Chocolate Sorrow Cake

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Yesterday we remembered Our Blessed Mother on her feast of Our Lady of Sorrows. It has become a tradition to make a heart-shaped cake with seven "swords" depicting the seven sorrows that pierced the heart of Our Lord's mother. In the past I have used pretzel sticks for swords. This year I cut swords from craft sticks (aka Popsicle sticks, um, unused). The cake is easy to put together by making one round cake and one square (this method). I frosted it with vanilla buttercream frosting, ignoring my husband's pleas for chocolate frosting because, I argued, Our Blessed Mother's heart was pure white -- besides the cake was chocolate. The cake was a Chocolate Sour Cream cake. It's a moist and spongy cake with rich chocolate flavor. I used low-fat sour cream, so the end result is not a high-fat cake, though you definitely get a rich flavor and moist texture. The recipe for the cake came from the Pillsbury Complete Cookbook.

Chocolate Sour Cream Cake
serves 12 printer version

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
1 1/4 t. baking soda
1 t. salt
1/2 t. baking powder
1 cup water
3/4 c. sour cream (I use low-fat)
1/4 c. shortening
1 t. vanilla
2 eggs
4 oz. unsweetened chocolate

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour two 8 or 9-inch round cake pans and line bottom with wax paper (or for the Our Lady of Sorrows cake a round and a square).

In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda, salt and baking powder; mix well.

In a large bowl, combine water, sour cream, shortening, vanilla, eggs and chocolate; blend well. Add dry ingredients; blend at low speed until moistened. Beat 3 minutes at high speed. Pour batter into greased, floured and lined pans.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 30 to 40 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes. Remove from pans.

Cool completely before frosting.

Source: Pillsbury Complete Cookbook
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