Real Red Devil's Food Cake

"Devil's Food" cakes are chocolate cakes flavored with cocoa rather than solid chocolate. This recipe is refined and adapted from Betty Crocker's New Picture Cookbook (1961). It's the best recipe I know for a chocolate cake that is rich and moist at the same time.

• 1 3/4 cups flour
  I use plain flour; cake flour is even better. Do not use flour with any raising agent, such as self-rasing flour
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup cocoa
  This is the key to good flavor. In the US, I use Ghiradelli cocoa powder; in the UK, drinking chocolate.
• 1/2 cup shortening
  This can be butter, margarine or vegetable oil, depending on how rich you want the cake
• 1 cup milk
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350° Fahrenheit/ gas mark 4/ 175 Celcius. Grease and flour 2 round layer pans (8 - 9 inches in diameter, 1 1/2 inches deep), or an oblong pan (13 x 9 x 2 inches).

Mix flour, sugar, baking soda, salt and cocoa together. Add shortening and 2/3 of milk and mix. Add the rest of the milk, eggs and vanilla and mix again. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pans.

Bake 8 inch layers 35-40 minutes, 9 inch layers 30 - 35 minutes, or an oblong cake 45 - 50 minutes, or until cake tests done.

Frost when cool.