Midnight Chocolate Cake

Total Time: 1 hr 25 mins Preparation Time: 25 mins Cook Time: 1 hr

Ingredients

• Servings: 8
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup boiling water
• 1/2 cup half-and-half
• 8 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 teaspoon instant coffee granules (can't taste the coffee in this, just inhances the chocolate flavor)

Recipe

• 1 preheat oven to 350 degrees f.
• 2 grease and flour a 10 inch bundt or tube pan or one 9 x 13-inch baking pan.
• 3 in a large bowl, and with an electric mixer, combine dry ingredients.
• 4 add the liquid ingredients (except for the boiling water), and beat on medium speed for 2 minutes.
• 5 stir in boiling water (batter will be thin).
• 6 pour into prepared pan.
• 7 bake 25-30 minutes for the 9x13-inch rectangular pan, or bake for 40-45 minutes if using a bundt or tube pan-- or until toothpick in center comes out clean. (everyone's oven is different, but i baked mine for 41 minutes in a bundt pan).
• 8 remove cake from oven, and cool completely on rack.
• 9 after cake has cooled completely, frost as desired, or dust top of cake with confectioners' sugar.
• 10 ganache:.
• 11 place all ganache ingredients in a microwave safe dish (i use a 4 cup measuring cup) and microwave on high for approximately 1 minute--maybe a little more or less than a minute depending on your microwave.
• 12 wisk together until chocolate is shiny and of "drizzly" consistency.
• 13 drizzle on top of cake if you used a bundt cake or spread on cake if you used a 9 x 13 pan.
• 14 dust with powdered sugar, if desired.
• 15 **this cake makes: one 9 x 13 rectangular cake or one 10-inch bundt or tube cake.