Devils Food Cake With Seven Minute Icing

Devils Food Cake with Seven Minute 

Icing

Cake

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup oil

2 cups firmly packed light brown sugar

4 large egg yolks, at room temperature

8 ounces unsweetened chocolate, melted over double boiler

2 1/2 cups whole milk

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions

To make the cake

Preheat oven to 350°F
Prepare a baking dish for the cake.  I used just a regular baking dish I am going with how my Nanny use to serve it.

In a small bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, cream the butter until smooth. Add the sugar and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes.

In a separate small bowl, beat the egg yolks until thick and lemon-colored, about 2 minutes. Add the beaten yolks to the butter mixture and beat well. Add the chocolate, mixing until well incorporated. Add the dry ingredients in three parts, alternating with the milk and vanilla. With each addition, beat until the ingredients are incorporated, but do not overbeat. Using a rubber spatula, scrape down the batter in the bowl, making sure the ingredients are well blended and the batter is smooth.

Icing

4 egg whites

2 cups sugar

1/2 cup cold water

2 TB light corn syrup

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

Combine the egg whites, sugar, water, syrup, and salt in the top of a double boiler and place over boiling water. 

Just beginning the Seven Minute Icing

On the high speed with your electric mixer, beat for 6 minutes, or until the icing stands up in soft peaks.

3 minutes 

Remove from the heat, add the vanilla, and beat another minute. 

7 minutes

My Nanny, my Dads Mom use to make this for his birthday every year.  Well as time goes by things begin to fade away but memories are still there.  Although my Nanny may not remember making this cake, my Dad does.  For his 54th birthday this last week I made it for him.  It doesn't hold a candle to hers but its the thought that counts right?  The cake recipe I did some adjusting to but the icing was perfection.  

Dads birthday cake.  Not everything has to be so commercialized in appearance.

My mom always tells stories around the holidays when lots of pies are being made how my great Aunt Sylvie use to make mile high meringue for her pies.  That too is something I haven't conquered but since I had the stability with the icing I piled it high on the birthday cake.  You can always scrap it off but what do you do when you don't have enough?!  I love icing so the 1 part icing to 1 part cake suited me very well!