DONNA DELEON now lives in Aurora, Colorado, but she was born and raised in Arkansas. Donna shares that her Grandma, ETHEL FREE (Vilonia, Arkansas), told her a story about something that happened between her grandparents when they were newlyweds. Back then you starched clothes by mixing your own starch solution with water and putting it in a bottle to shake onto the clothes as you were ironing them (with your iron that was heated on the wood stove). You adjusted the “stiffness” of the starching by putting more or less water into the starch. Grandpa complained that she had not starched his shirts stiff enough to suit him. Irritated, Grandma took a pair of his boxer shorts and starched them so stiff that when dried, they stood up by themselves! She then left them on Grandpa’s bedside table for him to find the next morning. While Donna still doesn’t know who won the argument over “how much starch is enough,” she’s never been able to get the thought of those super-stiff, standing boxer shorts out of her mind. Donna shares that her Grandma made this iced fudge layer cake for every family get-together.
CAKE:
Butter and flour to prepare pan
4 ounces unsweetened chocolate
6 tablespoons water
1 ½ cups sugar, divided
½ cup vegetable shortening
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 large eggs
2 cups cake flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
⅔ cup whole milk
ICING:
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, in bits
4 tablespoons butter
1 ½ cups sugar
1 tablespoon corn syrup
½ cup whole milk
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease and lightly flour two 9-inch cake pans. (Grandma would actually use powdered sugar as the dusting powder.)
2 TO MAKE THE CAKE, put the chocolate, water, and ½ cup of the sugar in a heavy-bottomed pan over low heat, stirring often. As the chocolate melts, stir vigorously to blend. Cook until the chocolate has completely melted and the mixture is smooth.
3 Cream the shortening and remaining sugar together until light. Add the vanilla and beat until well blended. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating thoroughly after each addition.
4 Sift the flour, baking soda, and salt together on a piece of wax paper. Add the flour mixture alternately with the milk in three parts to the shortening mixture. Add the chocolate mixture and beat until well blended. Pour the batter into the pans.
5 Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until a straw inserted in the center comes out dry. Cool in the pans for 10 minutes; then turn the cakes out on racks to cool. Cool cakes completely before icing.
6 TO MAKE THE ICING, stir together the chocolate, butter, sugar, corn syrup, milk, and salt in a heavy-bottomed pan. Bring to a rolling boil and cook, stirring vigorously, for just one minute; cool. Add the vanilla and beat until thick. Ice the middle, top, and sides of a 9-inch two-layer cake (if you don’t eat too much while “testing” it).
MAKES 10 TO 12 SERVINGS.