Chocolate Cake

Ingredients:

2 cups flour

1 cup cocoa

2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

2 cups sugar

2 sticks butter or margarine (softened)

4 eggs

1 1/3 cups milk (may need to add a little more if batter looks dry)

2 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour pans if making cake or line with cupcake pans with cupcake liners. In a medium bowl, combine flour, cocoa, baking powder and baking soda then set aside. In a large bowl, using a mixer set at low speed beat in sugar and margarine until blended. Increase speed to high, beat until creamy (about two minutes). Reduce speed to medium-low and adding eggs one at a time, beating thoroughly between each one. In the measuring cup, add the vanilla to the milk. Alternately add milk mixture and flour mixture to the sugar and egg mixture until batter is smooth, occasionally scraping sides with a spatula. Pour batter into prepared pans. Bake 40-45 minutes for one 13x9 inch pan or 25 minutes for cupcakes (will make around 30) or until an inserted toothpick comes out almost clean. Cool on wire rack 10 minutes then remove, if making cake; you may need to run a knife around the edge to loosen the cake. Frost when cooled completely.

Butter Cream Icing

Ingredients:

1 lb. Confectioner's sugar

1/2 cup butter

1 tsp. vanilla

3 tblsps. milk

A few drops of food coloring (optional)

In a large bowl, beat together sugar, butter, vanilla, and milk until smooth. If necessary, add more milk until frosting is spreading consistency. Add food coloring and blend thoroughly. Makes enough to fill and frost a two-layer cake, one 13x9 sheet cake or 2 dozen or so cupcakes.

*For the cupcakes pictured above, I tinted a cup of sweetened flaked coconut with blue and red food coloring and sprinkled it on top.