Massachusetts: Chocolate Chip Cake

Yes yes, it's what you've all been waiting for. Tonight marked the FIRST stop on our cross country state cake taste testing, and Amie and I were more than excited to get the roadtrip going. As Warren Brown writes in his book, Toll House cookies come from Whitman, Massachusetts These cookies were more of a mistake than a planned delicacy... and I think we can all agree this mistake was one worth making. Warren made this cookie into a cake (which is made more like a cookie, really) and we dove right in.

Wet Ingredients:
Milk: 1/4 cup
Vanilla extract: 2 tsp

Dry Ingredients:
All-purpose flour: 2 cups
Baking powder: 1 tsp
Salt: 1/2 tsp
Chocolate chips: 1/2 cup + more for serving

Creaming Ingredients:
Unsalted Butter: 6 tbsp
Vegetable shortening: 1/4 cup
Superfine granulated sugar: 1 1/4 cups
Whole egg: 1
Egg yolk: 1


1. Preheat the oven to 335 F and place the rack in the middle position. Line bottoms of two 9x2 inch round pans with parchment
2. Combine the wet ingredients in a bowl; combine dry ingredients except chocolate chips in a separate bowl; set aside
3. Using a flexible spatula, toss 2 tbsp of wet ingredients with chocolate chips in a small bowl. Add 1/4 cup of dry ingredients. Toss again to coat evenly
4. Mix butter, shortening, and sugars in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until the combination is well creamed, about three minutes
5. Add the egg and yolk one at a time
6. Alternately add the dry and wet mixtures about a quarter at a time without pausing between additions. Ease the resistance against the mixer's paddle by lowering the bowl or raising the mixer's head.
7. Remove the bowl and fold in the chocolate chips. Dough will be thick (much more like cookie dough than cake batter).
8. Divide the dough into the prepared pans. It will be too thick to fill the pan to the edges but it will spread in the oven.  Bake 20-24 minutes, or until edges crown and become crispy while top is evenly browned.

9. Cool cakes in pans to room temperature,then invert them.

10. Spread thick layer of chocolate icing (below) between the two cakes. Leave the top bare, or just with confectioners' sugar and add a handful of chocolate chips.

For the filling:
Heavy cream: 1 cup
Superfine granulated sugar: 1/4 cup
Unsalted butter (soft) 1 stick
Bittersweet chocolate in small chunks: 10 oz
Vanilla extract: 2 tsp

1. Over medium heat, bring the cream and sugar to a light simmer, stirring occasionally. Place the butter, chocolate and vanilla in a large bowl
2. Pour the hot cream over the ingredients in the bowl and let stand a few minutes to melt the chocolate. Whisk until smooth and set aside to cool but DO NOT refrigerate.

3. Once the icing has thickened, stir it with a flexible spatula to a spreadable consistency

Enjoy!!!

Try not to think about the calories on this puppy.

It's rich but we made it with dark chocolate so it wasn't too sweet. It was the perfect combo of cake/cookie. It was like a cookie but better, really. Can't you tell Amie loved it? Try this recipe! It's a sure crowd pleaser. We added more choco chips than called for and it turned out delicious. Sugar coma.... Good night!