Try this Chocolate and Orange Cake recipe, or contribute your own.
- pinch of salt
- 1/4 cup butter softened
- 1/2 cup boiling water
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup shortening
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup cocoa
- 2/3 cup butter softened
- 1 teaspoon mccormick vanilla extract
- 2 eggs, room temperature
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda + 1/8 teaspoon divided
- 1 cup buttermilk + 3 tablespoons divided
- 3/4 teaspoon orange zest
- 1/4 teaspoon mccormick orange extract
- 6 cups powdered sugar divided
- 2 teaspoons freshly grated orange peel
- 4 to 6 tablespoons milk room temperature
- Carbohydrate 388.035650465144 g
- Cholesterol 645.912596069238 mg
- Fat 275.00038435723 g
- Fiber 7.6192501388967 g
- Protein 33.372263364763 g
- Saturated Fat 161.728837288388 g
- Serving Size 1 1 recipe (1095g)
- Sodium 4623.58659360931 mg
- Sugar 380.416400326247 g
- Trans Fat 22.0825105295227 g
- Calories 4127 calories
Step-by-step
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 3 8" round baking pans with parchment paper, set aside.
- Stir together cocoa and water in small bowl until smooth, set aside. Beat together your butter, shortening, sugar, salt and vanilla in large bowl until well combined.
- Add eggs mixing well.
- Stir 1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda into 1 cup buttermilk and add to butter mixture alternately with flour.
- Measure 1 2/3 cups batter into small bowl and stir in remaining 1/8 teaspoon baking soda and 3 tablespoons buttermilk, orange peel and orange extract.
- Pour into one of your prepared pan.
- Stir cocoa mixture into remaining batter and divide evenly between remaining pans.
- Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
- Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks to cool completely.
- Beat butter, 1 cup powdered sugar, orange peel and vanilla in large bowl until smooth.
- Add remaining powdered sugar, alternating with milk.
- Place one chocolate layer on cake stand or turntable and spread with some of the buttercream.
- Top with orange layer; spread with frosting.
- Top with remaining chocolate layer; frost top and sides of cake.
Ingredient weights and volumes rarely explain how components behave under heat. Cocoa powder contains natural acids that react directly with alkaline leaveners. Pairing cocoa with baking soda initiates carbon dioxide production immediately upon hydration. Citrus oils contain volatile compounds that survive baking better than water-soluble flavorings. Combining grated peel with fat captures those aromatic compounds before the batter enters the oven.
Chemical Reactions in the Batter
Cocoa requires fat and moisture to bloom properly. Stirring boiling water directly into dry cocoa dissolves agglomerates and releases encapsulated bitter alkaloids. Buttermilk introduces lactic acid. That acid neutralizes excess alkalinity from the baking soda. Room-temperature eggs incorporate trapped air efficiently during mechanical creaming. Cold eggs drop fat temperatures and cause emulsion breaking.
Layer Management and Scaling
Dividing batter unevenly requires precision. The orange portion measures exactly one and two-thirds cups. Three eight-inch round pans demand precise parchment lining to prevent sticking. Baking takes twenty-five to thirty minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Inserting a wooden toothpick into the center reveals doneness when no wet crumbs cling. Scaling quantities up or down alters chemical ratios significantly. Altering leavening agents proportionally prevents structural collapse in larger batches.
