1 ¾ cups boiling water
6 oz. semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped, OR chocolate chips
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (the best kind is Saco Premium Cocoa, which comes in a round container with a picture of a baker on the front)
2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. salt
10 oz. (2 ½ sticks) butter, softened
1 ¾ cups packed dark brown sugar
4 large eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
Preheat oven to 350°. Line two 9-inch round cake pans with circles of wax paper or baking parchment.
Pour the boiling water over the chocolate chips. Add cocoa and stir until mixture is smooth. Set aside to cool. Cream the butter and brown sugar. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each. Beat in vanilla. Add the dry ingredients and half of the chocolate mixture. Beat on low to combine, then on high for 1 ½ minutes. Add the remaining chocolate mixture and beat on low until mixed.
Pour batter into pans and bake 30-40 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the middle comes out completely clean. Cool for 10-15 minutes; remove from pans. Wrap in double layers of plastic wrap while still warm and freeze. Double recipe makes two 10” layers plus two 8” layers. Never fill pans more than 2/3 full.
Frosting
2 ½ sticks plus 2 T. butter, softened
4 ½ cups powdered sugar
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (For really dark frosting, use part Hershey’s Special Dark Cocoa, about 4 T.)
2 tsp. vanilla
¼ cup plus 2 T. milk
Cream butter with electric mixer. Whisk together sugar and cocoa. Beat one-third of the sugar/cocoa mixture into the butter. Mix in vanilla. Add the rest of the sugar/cocoa mixture alternately with milk and beat until frosting is smooth.
When cake is frozen solid, frost between the two layers and spread a thin layer over the whole cake. Freeze again for about 20 minutes. Frost again. Repeat if desired. (Frost the last time on the day you plan to serve the cake and let it stand at room temperature to thaw.)
