Butter
Flour
2 lg Eggs (room temp)
1 1/3 c  Sugar
2 oz Unsweetened chocolate
-broken into small pieces
3/4 c  Butter, lightly salted,
-cut into 12 pieces
1/2 c  Sour cream
1 1/2 ts Vanilla
1 1/2 c  Cake flour
1/2 c  Unsweetened cocoa powder
1 ts Baking soda
1 c  Milk

–CHOCOLATE BUTTERCREAM–
6 oz Semisweet chocolate, broken
-into small pieces
1 c Unsalted butter, slightly
-softened
1 lg Egg (room temp)
4 lg Egg yolks (room temp)
1/2 c Sugar
1/3 c Water
1 1/2 tb Brandy or dark rum

1. place oven rack in center of oven; heat to 350 degrees F. Butter and
flour bottoms of two 8 inch round cake pans, reserve.

2. beat eggs in large mixer bowl at high speed, one minute. Continue
beating, adding sugar very slowly, about 7 minutes.

3. melt choclate with 3/4 C butter. Drizzle warm chocolate mixture into
egg mixture, beating at low speed until blended. Add sour cream and
vanilla; beat at low speed until thoroughly blended.

4. sift together 1 1/2 cups of flour, the cocoa and baking soda. While
beating at low speed, add dry ingredients, about 1/2 cup at a time, to the
chocolate mixture alternating with the milk, about 1/3 cup at a time. Stop
as necessary to clean sides of bowl with a spatula. Beat until well
blended.

5. Pour half of batter into each reserved pan; place pans in oven
diagonally on same rack. Bake until cake tester or wooden pick inserted
into center of each cake comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes. Cool cakes in
pans on wire racks until just warm; remove from pans and cool completely on
racks.

6. Prepare CHOCOLATE BUTTERCREAM. Reserve about 1/2 cup of buttercream for
decorative piping.

7. To assemble cake, place 1 layer on serving plate; spread top evenly with
3/4 cup of the firm buttercream. Refrigerate 30 minutes. Place second layer
of cake on top of first layer. Frost sides, then top of cake completely
with buttercream. Pipe reserved buttercream through pastry bag filled with
#4 star tip in a decorative border around top of cake. Refrigerate cake
until thoroughly chilled; serve cold (keep stored in refrigerator.

CHOCOLATE BUTTERCREAM

6 oz semisweet chocolate, broken into small pieces 1 C unsalted butter,
slightly softened 1 large egg (room temp) 4 large egg yolks (room temp) 1/2
C sugar 1/3 C water 1 1/2 tbsp brandy or dark rum

1. melt chocolate with 2 tbsp of the butter, reserve.

2. place whole egg and egg yolks in medium mixer bowl; beat at high speed
1 minute, reserve.

3. measure sugar and water into 1 quart non aluminum saucepan and stir
well. Cook over low heat until mixture simmers; cover and simmer 5 minutes
. Uncover sugar syrup; simmer slowly over low heat until it reaches the
“soft-ball” candy stage.

4. While beating at high speed, immediately drizzle the sugar syrop into
the reserved egg mixture. Continue beating until bottom of the bowl is cool
to touch. Gradually beat reserved chocolate mixture and brandy into sugar
mixture until thoroughly blended.

5. Place remaining butter in small mixer bowl; beat at medium speed until
fluffy. While beating chocolate mixture at high speed, add beaten butter,
about 1 tbsp at a time. When all butter has been added, beat for another 5
minutes. Refrigerate buttercream, stirring every 10 minutes, until firm
enough to spread. Usually takes 30 – 40 minutes. Good luck It sounds like a
lot of work, but it isnt really ~ and it is worth it!!

Margaret Miller