Yuletide Raspberry Cake With Chocolate Sauce
No one would dispute just how wonderful it is to sit down to a meal of Oyster Soup, Prime Rib, Dirty Rice, Peas, Mushrooms, and Onions, and Maple Glazed Beets. But most folks would gladly give up all those dishes for just one dish of this cake and its accompanying sauce. First read the recipe, then go make the recipe. And finally, go ahead and tell me you wouldn’t like to sit in a corner and destroy the whole thing!
1/4 cup unsalted butter (1/2 stick), at room temperature
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs at room temperature
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. table salt
2 cups 1% milk at room temperature
Nonstick cooking spray
1/2 cup fresh or frozen raspberries
The first thing you want to do is preheat the oven to 350°F.
While that’s happening, take a mixing bowl and an electric mixer and beat the butter on high speed for 30 seconds. Then gradually add in the sugar and continue beating until the mixture is pale yellow and very fluffy.
At this point, add the eggs 1 at a time while mixing on low speed. Then stir in the vanilla and sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Then add half of the flour mixture to the sugar-butter mix and blend it in. Next, add in the milk. Then, add in the rest of the flour mixture. When all the ingredients are incorporated in the mixing bowl, the batter should be smooth. Just remember—do not overmix!
Finally, coat a 9" round cake pan with nonstick spray. Then pour the batter into the pan, arrange the raspberries on top the batter, and bake the cake until it turns a golden brown and sets in the center (which should take just about 25 to 30 minutes).
And now for the crowning touch:
The Chocolate Sauce:
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate morsels
6 tablespoons skim milk
1can Mandarin orange slices, drained
Place the chocolate morsels into a heat-resistant bowl (I use Pyrex for this).
Then, in a small saucepan, combine the milk and the salt and bring it to a boil. When at a full roll, pour the dairy over the chocolate and wait about 30 seconds. At that precise moment, stir the mixture slowly and watch it become a smooth, decadent sauce.
When you’re ready for dessert, place a big ol’ slice of the raspberry cake on a saucer. Then liberally spoon the chocolate sauce on the side of the cake.
Finish off the presentation by arranging the orange slices like a fan to the side of the sauce. Merry Christmas, yeah!
