Brownie Cake

Cake:

1 c. butter (2 sticks)

2 squares (1 oz. each) unsweetened chocolate

1 c. hot water

1/2 t. salt

2 eggs

1/2 cup milk or buttermilk

2 c. flour

2 c. sugar

1/2 t. baking soda

1 t. vanilla

Melt butter and chocolate in saucepan. Add water; boil for 2 minutes. Mix flour, sugar, salt, and baking soda together. Combine with chocolate mixture, eggs, milk, and vanilla. Beat with mixer for several minutes until creamy. (Batter will be thin.) Pour into a greased 9x13" pan. Bake @ 375 degrees for 30 minutes. Cool.

Frosting:

1/2 c. butter (1 stick)

1/3 c. milk

2 squares (1 oz. each) unsweetened chocolate

4 c. powdered sugar

1/2 t. vanilla

Melt butter and chocolate in saucepan. Add milk and boil until it thickens and begins to separate. Add this mixture to powdered sugar and mix with electric mixer until very creamy. Stir in vanilla.

This cake is SO good! My mother-in-law, Nora, got this recipe years ago from a favorite family babysitter, and she often makes it for family birthdays. My daughter Abby and I made it a few days ago for my b-day (as seen above, with Katie too), and I thought I should share it with all of you bakers and chocolate lovers.

{OK, so it's probably dorky to make your own b-day cake . . . but now that we live so far from our families, and since my husband, Luke, does many wonderful things but does NOT cook or bake, I knew it was up to me if I wanted one. And I did! :) }