Chocolate Cake That Will Kill You

Like Chocolate? This is the kind of cake that'll make you weak in the knees. It'll look like it's there's way too much liquid when you're pouring it into the pan, but trust me... it works, it's chocolate, it's really, really good.

The ingredients are listed in order. This isn't a store-bought box cake, so no need to whip the heck out of it. Put the ingredients in a mixing bowl one-by-one, mix a little, then put the next ingredient in until everything is in there.


Preheat your oven to 325ºF, and grab either two round pans or one 9 x 13 rectangle. Grease and flour your pans. No need to flour the sides, just the bottom.

2 Cups Sugar
1 Cup Vegetable Oil
2 Eggs
1 Cup Milk
1 Cup HOT Coffee
2 Tablespoons Vanilla Extract
1¼ Cups good quality Cocoa *see note at bottom
2 Cups Flour
1 Teaspoon Salt
1 Teaspoon Baking Powder
2 Teaspoons Baking Soda
3/4 Cups Sour Cream


Once it's all in there, pour into your pan(s) and bake for 30-40 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. This cake is really moist, and works well with icing or just some whipped cream on top.

** About the Cocoa... When I originally baked this cake, I the recipe called for 3/4 of a cup of cocoa. It was good, but I really like a strong chocolate flavour. If you're looking for a lighter taste, try this out with only 1 cup of cocoa. I have modified this recipe pretty heavily from its original state, but once you try it... you'll never buy a box again.

Tacos

OK, so we've all used those little sodium packets to make tacos, right... Ever wonder what's in there? The basic flavourings in taco seasoning is cumin, oregano, paprika, and salt. When I say salt, I mean a TON of salt. You don't need to use salt to make great tacos though.


The seasoning is easy to make.

3 TBSP Cumin

1 TBSP Oregano

1 TBSP Garlic Powder

1½ TBSP Paprika

1 TSP Onion Powder (you can use dehydrated onion flakes too... nice variation)

1 TSP Chilli Powder

½ TSP Coriander (ground or flakes)

½ TSP Corn Starch

More Cumin to taste, salt and pepper to taste.

Use 2lbs of your favorite ground meat. Brown the meat in a large skillet, and drain out the excess fat. You can cook the meat all the way through, even burn it a little for extra flavour. Ground meat caramelizes nicely as long as you keep it moving. Dice an onion in there with it after you've drained the fat.

Put all of your spice mix together in a 2 Cup measuring cup, and add water until the spices and cold water reach the 1 Cup mark. Mix the spices and water well, as the Corn Starch will clump up if you don't.

Pour the spices over the browned meat, and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes. Do not cover, you want the heat to steam off some of the water.

Taste it!

At this point you can add more Cumin, salt and pepper to your taste.

There are different approaches you can take to this recipe. You can eliminate the Corn Starch by leaving the meat and spice mixture to braise in the skillet for 15-20 minutes, reducing the water content by cooking it off instead of using the starch to thicken it. The starch will make the spices more gravy-like. If you prefer a drier taco, cook off the water and eliminate the starch.

There is more to tacos than beef, too! Try using a mixture of pork and chicken instead.

We like peppers and onions on our tacos. I like to cook 2 large onions (cut into strips) on low heat with enough butter or olive oil to coat them. Cook them until they get nice and sweet (15-20 minutes... seriously!). Once they are caramelized and sticky, throw in 2 diced-up peppers (red, green, yellow... doesn't matter) and heat just until the peppers are warmed all the way through. Add some fresh ground pepper into the mix.

Serve the meat and peppers over warm tortillas, with salsa, hot sauce, lettuce, cheese... and enjoy!

Just for Starters

This blog is dedicated to fellow home chefs out there. I am a full time blue collar worker with a love of food, beer, and a happy family. I intend to share some great recipes and cooking techniques from wherever I may find them. I seldom take a recipe at its face-value, as I believe each person has his or her own tastes. A recipe is much more of a template to be edited than a final piece of art to be admired. Feel free to experiment. Make mistakes! Without errors, changes are seldom made.