Chocolate Raspberry Cake w/ Vanilla Bean Buttercream

Let's face it, cake has become one of those things that don't require a special occasion anymore. Eat at a restaurant. Cake. Walk up that flight of stairs. Cake. Watch some good ol' tv. Cake. Buy a new outfit. Cake.

What ever happened to the days when the only time we had cake was at a birthday party that your friend threw at a bowling alley when you were 10 years old?

Surely, I'm not the only one that noticed this. Whether a cake, a cupcake or an individually packaged slice of cake in the bakery aisle of your nearest grocery store, what have we become?

I'll tell you what we have become. People that live each day like it's a party and don't care who tells us no! So, move over health gurus. Today, WE EAT CAKE!

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Chocolate Raspberry Cake w/ Vanilla Bean Buttercream

Makes 1-9 inch 2 layer cake

Hershey's Chocolate Cake

Ingredients

Butter, for greasing the pans 

2 cups sugar

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pans 

3/4 cups good cocoa powder 

1 1/2 tsp baking powder 

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp kosher salt 

2 eggs

1 cup milk

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 

1 cup boiling water

Directions

Heat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans. 

Stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt in large bowl. Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla; beat on medium speed of mixer 2 minutes. Stir in boiling water (batter will be thin). Pour batter into prepared pans.

Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely.

Vanilla Bean Buttercream 

Ingredients

3 sticks unsalted butter, softened
3 cups sifted powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
pinch of salt

Directions
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, whip butter until light and fluffy. Add in the powdered sugar, vanilla bean paste, vanilla extract and salt. Mix until smooth and creamy. Set aside.

Final Assembly
2 chocolate cake layers
1/2 cup raspberry jam/preserves
Vanilla bean buttercream
Melted semi-sweet chocolate (optional)

Directions
Place one of the chocolate cake layers on a cake board. Spread the raspberry jam/preserves over the top. Take the second chocolate cake layer and place it on top of the jam layer. Frost with vanilla bean buttercream and decorate with melted semi-sweet chocolate on the sides and pipe the remaining buttercream around the cake to make a border.

-Aaron John