Carolina Ground Cake

Cake Ingredients:

Pastry flour 2 & 1/4 cups Carolina Ground Type 75 pastry flour

Sugar 1 ½ cups

Bittersweet Chocolate 4 oz

Cinnamon 1 tsp

Salt ¾ tsp

Sunflower oil ½ cup

Egg Yolks 6

Water ¾ cup

Vanilla extract 2 tsp

Egg whites 10

Lemon juice ¼ tsp

You’ll need: 10 inch spring form pan, parchment paper, whisk, electric mixer, a few small & med sized bowls, a double boiler, a rubber spatula

*Heat the oven to 325

*Line the bottom of your spring-form pan with parchment

*create a DOUBLE BOILER and melt your 4 oz of chocolate

In a medium sized bowl combine the flour, 1 ¼ cup of the sugar, the cinnamon and salt. Whisk together. In a separate, small bowl, combine the egg yolks, water, oil and vanilla. Add the wet mix to the dry, whisking together till you have smooth and silky batter.

In a medium sized bowl ready your 10 egg whites. Beat on medium speed till frothy and fluffy. Slowly add the remaining ¼ cup sugar and lemon juice. Beat on med/high till you achieve stiff peaks. Using a wooden spoon or spatula add a 3rd of the whipped egg to the cake batter, folding in gently. Add the rest and fold in. Pour into your waiting pan and bake for 45 to 55 minutes. A knife will come out clean from the center when fully baked.

Take the cake out of the oven and allow to cool. When slightly cooled, run a knife around the circumference of the pan and then release the cake. You may leave it whole like this or run a long, serrated knife through the center, horizontally, to create a top and bottom layer. 

Buttercream Ingredients:

*I like to make a double batch of this which will give you more than you need for a single cake. The extra may be stored in refrigeration for 2 weeks. Goes good on toast! 

Butter 1 ¼ cup

Sugar 1 cup 

Egg whites 4

Salt ¼ teaspoon

In a double boiler combine the sugar, salt and egg whites. Whisk together constantly till the mixture is hot to the touch ~ about 5 minutes should do it. Remove from the heat and get out your electric mixer. Beat your cooling egg mixture till its stiff, glossy and can hold nice peaks. About 7 to 9 minutes.

Add the butter a tablespoon at a time to this, making sure the icing is nice and smooth before you add the next tablespoon of butter. Beat on medium till all the butter is incorporated and you have nice silky icing. Frost it up to your favorite song!

To get the stenciled look: grab a file folder and an x-acto knife. Use your cake pan to trace a circle on the paper and then cut it out. Place the circle on a cutting mat or cardboard and make a deign cutting away shapes with your x-acto knife. Once your cake is cooled and frosted allow it to chill in refrigeration for an hour to firm the icing. When you're ready to stencil it, pull it out, gently place the stencil on top and dust (using a sifter) with a blend of cocoa and cinnamon. Carefully lift the stencil evenly away from the cake and enjoy your work of baking art!