I didn’t even mention previously that we’re having prizes here on THLG this weekend. We are. Truth is, you’re ALL winners, but I only have two prizes. So please keep reading to see if You Are The Prize Winner today.

Something mega exciting happened here last Tuesday evening while my family was quietly (?) sitting around the dinner table slurping up finishing the last delicious spoonfuls of Hearty Italian Sausage Soup.

The freezing rain pelted down hard outside, rivulets froze on the dining room window panes. And then at 7:23 p.m. on the dot, drum roll please, the 5,000th person subscribed to Through Her Looking Glass. Yes, 5000.

So woot woot. Party time! I think this is worthy of a celebration, a party for 5,000. And prizes too.

Are you someone who never wins prizes? Then you’re in good company with me. My oldest son, who claims he never wins ANYTHING, just won a $100 gift card to a sports store last month. He entered a contest on FB (or maybe Twitter) and was recently notified he was the winner. Hopefully everyone gets to win something along the way, because it’s exciting! Especially when it’s unexpected.

The biggest prize I ever won took place last year. And interestingly, it was for someone else. I was honestly so incredibly happy for her. Because she has a heart of gold. Many of you know our youngest son Hudson (7) has Down syndrome and autism. He also has learning delays, uses a speech device and wears pull-ups.

Thankfully he’s able to communicate in other ways besides words and brings us all great joy. He’s been a big unexpected blessing in our family. He’s also lucky (as are we) to have a wonderful teacher at school, not to mention a whole slew of dedicated therapists and assistants cheering him on.

One of my fave pics of Hudson when he was three, taken by my friend Linda. And here’s one of my favorite posts about Hudson: Hudson & the Little Yellow School Bus

One morning last year I was visiting my buddy Shashi’s blog and she was running a contest by Smithfield (the pork people). You entered by naming someone in your community who makes a big difference and telling how. It took all of a nano-second to think of Hudson’s teacher, Mrs. Livingstone.

If anyone makes a difference in our world and Hudson’s, she does. And other special education teachers we’ve encountered along the way too. I wrote a few choice words about Mrs. Livingstone in the comment section – about how blessed Hudson and his classmates are to have her for their teacher. I never thought of it again.

Then a month or so later, I got an e-mail from Smithfield saying Hudson’s teacher had won the prize. At first I wondered if it was a hoax. But she got an e-mail too. And then she got the prize — a $1000 gift card to Walmart. Figures. I finally win something big and it’s for someone else. Lol.

But truthfully, I couldn’t have been happier that she won. Of all people, she deserved it. It seems our culture celebrates the sports and movies stars, but the crucial people, those often selfless individuals who educate, shape and mold our most precious assets, our children, not so much. That’s why I was so thrilled she won the gift card.

So back to the prize today on THLG. Even at a virtual party, someone should get a real PRIZE. Don’t you think? But who? You can’t exactly beat a piñata or pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey virtually. Or if you can, I don’t know how. So I thought long and hard about WHO should get the prize. And finally it came to me. Two people will get prizes today.

Prize #1 goes to the very first reader who ever subscribed to THLG and is still a reader here today. Because she had faith in me, even when I didn’t. And that subscriber is, drumroll please…. Carrie W. of Easley, SC. Woot woot!

And Prize #2 goes to the reader who has left the most comments here on THLG since it began in late 2014. And that would be Susie M. of Columbia, SC. Congrats m’aam – and thanks for all the time and energy you’ve graciously spent being so supportive here!

I thought the prizes should be baking related, since it’s the Brick Street Chocolate Cake and other baking recipes that seem to bring in the most readers.

So the prizes today are $50 gift cards to King Arthur Flour Store in Norwich, VT. My favorite haunt for quality baking supplies.

I wish it was a larger gift card ladies, but in the food blogosphere, I’m still relatively tiny. (If only we were talking waist size.)

So hint hint folks: DO recommend THLG to your baking friends, so the prizes will be bigger next time. Lol.

Have fun shopping Carrie and Susie – I’ll e-mail you soon to confirm your snail-mail addresses. (And so glad King Arthur ships, because you’re not exactly a hop, skip and a jump away from Norwich, VT.) Maybe some day you’ll visit King Arthur in person – and I could come along for the ride. Not that I’m inviting myself along or anything. (Well, maybe.) I do love a good field trip as much as the next girlfriend, and it would be an adventure for sure.

Wish I could send you all a prize. Some of you are mousie quiet and drop in to read. Thanks for dropping by! Some of you kindly share your favorite recipes to give me ideas. Thanks! Some comment. (Which lets me know someone actually reads my posts, and thanks for the kind words.) And some of you e-mail behind the scenes with encouragement or share your own poignant life stories with me.

It’s always a pleasure to hear from you. Because what’s the use of living, learning and growing if we don’t pass on what we learn along the way? Sharing our stories is therapeutic (at least for me!) and reminds us we aren’t alone on the journey.

And while I can’t send gift cards to everyone, I do wish you all a restful, joy-filled weekend.

XOXO,

Allie

The post Keep Reading to See If You Are The Prize Winner Today appeared first on Through Her Looking Glass.

This Brick Street Chocolate Cake recipe is everything you dream of in a fudgy chocolate cake. Perfect for the holidays, birthdays, or whenever that chocolate craving strikes. Plus, it’s easy to make and only requires a handful of pantry baking staples. Hands down, this is the best chocolate cake recipe ever!

Jump to Recipe

Celebrating One Year of Blogging with the Best Chocolate Cake Recipe

Hey folks, we’re having a par-tay here today, and you’re invited! We’re baking the best chocolate cake recipe to celebrate the 1-year blogging anniversary of Through Her Looking Glass. (Who remembers my first post ever? We’ve come a long way, folks!) And we’re not just making any chocolate cake. We’re having Brick Street Chocolate Cake! 

An excellent chocolate cake recipe is like the little black dress — it’s important to have on in your arsenal when the occasion arises. Not like you’ll need it every day or even every week, but it’s there when you need it. This luscious, rich Brick Street Chocolate Cake is the perfect go-to chocolate cake recipe for holidays, birthdays, or whenever that chocolate craving strikes.

What Is Brick Street Chocolate Cake?

I’ve been on a quest for years to find the perfect chocolate cake recipe. It has to be dense, fudgy, and rich with a to-die-for ganache icing, as well as easy to throw together for any occasion.

After much trial and error (and heartbreak), a dear friend who is also an accomplished Southern baker sent me what she claimed to be the world’s best chocolate cake recipe ever and said I absolutely had to make it for the blog. Thank goodness for talented baker friends because she was absolutely right. The recipe for Brick Street Chocolate Cake comes from Brick Street Cafe in Greenville, South Carolina, and it’s something this quaint Southern staple is famous for far and wide. (And for good reason!)

Key Ingredients

You only need a few pantry staples to make this decadent Brick Street Chocolate Cake recipe, including granulated sugar, unsalted butter (softened to room temperature), pure vanilla extract, eggs (also at room temperature), cake flour, cocoa powder (sifted), baking soda, and salt.

Additionally, you’ll need the secret ingredients that make this chocolate cake so fudgy, rich, and moise — instant chocolate pudding mix, buttermilk, and semisweet chocolate chips. That’s right. You’ve got cocoa powder, chocolate chips, and chocolate pudding mix all in one cake. (I told you this cake was chocolatey!)

Lastly, there’s the Chocolate Ganache Frosting. You only need a few pantry staple ingredients to make the best chocolate frosting ever (and no fancy chocolate bars!), including water, pure vanilla extract, butter, sifted cocoa powder, powdered sugar, and heavy cream.

Choosing the Correct Baking Pan for This Brick Street Chocolate Cake

I bake this Brick Street cake in a two-piece, round, metal angel food cake pan, also called a tube pan. There is a hollow tube going up the center of the pan. It measures 9.5″ across at the top and 8″ across at the base and is 4.25″ high. The bottom and center hollow tube are one piece and lift up and out of the sides of the pan. Unfortunately, there aren’t standard size baking pans around the world, making it difficult, but I hope this gives you a good idea. 

But the good news is that besides this specialized food cake pan that you can bake the Brick Street Chocolate Cake in many others have baked in a large bundt pan. Just make sure that the bundt pan is greased very well in every nook and cranny and dusted liberally with flour  or — even better — cocoa powder.

How To Make the Best Chocolate Cake 

1. Preheat your convection oven to 350°.
2. In the meantime, combine the wet ingredients — sugar, butter, and vanilla — in a large bowl using a wooden spoon or whisk. Then, gently add the eggs one at a time until just incorporated.
3. Now, it’s time for the dry ingredients. Gradually mix in cake flour, baking cocoa, soda, salt, chocolate pudding mix and buttermilk.
4. Stir in the chocolate chips by hand.
5. Pour the chocolate cake batter into the greased and dusted tube pan. 
6. Bake for 60-70 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean from the center. Cool the Brick Street Chocolate Cake completely before icing, or else the ganache will run.

How To Make Chocolate Ganache Frosting

1. While the chocolate cake is cooling, prepare the ganache frosting. Start by heating the water, butter and vanilla together in sauce pan on stovetop until melted. Then, remove from heat.
2. Stir in the cocoa and powdered sugar, both sifted. Once mixed, add the heavy cream one tablespoon at a time until it’s the right consistency. 
3. Ice the cake by filling the hole in the middle of the cake first, then spread icing over the cake and pour over the sides. Icing will harden as it cools. Fill the center hole with ganache icing first, then pour the rest over the top, let it cascade down the sides. Yeah. There’s cocoa in that ganache. Cocoa in the cake. Also chocolate pudding and chocolate chips.

Storage Instructions

• Store leftover cake in an airtight container or on a plate sealed with plastic wrap at room temperature for up to 2 days. Place plastic wrap on the exposed areas of the cake to keep it from drying out.
• Freeze cooled cake whole or by the slice for up to 3 months. Allow frozen cake to come to room temperature before serving.

Variations

• This Brick Street Chocolate Cake is traditionally baked in a convection oven, which is how it’s prepared in this recipe. Don’t have a convection oven? Don’t worry! I developed a Brick Street Chocolate Cake recipe that can be made in a conventional oven, too. 
• More of a cupcake person? Then try my Brick Street Chocolate Cupcakes! Just as delicious, rich, and fudgy, but more portable and perfect for birthdays!
• If you love chopped nuts, add some to the cake batter or to the chocolate ganache frosting! Walnuts or pecans would be delicious.
• Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, freshly whipped cream, and fresh berries!

More Cake Recipes To Try

If you enjoyed this Brick Street Chocolate Cake (aka the best chocolate cake recipe ever), then you’ll love these other cake and cupcake recipes:

• Brick Street Chocolate Cupcakes
• Lemon Pound Cake
• Blueberry Pound Cake
• Blueberry Pound Cake
• King Arthur Best Birthday Cupcakes
• Carrot Cake Cupcakes with Vanilla Bean Cream Cheese Frosting

Print

Famous Brick Street Chocolate Cake

Famous Brick Street Chocolate Cake. Everything you dream of: rich, dense chocolate cake. Surprise ingredients. And to-die-for ganache icing.

Course Dessert

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour

Total Time 1 hour hour 20 minutes minutes

Servings 1

Author Allie Taylor

Ingredients

Cake:

• 2 cups sugar
• 1 cup butter softened
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 3 large eggs
• 2 1/2 cups cake flour
• 1 cup baking cocoa sifted
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup instant chocolate pudding mix small box
• 2 1/4 cups buttermilk
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Chocolate Icing:

• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 cup baking cocoa sifted
• 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar
• 3 tablespoons heavy cream more or less for consistency

Instructions

Cake:

• Preheat CONVECTION OVEN ONLY to 350°.
• Beat sugar, butter & vanilla in large bowl.
• Beat in eggs.
• Mix in cake flour, baking cocoa, soda, salt, chocolate pudding mix and buttermilk.
• Stir in semi-sweet chocolate chips.
• Pour into greased tube pan.
• Bake in CONVECTION OVEN ONLY at 350° for 60-70 minutes, until cake tester comes out clean.
• Cool cake completely before icing.

Chocolate Icing:

• Heat water, butter and vanilla together in sauce pan on stovetop until melted.
• Remove from heat.
• Stir in one cup cocoa.
• Stir in powdered sugar, sifted.
• Stir in heavy cream, up to 3 tablespoons until you get the desired consistency.
• Ice by filling the hole in the middle of the cake first, then spread icing over the cake and pour over the sides. Icing will harden as it cools.

Notes

Bake in convection oven only. This does not work in a traditional oven.

I bake this Brick Street cake in a two-piece, round, metal angel food cake pan, also called a tube pan in some places. There is a hollow tube going up the center of the pan. It measures 9.5" across at the top and 8" across at the base and is 4.25" high. It is by Ecko. The bottom and center hollow tube are one piece and lift up and out of the sides of the pan. Unfortunately there aren't standard size baking pans around the world, making it difficult, but I hope this gives you a good idea. Many others have baked this in a large bundt pan as well, with good success.

If dry pudding mix isn't available to buy in your country, here is a recipe for a dry pudding mix http://momsneedtoknow.com/how-to-make-homemade-chocolate-pudding/ Just use 1/2 cup of this mix in place of the instant pudding mix. (Do not make the mix into pudding, just use 1/2 cup of the dry pudding mix.)

Originally published on December 15, 2017.

The post Brick Street Chocolate Cake (aka Best Chocolate Cake Ever!) appeared first on Through Her Looking Glass.

So I’ve been on an earnest quest for some years to find the perfect chocolate cake recipe. Dense and rich. With a to-die-for ganache icing. And I finally found it: the Brick Street Chocolate Cake for CONVENTIONAL Oven!

Hello friends. Today I have excellent news for modern man. (Also women and children.) Grab your forks! Today I’m sharing the recipe for Brick Street Chocolate Cake for CONVENTIONAL Oven. (If you’re looking for Brick Street Chocolate Cake for CONVECTION Oven, click HERE.)

If you’re ready to bake, scroll down for the recipe. If you want to hear the interesting story of how this recipe morphed into existence, keep reading! Always a story. So many of you know the original Famous Brick Street Chocolate Cake recipe was developed for convection oven only.

The recipe was originally given to me by a kind southern friend. It’s a luscious, dense, to-die-for chocolate cake recipe from the lovely, historic Brick Street Cafe in Greenville, SC where I lived for many years.

An excellent chocolate cake recipe’s like the little black dress. (Or suit.) Important to have in the wardrobe (recipe box) when the occasion arises. Not like you’ll need it every day or even every week, but there when you need it. Yes, that’s exactly how I feel about this luscious chocolate cake.

So I’ve been on a quest for some time (years) to find the perfect chocolate cake recipe. Dense and rich. With a to-die-for ganache icing. And not too many crazy steps to put it together. Yeah. Thought I found that recipe a few years ago. There was a chocolate cake recipe I really loved. But then I found this easy recipe for Brick Street Chocolate Cake.

I was initially told this recipe was for convection oven only and would turn out “soupy” in a regular (conventional) oven. Not to waste my time or ingredients even trying it in a regular oven. So who wants a soupy chocolate cake? Not me. I’m all about saving a dime too. And since I always do as I’m told (ahem), I published the Brick Street Chocolate Cake recipe for convection oven only.

BUT.

Last week a reader commented on the site that she had gone ahead and baked the cake in a regular, conventional oven and it turned out great.

Say WHATTTT???

So unfortunately, over the past Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays there were literally thousands of disappointed people who weren’t able to bake this cake because they didn’t have a convection oven. And of course I felt terrible about that. But now the tune has changed to a much cheerier one, and just in time for Valentine’s Day.

I’m delighted to say I baked a Brick Street Chocolate Cake for CONVENTIONAL Oven today in a regular, conventional oven. It turned out great: dense, rich and every bit as delicious as the original convection oven recipe. So pour yourself a big glass of milk and let’s clink!

All I can think of is…. “they said she couldn’t do it, and she went ahead and did it.” Many thanks to brave THLG reader and baker Caitlin who forged on ahead and blazed the trail, went right ahead and tried it anyway!

And also took the time to comment back and let me know! Thank you Caitlin, you’ve made more than a few people very happy. (And quite a lesson here I’m thinking.)

So the ingredients remain the same for this Brick Street Chocolate Cake for CONVENTIONAL Oven. The only change made to this rich chocolate cake recipe is an adjustment in oven temperature during baking.

I bake this Brick Street cake in a two-piece, round, metal angel food cake pan, also called a tube pan in some places. There is a hollow tube going up the center of the pan. It measures 9.5″ across at the top and 8″ across at the base and is 4.25″ high. It is by Ecko.

The bottom and center hollow tube are one piece and lift up and out of the sides of the pan. Unfortunately there aren’t standard size baking pans around the world, making it difficult, but I hope this gives you a good idea. Many others have baked this in a large bundt pan as well, with good success.

Can’t wait to hear if you make this luscious Brick Street Chocolate Cake for CONVENTIONAL Oven in your regular, conventional oven and hope you love it as much as we do!

Print

Brick Street Chocolate Cake for CONVENTIONAL (regular) Oven

Brick Street Chocolate Cake for CONVENTIONAL (regular) oven. All your dreams of a rich, dense chocolate cake. Bakes in a regular oven. Rich chocolate ganache icing!

Course Cake

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour

Total Time 1 hour hour 20 minutes minutes

Servings 1

Author Allie Taylor

Ingredients

Cake:

• 2 cups sugar
• 1 cup unsalted butter softened
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 3 large eggs
• 2 1/2 cups cake flour
• 1 cup baking cocoa sifted
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup instant chocolate pudding mix small box
• 2 1/4 cups buttermilk
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Chocolate Icing:

• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 cup baking cocoa sifted
• 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar sifted
• 3 tablespoons heavy cream more or less for consistency

Instructions

Cake:

• Preheat regular, conventional oven to 350°.
• Beat sugar, butter & vanilla in large bowl.
• Beat in eggs.
• Mix in cake flour, baking cocoa, soda, salt, chocolate pudding and buttermilk.
• Stir in semi-sweet chocolate chips.
• Pour into greased tube pan.
• Bake in regular, conventional oven at 350° for 30 minutes.
• Adjust baking temperature down to 325° and continue baking 30-40 minutes more, until cake tester comes out clean.
• (Check with cake tester at the one hour mark.)
• Cool cake completely before icing.

Chocolate Icing:

• Heat water, butter and vanilla together in sauce pan on stovetop until melted.
• Remove from heat.
• Stir in one cup cocoa.
• Stir in powdered sugar, sifted.
• Stir in heavy cream, up to 3 tablespoons (or more) until you get the desired consistency.
• Ice cake by filling the hole in the middle of the cake first, then spread icing over cake top and pour over the sides. Icing will harden as it cools.

Notes

I bake this Brick Street cake in a two-piece, round, metal angel food cake pan, also called a tube pan in some places. There is a hollow tube going up the center of the pan. It measures 9.5" across at the top and 8" across at the base and is 4.25" high. It is by Ecko. The bottom and center hollow tube are one piece and lift up and out of the sides of the pan. Unfortunately there aren't standard size baking pans around the world, making it difficult, but I hope this gives you a good idea. Many others have baked this in a large bundt pan as well, with good success.

If dry pudding mix isn't available to buy in your country, here is a recipe for a dry pudding mix http://momsneedtoknow.com/how-to-make-homemade-chocolate-pudding/ Just use 1/2 cup of this mix in place of the instant pudding mix. (Do not make the mix into pudding, just use 1/2 cup of the dry pudding mix.)

You may also like: Brick Street Chocolate Cupcakes

The post Brick Street Chocolate Cake for CONVENTIONAL Oven appeared first on Through Her Looking Glass.