Checkerboard Cake - no fancy pan needed

By á-4202

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 cups cake flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup + 1TBS milk, divided
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, softened
• 3 large eggs
• 2 oz semi-sweet chocolate, melted
• 1 oz unsweetened chocolate, melted

Preparation

Step 1

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease three 8" round cake pans. Line bottoms with parchment paper. Grease paper. Dust pans with flour.

2) In med bowl, stir together flour, baking powder and salt. In a separate container, mix 3/4 cup milk and vanilla.

3) In lrg bowl, with mixer at low speed, beat sugar and butter until blended. Increase speed to high; beat 5 mins, until light and creamy. Reduce speed to med-low; add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Reduce speed to low; add flour mixture alternately with milk mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Beat just until smooth, scraping bowl occasionally with rubber spatula.

4) Spoon half of the batter into med bowl. Into batter remaining in lrg bowl, with rubber spatula, stir in melted chocolates and remaining 1 TBS milk.

5) Spoon vanilla batter into 1 lrg decorating bag with 1/2" opening. Repeat with chocolate batter and a second large decorating bag with 1/2" opening. Pipe in a 1 1/2" wide band of chocolate batter around inside edge of 2 of the prepared cake pans, then pipe a 1 1/2" wide band of vanilla batter next to each chocolate band. Pipe enough chocolate batter to fill in the center of each pan. In third pan, repeat piping, alternating rings of batter, but start with vanilla batter around inside edge of pan.

6) Stagger cake pans on 2 oven racks, placing 2 on upper rack and 1 on lower rack, so that pans are not directly above one another. Bake 20 mins or until toothpick inserted in center of layers comes out almost clean. Cool in pans on wire racks 10 mins. With small knife, loosen layers from sides of pans; invert onto wire packs. Remove parchment paper; cool completely and then frost and decorate.