Wyoming (Giant Piles of Shit)

[Zurtok Khan]

I was recently driving through Wyoming.  Don't ask why.  You don't want to know.  But, anyone who's driven through Wyomind knows that it is not an experiance that one should repeat often, if ever.

I was struck with an odd sensation as we drove, and there began to be some large rocky hills (not yet mountains) with yet more rock on top of them.  These rocks-on-top looked like giant piles of shit.

And then Eris revealed to me that the universal relevence of some things is that they have no universal relevence.

Now, I want chocolate cake.

[Eldora, Oracle of Alchemy]

Kansas is worse, pretty much one giant corn field.  I got nothing against corn, but looking at it for hours is boring.

[East Coast Hustle]

northwestern Wyoming is fucking beautiful.

the other 90% of the state is fucking worthless.

[DJRubberducky]

Nick & Stef's Chocolate Cake
Active Work Time: 1 1/2 hours * Total Preparation Time: 3 hours, plus 10 hours chilling

CAKE
3 cups flour
1 cup cocoa
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking soda
3 cups water
1 1/2 cups oil
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
5 eggs
3 1/3 cups sugar

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 10-inch springform pan with a removable bottom, line it with parchment paper, and set aside.

Sift together the flour, cocoa, salt and baking soda. In a separate bowl mix together the water, oil and vanilla.

Beat the eggs in the bowl of an electric mixer, then mix in the sugar. Mix in the water mixture in thirds, alternating with thirds of the sifted dry ingredients, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula between each addition. Mix until smooth.

Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 20 minutes; reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees and bake until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean, 65 to 75 minutes.

Place the pan on a rack and cool the cake to room temperature. Remove it from the pan and split into 3 equal parts horizontally. Trim the top layer of the cake to make it flat. Place 1 round of cake back into the pan, then prepare the mousse.

MOUSSE
1/4 cup sugar
3 egg yolks
1 cup half-and-half
1 pound semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
2 cups whipping cream

Beat the sugar and yolks in a mixer until pale and thick, about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, bring the half-and-half to a boil in a saucepan over medium heat. Pour about 1/2 cup into the yolk mixture, whisking constantly. Return the mixture to the saucepan and cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens, about 10 minutes.
Place the chocolate in a large bowl and pour the hot mixture over it. Let stand 1 to 2 minutes, then stir until the chocolate has melted and the mixture is smooth and shiny.

Whip the cream in another bowl until soft peaks form, about 5 minutes. Fold 1/3 of the cream into the chocolate mixture, then fold in the remaining cream.

Spread half the mousse onto the bottom cake layer in the pan, then place the middle cake layer on top. Spread the rest of the mousse over it, then place the top cake layer on top. Wrap the cake well in plastic wrap and freeze it overnight.

CHOCOLATE GANACHE GLAZE
1 pound semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
2 cups whipping cream
1/4 cup light corn syrup

Place the chocolate in a bowl. Bring the whipping cream and syrup to a boil in a saucepan, then pour over the chocolate. Let the chocolate melt, about 1 to 2 minutes, then mix to blend completely.

Remove the frozen cake from the cake pan and place on a rack. Pour 1/2 the glaze over the cake and spread it so that it goes down the sides. Remove the cake from the rack and place on a platter. Refrigerate the cake until the glaze sets, 1 hour. Place the cake back on the rack and pour the remaining glaze over the top. Return the cake to the platter and refrigerate again for the glaze to firm, 1 hour. Let the cake stand at room temperature awhile before serving.

[Eldora, Oracle of Alchemy]

To cut into layers horizontally:

Put toothpicks where you want to split, take a thread, place it around the cake, pull, should work, but I have never tried it.

[Clichés_Dyed_4_My_Sins]

To cut into layers horizontally:

Put toothpicks where you want to split, take a thread, place it around the cake, pull, should work, but I have never tried it.

A lite test fishing line would work very well. Less snag & break factor, to thread.

[fnordiscordia]

Because most cakes are pretty fucking gnar and will tear a string to pieces.

[East Coast Hustle]

dude, you can't argue with him. he posts in PURPLE.

[Eldora, Oracle of Alchemy]

To cut into layers horizontally:

Put toothpicks where you want to split, take a thread, place it around the cake, pull, should work, but I have never tried it.

A lite test fishing line would work very well. Less snag & break factor, to thread.

I think you're right.  I have never done it, but I remember reading it.  

DJRDucky, have you ever made this cake?  I don't get why you have to cut the top off

[Shibboleet The Annihilator]

Just out of curiousity, why not just use a knife?

[Bella]

That's what I was wondering.

[Eldora, Oracle of Alchemy]

A knife won't make a clean even cut.  You'll end up with a mess.  You're cutting a layer of cake into more layers.  You can't really lay it on it's side or anything.

[DJRubberducky]

To cut into layers horizontally:

Put toothpicks where you want to split, take a thread, place it around the cake, pull, should work, but I have never tried it.

When I made this cake, I split it with dental floss.  Minty dental floss for added flavah!  Didn't think about actually marking the line with toothpicks, though.

EDIT: And I did not cut off the top.  I don't know what their obsession is with a perfectly flat cake.  I suppose it helps the ganache stay on better?  Of course, when I made this, I missed the part about freezing the cake overnight, thus the mousse was very un-moussy, so I ended up slopping stuff together and leaving the mousse and ganache out for people to add at their pleasure.

[DJRubberducky]

And yeah, to the folks asking about a knife: you *COULD*, but using the string will not only give you a much straighter cut than a knife, it will produce fewer crumbs.  Though this is a VERY moist cake, especially if you haven't quite let it cool as much as you should when splitting it.

[Shibboleet The Annihilator]

So... why not just fill two pans half way?