Judith Olney's Chocolate Buttermilk Cake

Judith Olney’s take on a chocolate cake leans on two tricks every good baker eventually learns: buttermilk for tenderness and acidity, and a small amount of coffee to amplify the cocoa without tasting like mocha. A restrained dose of cinnamon goes in with the dry ingredients, nodding to Mexican-style chocolate cakes without tipping the whole thing into mole territory.

Three nine-inch layers bake up tender and fine-crumbed. After cooling, the recipe calls for an unusual but smart step: a full hour in the fridge before splitting each layer in half with a serrated knife. Cold cake slices cleanly where room-temperature cake tears. That gives you six thin layers to build with buttercream, ganache, or the whipped cream the ingredient list hints at.

Pro Tips

• Line the pan bottoms with greased parchment or wax paper. With this much cocoa in the batter, layers can stick stubbornly, and the paper guarantees a clean release.
• Add eggs one at a time and beat until each disappears before the next goes in. Rushing this step gives you a broken batter and a tougher crumb.
• Whisk the cocoa with the dry ingredients, not the wet. Cocoa clumps in liquid, and a sifted dry mixture delivers consistent chocolate flavor throughout.
• Chill the baked layers thoroughly before splitting. A warm layer will compress under the knife and tear.

Variations

• Fill the six layers with whipped cream and fresh raspberries for a less rich version.
• Swap the cinnamon for a pinch of cayenne and a teaspoon of vanilla for a proper Mexican hot chocolate cake.
• Frost with a classic chocolate ganache made from the heavy cream in the ingredient list.