She ain't Fussy, She's my Sister

Because Sara Corpening once said "How do people make it through life without a sister?"... I ended up spending hours toiling and baking a birthday cake for my only sister whose birthday is Sep 9 - nice birthdate ya.

Umm, I am saying all these to take your attention away from this cake that look more like flakes of snows than a Black Forest! Yes Yes, it was meant to be a black forest cake...but it ended up like a forest in early spring with all the melting snows!


Well, as they say, it's the thought that counts =p
So this is to you, Dot!

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Eggless Chocolate Cake
adapted from KC

60g butter, softened
½ cup oil
1 ½ cup flour
½ cup cocoa powder
¾ cup fine sugar
1 cup cold milk (I used chocolate milk)
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
2 tsp kahlua or baileys
a pinch of salt

1. Preheat oven to 180C.


2. Sift the flour, cocoa, baking powder and baking soda twice and set aside.


3. Cream butter and sugar for 5-10 min until it becomes creamy. Add oil and mix well.


4. Incorporate ¾ of the milk & kahlua, and stir well.


5. Add this mixture to the flour. Use a fork to mix until the flour and liquid are just combined. Use the remaining milk if the batter is too thick. Don't overmix.


6. Pour into greased cake pan (I used 2x7" round pan) and bake for 30 min. Check the cake after 30min for done-ness: when lightly press in the center, they should not sink.

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After thoughts:

• I used the off-the-shelve whipped cream (those that come in an aerosol can) and thought this will be lighter in taste than the home-made buttercream; BIG mistake. It is too light and fluffy. It melted as soon as it is out of the can. Next time, no short cut... whip your own cream.
  


• The freshly-made cake is very delicate and tear easily. After I sandwiched the dark cherries between the 2 cakes, the one on top, due to the difference in height or whatever reasons, started falling apart. In future I will freeze them at least for a day before assembling them.

Oh, BTW, the cake was gone in 30 seconds.... nevermind the look, it's the taste that matters... Yum yum!