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No-Mixer Mint Chocolate Chip Cake

This is the cake base I use when I need a really easy, moist cake and don't want to screw around with the mixer. The batter comes together in one saucepan in just a few minutes, then it's time to bake! I've used all kinds of different frostings and icings for the topping, but since my oldest son, Jack, requested mint chocolate chip for his birthday this year, I went with that for this recipe. 
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Ingredients Method

Ingredients
  

Cake:
  • 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt
  • 4 tbsp unsweetened raw cacao powder
  • 2 sticks butter
  • 1 1/2 cups cane sugar
  • 1 cup water
  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
Frosting:
  • 2 sticks butter
  • 3ish cups powdered sugar
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened cacao powder
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/2 tsp peppermint extract
  • pinch sea salt
  • splash heavy cream or milk
  • 2 dark chocolate + mint bars chopped

Method
 

For the cake:
  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Grease + flour two round 8" cake pans.
  3. In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt the 2 sticks of butter until browned. Turn off heat and whisk in the sugar, water and sour cream until smooth. Whisk in the eggs and vanilla.
  4. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, cacao powder, baking soda and salt, then whisk in with the wet ingredients in the saucepan until smooth.
  5. Divide the batter evenly between the two cake pans , then bake about 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let cool completely before removing from the cake pans.
For the frosting:
  1. Beat butter with a handheld mixer or stand mixer, then beat in powdered sugar and cacao. Beat in vanilla, peppermint, sea salt, then cream if needed to smooth out the texture.
  2. Mix half the chopped chocolate into the frosting.
To put it all together:
  1. Put one cake layer on your serving plate and spread with half the frosting. Top with the second layer, then spread the rest of the frosting on top. Top with remaining chopped chocolate.