Cooking with Kitten: Bittersweet Mocha Coffee Cake

This recipe comes from the wonderful cookbook, Mollie Katzen's Sunlight Cafe, a cookbook full of recipes for delicious breakfast goodies. I have made this cake many times and it has become one of my signature dishes; I have never had a single complaint about this cake at all.

I originally planned to make it for a party at my best friend's house tomorrow, but he told me not to cook anything, so I'm bringing it to coffee hour at church on Sunday instead.

So here, my friends, is the recipe:

Ingredients:

• 1 cup (2 sticks) softened unsalted butter
• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
• 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 3/4 cup strong brewed coffee
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In a large bowl, beat the butter for several minutes with an electric mixer at high speed. Add the sugar and beat for several minutes longer. (These two steps help give the cake really nice volume). Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each, and then add the vanilla.
3. In a second bowl, combine the dry ingredients, slowly mixing them together with a whisk. In a measuring cup with a spout, combine the coffee and the milk. (NOTE: You can adjust the ratio of coffee and milk, as long as the liquid adds up to one cup total).
4. Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture in three installments, alterating with the coffee mixture, beginning and ending with the dry (the sequence should go dry-wet-dry-wet-dry). After each addition, use a rubber spatula to stir up from the bottom of the bowl to fully blend all of the ingredients. Gently fold in the chocolate chips with the last addition of the flour. Do not overmix.
5. Transfer the batter into the prepared pan, spreading it evenly into place. Bake 45 to 50 minutes. or until a sharp knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool for at least 30 minutes before removing the cake from the pan. After 30 minutes, invert the cake onto a plate, and let cool 10 to 15 minutes before slicing.

NOTE: Sometimes I substitute crushed Heath bars for the chocolate chips. Tomorrow, I plan to use both crushed Heath and Butterfinger bars.

Hope y'all enjoy this recipe!