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Dolley Madison Cake

VegetarianDessertsOven

Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Yield: 12 servings

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About

Dolley Madison wasn't just the fourth First Lady of the United States. She also happened to be a national tastemaker and a master of dessert. Among her most renowned recipes, one cake stands above the rest, a cake so good it is worthy of being named after her: the Dolley Madison Cake! Layers of buttery, fluffy, chocolatey cake spread with a deeply rich and sugary caramel icing drizzled hot atop it. Dolley Madison Cake even adds a presidential flair with a topping of crunchy caramel popcorn for an even greater burst of caramel flavor. If you love golden caramel confections, Dolley Madison Cake will have you falling head over heels!

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Ingredients

  • For the cake:
  • 3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
  • 1/2 cup butter, softened
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 cup packed brown sugar
  • 3 large eggs, room temperature
  • 2 cups cake flour
  • 3 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1 1/3 cups milk, 2%
  • For the icing:
  • 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
  • 3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
  • 6 tablespoons butter, cubed
  • 1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • caramel popcorn with peanuts mix, optional, for topping

Directions

Step 1 -Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Step 2 -Line the bottoms of two well-greased 9-inch round baking pans with parchment paper.

Step 3 -Grease the parchment paper.

Step 4 -In a microwave, melt the chopped chocolate in 15-second intervals, stirring until smooth.

Step 5 -Allow the chocolate to cool slightly.

Step 6 -In a large bowl, cream 1/2 cup of the softened butter with the sugar and 1 cup of brown sugar, until light and fluffy.

Step 7 -Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat well after each addition.

Step 8 -Beat in the melted chocolate.

Step 9 -In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, allspice, and cloves.

Step 10 -Add the dry ingredients and the milk to the creamed mixture, alternating between the two with each addition and only adding 1/3 of each at a time, beating well after each addition.

Step 11 -Transfer the batter to the prepared pans.

Step 12 -Bake the pans until a toothpick inserted into the center of each cake comes out clean, about 30-35 minutes.

Step 13 -Cool the cakes in the pans for 10 minutes before transferring the cakes out of the pans and onto wire racks. Allow the cakes to cool completely.

Step 14 -In a small saucepan, combine the remaining brown sugar with the whipping cream and the remaining butter.

Step 15 -Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally and cooking for about 3 minutes.

Step 16 -Transfer the mixture away from the heat, and gradually beat in the confectioners' sugar and vanilla.

Step 17 -Place one cake layer on a serving plate.

Step 18 -Pour half of the warm icing over the cake.

Step 19 -Top with the remaining cake layer and the remaining icing.

Step 20 -Top with the caramel popcorn mix and serve.

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