family has seven birthdays from the beginning of September to November. It’s a lot of celebrating and a lot of cake. This year I hosted a party for my husband and sister who share a birthday. We served cardamom fried chicken, BBQ ribs, curried lentil salad and and this excellent Ottolenghi lemon semolina cake.
I forgot to curate a music playlist and began youtubing music videos on TV. Thankfully, a musician guest spared everyone my lurching mash-up and ducked out for his turntables and spun the party into the night. I drank more than a host ought to and dishes were smashed. In other words, a roaring success.
My daughter’s 4th birthday was a few days later and I made our favourite meal, macaroni and cheese. She requested a pineapple cake and I botched it. The cake was dry as biscuit and my coconut icing separated. I tried to make it look appetizing by piping on a pineapple, but it melted into a yellow blob that I topped haphazardly with green sprinkles. Four year olds are forgiving. Lila saw it and asked, “Is that a pineapple? How did you do that!?” She blew out the candles and I held my breath as she took the first bite. She looked at me and said, “This is a good recipe, isn’t it mommy?” My heart welled and I gave her a big hug. “Yes it is”, I said.
I planned to roll my son’s birthday into Thanksgiving by putting a candle in the pumpkin pie and singing happy birthday after turkey. He won’t remember. He’s two! Alas, we got a last minute invitation to my aunt’s for dinner and I thought sticking candles in her pie might be rude so we ordered sushi and I made sticky toffee pudding. He played with his new paw patrol basketball hoop and blew out two candles like a pro.
My dad turned 77 years old this year, but hasn’t aged for the last 20. He and I are purists when it comes to birthday cake. It must be “the chocolate cake” as it is known in our family. My mom scored the recipe from an episode of Julia Child: Cooking with Master Chefs in the ’80s. I baked it for my dad and my mom cooked pan fried steak and asparagus with Bearnaise sauce. I wanted to eat the sauce with a spoon just like my son. Too bad as an adult I had to pretend I wanted more asparagus. We washed it down with dueling Bordeauxs, but no one could remember which one they were drinking or which they liked better.
My mom’s birthday was a big one. Sixty. We popped a few bottles of the good stuff because they don’t call her Champagne Cindy for nothing. My grandmother’s maiden name is Champagne and the women in our family hold that lineage dear.
I made caviar canapes, corn blinis with guacamole, beet salad and Osso Bucco. My sister made a six-layer sponge cake with homemade jam and buttercream with a lavender flower crafted on top. The moment the cake was unveiled I realized she should’ve been charged with Lila’s pineapple. We ate and drank and celebrated the matriarch of our family who has become stronger (I mean this literally. She’ll move a couch down a flight of stairs) and more chic with age.
My family will gather around the table tomorrow, sing happy birthday to me and eat cake to mark the end of this year’s birthday season. I’m tempted to say don’t bother since we have eaten eight cakes in as many weeks. But no one turns down the chocolate cake.
Chocolate Buttermilk Cake with Fudge Frosting
My mom was reluctant to share this recipe since it has become a family treasure. I assured her that few people read this blog and even fewer make the recipes so she conceded. So if you want it, the secret is yours.
Cake
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup butter
5 large eggs
1/3 cup cocoa
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup cake flour
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Butter two 8″ cake pans. Line the pans with parchments paper and butter the paper. Dust with flour.
Warm the buttermilk and butter together in the microwave or in a small pot until butter is just melted.
Separate the eggs.
Stir in a large bowl the 1/3 c. cocoa, the 1/2 cup sugar and the 1 tsp baking soda. Add the buttermilk mixture and stir.
Beat the egg whites on high until frothy. Gradually add 1/2 cup sugar and whip until firm peaks form.
To the cocoa mix, add the 1 tsp vanilla and the egg yokes. Sift the 1 cup cake flour into the cocoa mix and stir. Fold egg whites into cocoa mixture.
Divide the mixture into the 2 pans and gently rock to level. Bake for 30 minutes until toothpick comes out clean. Cool in pans for 5 minutes and then turn out onto rack. Leave paper on until ready to assemble.
Fudge Frosting
1 1/3 cup water
1 1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup light corn syrup
4 oz bittersweet chocolate
I cup unsalted butter, cold, cut into pieces
1 tsp vanilla
Put water, sugar and corn syrup into a pot on high heat. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Using a candy thermometer, boil until 235 degrees F (soft ball stage)
Meanwhile, gently melt chocolate (2 min on med-low in microwave or over hot water).
Put syrup mixture into mixing bowl and gradually add butter pieces. Add melted chocolate and vanilla.
Chill in fridge until firm. 3 hours or overnight. Then whip with electric mixer.
To assemble, cut each cake in half, making 4 layers and spread frosting evenly over layers.