How To Make A Perfect Chocolate Poke Cake

Chocolate always soothes the soul. This is a great recipe for “Game Day” because the day is as much about the food as the game. And who doesn’t like something chocolaty!

INGREDIENTS

Cake

• 2 cups sugar
• 1 ¾ cups flour
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 ½ tsp baking soda
• 1 ½ tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup boiling water

Glaze

• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• chocolate shavings (freeze a chocolate bar, then use a potato peeler to make the shavings)

METHOD

1. Preheat your oven to 350°. 
2. Grease a 9 x 13 baking dish/pan.
3. In a mixing bowl, stir together the sugar, flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt. 
4. Add the eggs, milk, oil and vanilla and beat for 3 minutes with an electric mixer. 
5. Stir in the boiling water.  (The mixture will look very thin and runny, but don’t fret!  It’ll come out just right!)
6. Pour the mixture into your greased baking dish. 
7. Bake for 42 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean. 
8. Let sit for at least 10 minutes.
9. Meanwhile, add all the icing ingredients to a medium saucepan. 
10. Bring to a boil and boil for 1 minute. 
11. Cool for 5 minutes, then beat with an electric mixer for 3 minutes.
12. Using the handle of a wooden spoon, carefully poke deep holes into the cake. 
13. Pour the glaze over the top of the cake, making sure to get some of the glaze into all of the holes.  (Use a rubber spatula to carefully spread the glaze evenly over the cake, if you need to.  Mine slid off to the sides a bit, but it was easily fixed.)
14. Sprinkle the chocolate shavings over the entire cake.  (Chocolate chips sprinkled on top would be good, too!)

Buon Mangiata!