Extreme Chocolate Cake

EXTREME CHOCOLATE CAKE:

Ingredients

• 2 cups white sugar 
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup boiling water
•  
• 3/4 cup butter
• 1 1/2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder
• 5 1/3 cups confectioners' sugar
• 2/3 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour two 9 inch cake pans.
2. Use the first set of ingredients to make the cake. In a medium bowl, stir together the sugar, flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Add the eggs, milk, oil and vanilla, mix for 3 minutes with an electric mixer. Stir in the boiling water by hand. Pour evenly into the two prepared pans.
3. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes in the preheated oven, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to cool completely.
4. To make the frosting, use the second set of ingredients. Cream butter until light and fluffy. Stir in the cocoa and confectioners' sugar alternately with the milk and vanilla. Beat to a spreading consistency.
5. Split the layers of cooled cake horizontally, cover the top of each layer with frosting, then stack them onto a serving plate. Frost the outside of the cake.

Mmmmm.... is it just me? Or does that look good!... I got the recipe off Yummly. I have to say I did end up having some and it was REALLY delicious! I love chocolate, and cake, and especially frosting, so I liked it :) 

Have a good day!

-Brooke

Homemade Starbucks

 The pictures above are of delicious homemade Starbuck's Mocha Coconut Frappuccionos. They were soooooooo good! I couldn't help but share the recipe, as I adore Starbucks. I got it off Yummly.com. They weren't quite like the real ones (since I wasn't using Starbucks coffee) but they were pretty close, and just as good! :)

Starbucks' Mocha Coconut Frappuccino

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12 cup shredded coconut 34 cup coffee (strong, chilled) 1 cup low-fat milk 13 cup chocolate syrup (hersheys)

3 tbsps granulated sugar 2 cups ice 12 cup whipped cream (canned)

1	Preheat oven to 300°F
2	Spread shredded coconut on a baking sheet and toast coconut in the oven.
3	Stir the coconut around every 10 minutes or so for even browning. After 25 to 30 minutes the shredded coconut should be light brown. Cool it off.
4	Make double-strength coffee by brewing with twice the coffee required by your coffee maker. That should be 2 tablespoons of ground coffee per each cup of coffee.
5	Chill before using.
6	To make the drinks, combine cold coffee, milk, 1/3 cup of the toasted coconut, 1/3 cup chocolate syrup, and sugar in a blender. Blend for 15 to 20 seconds to dissolve sugar.
7	Add ice and blend until ice is crushed and the drink is smooth.
8	Pour drinks into two 16-ounce glasses. Garnish each drink with whipped cream, a drizzle of chocolate, and a pinch of some of the remaining toasted coconut. Add a straw to each one. They were pretty easy to make. We had no whipped cream so I had to make mine without that. I also used whole milk instead of low-fat, and added more ice to make mine thicker. Besides that I followed the recipe. I also made the mistake of accidently forgetting to put the top on the blender when blending the drinks... oops... but four yummy Frappiccionos later, and one messy counter later, they were worth it! ;) Oh, and no, i did NOT drink all four by myself, but I would have been happy to LOL :) I don't think my mom would be so happy about that though...or my stomach... To a fantastic day full of Starbucks, -Brooke