Hortensia's Best-Ever Chocolate Pound Cake
- Unsalted butter, at room temperature (but still firm), to brush pan
- 1/4 cup sugar, to line pan
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons unsweetened Van Leer Dutch process medium cocoa
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 2 3/4 cups sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons espresso extract (or substitute 2 teaspoons instant coffee dissolved in 1 tablespoon buttermilk)
- 5 eggs
- 1 1/4 cups buttermilk
- Cocoa powder or confectioners' sugar, to finish
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Brush a 10-inch Bundt pan with the room-temperature (but still firm) unsalted butter.
- Pour 1/2 cup sugar into the pan, swirling the sugar in the pan so that the chimney and sides are covered well.
- Turn the pan upside down to remove any excess sugar and set aside.
- Sift together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle, cream the butter on medium speed.
- Add the sugar and beat until the mixture is light and fluffy.
- Scrape down the bowl with a rubber spatula.
- Beating at medium speed, add the eggs, one by one, beating only until they are well blended.
- Beating on low speed, add a third of the flour mixture and a third of the buttermilk.
- Do this twice more with the remaining dry ingredients and buttermilk, scraping the bowl with a rubber spatula in between.
- Finally, beat the batter on medium speed for 30 seconds, until it is smooth.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
- Bake the cake for 50 to 60 minutes, until the top feels springy and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
- Cool the cake in the pan on a wire rack for about 20 minutes.
- Then turn it out onto the wire rack to finish cooling.
- To finish, dust the cake with cocoa or confectioners' sugar.
butter, sugar, flour, unsweetened van leer, baking powder, baking soda, salt, unsalted butter, sugar, vanilla, espresso, eggs, buttermilk, cocoa
Taken from www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/hortensias-best-ever-chocolate-pound-cake-recipe.html (may not work)