Cinnamon Cake with Chocolate Buttercream

By |

cinnamon-cake-with-chocolate-buttercream

Working at home definitely has it’s advantages.

For instance, I can go to work in my pajamas, I can field phone calls while folding laundry, and I can make a cake whenever I want to………

Which is exactly what I did last week.

Since my computer is steps away from the kitchen, I always have butter in the house and it’s so easy to justify making a cake with the old “that will be a good recipe to add to the blog” excuse, I made cake. On a tuesday. For no reason.

Actually, there was a reason. I wanted something sweet and I was craving something cakey, cinnamony, and chocolatey.

The flip side of making cake whenever I want to and working at home is that I probably eat too much cake.

Whatever.

I’ve said it before, it’s why I workout.

So moving forward, let’s talk about this cake.

dorie-greenspan-cake-recipe

It’s pure simplicity. The cake pretty much came together in minutes. It has a delicious swirl of cinnamon-chocolate goodness running through it. You definitely don’t need to add the chocolate buttercream as the cake is enough on it’s own but it certainly doesn’t hurt the cause. When in doubt, add frosting. That’s how I like to do things.

This cake comes from the amazing book, Baking, From My Home to Yours, by Dorie Greenspan. It’s kind of like a baking bible. Everything I’ve made from the book has been delicious and Dorie’s intro to each recipe is like reading a short story. If you don’t have it, I highly recommend you pick it up! The original recipe calls for a chocolate ganache on top of the cake but I wanted a lighter frosting and opted for buttercream. Either way, you can’t lose.

Lastly, I’d like to introduce you to my handy food styling assistant…….

little-man-loves-cake

How can you resist those chubby fingers?

Hope everyone has a lovely weekend and enjoys these beautiful summer days, I know we are!

Cinnamon Cake with Chocolate Buttercream

For the Cake:

  • 1 1/4 cups plus 1/8 cup granulated sugar
  • 2 tablespoons cinnamon, divided
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons ground espresso powder
  • 1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 cup milk
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 10 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
  • 1/2 cup milk chocolate chips

For the Frosting:

  • 4 tablespoons butter, softened
  • 3/4 cup powdered sugar
  • 1/8 cup cocoa powder
  • pinch salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 tablespoon milk

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Butter an 9-inch square baking dish and line the bottom with parchment paper. In a small bowl, stir 1/8 cup sugar, 1 tablespoon of the cinnamon, and the espresso powder together; set aside. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, remaining 1 1/4 cup sugar, baking powder, salt and remaining 1 tablespoon cinnamon. In another bowl, whisk together the milk, eggs, and vanilla. Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients and mix to combine. Gently fold in the butter just until it is absorbed and the batter is shiny. Pour half the batter into prepared pan. Sprinkle the chocolate chips over the batter and dust with half of the cinnamon-sugar mixture. Cover with the rest of the batter, smoothing top. Sprinkle with rest of cinnamon-sugar mixture. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until cake is done. Remove from oven and transfer cake to a cooling rack and let sit for 20 minutes before removing from pan to cool completely on rack. While cake is cooling make frosting. In a small bowl, sift together powdered sugar, cocoa powder, and salt. Add softened butter, vanilla extra and milk. Beat until combined and smooth. Add more milk if necessary. Frost cooled cake and dive in!