I've been consciously trying to be on my phone and computer less while visiting home this week. While it has been nice to take a break, I can honestly say I've been missing my kitchen and photographing and developing recipes and the whole blogging world in general more than I thought I would! It's been weird.
On Christmas day it was 80 degrees. Yesterday it was in the low 30's, with a chance of snow (?!?!!). What is up with Texas weather? So far I have had enough tacos and BBQ to last through the end of 2016. My body truly hates me at this point.
With seeing so many family and friends and running all over the place, I haven't had much time to catch my breath! But it has been wonderful catching up, doing a lot of nothing, and just relaxing for what feels like the first time in a long time. Now I'm just hoping this last week before New Year's never ends so we don't have to go back to work/school/bills/real life.
For Christmas day dinner, all of my cousins and aunts and uncles and family did a pot luck dinner. With my parent's tiny kitchen and my cousins' hotel kitchenette, we split up the cooking between 18 people and somehow managed to have more than enough food left over. I was obviously set on making a dessert, so this chocolate cake was on the menu. Kyle and I also made a brisket with a flavorful dry rub, 100 lumpia egg rolls, and we brought a bottle of rosé. It was a wonderful time spent with family and my Lolo (grandpa) even shared the story of coming to America from the Philippines. It was truly inspirational and so heartwarming during the holidays!
Rich Chocolate Cake with Fluffy Vanilla Frosting (makes two 8-inch cakes)
for the cake:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- 2 tsp. baking soda
- 2 cups white sugar
- 3/4 cup cocoa powder
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1 cup canola or vegetable oil
- 1 cup hot coffee
- 1 cup milk
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp. vanilla
for the frosting:
- 1 cup milk
- 5 tbl. flour
- 1 cup butter (2 sticks), softened
- 1 cup white sugar
- 2 tsp. vanilla
Directions: Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease and flour two 8-inch round pans and set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together all of the dry ingredients. Add in the oil, coffee, and milk and stir together until combined. Add in eggs, one at a time, and then the vanilla and mix until fully incorporated. Batter will be thin.
Pour into prepared pans and bake in oven for 50-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in pans 15 minutes and then flip onto cooling rack.
for the frosting: In a medium saucepan over low heat, add milk and flour. Whisk constantly until mixture is thick, about 3-5 minutes. Cover and refrigerate until chilled. In a separate bowl with mixer, beat butter, sugar, and vanilla until creamy over medium speed. Add chilled milk and flour mixture and beat for 7-8 minutes until fluffy and stiff peaks are formed.
