Cocoa Cake

My favourite cake ever... it tastes awesome just plain, without any frosting. Growing up, I would help Amma grease the cake pans, sift the flour, mix the batter and would hover around the kitchen till I got a slice to eat. Over the years, I have made it so many times that it is deeply engraved in my head. I had to put it on the blog, for this recipe is definitely 'a keeper.'  Here it is - exactly how Amma has always made it.

Ingredients:
Butter - 250 gms (2 1/4 sticks)
Sugar - 250 gms (1 cup)
Flour - 210 gms
Cocoa powder - 3 tbsp
(3 tbsp Cocoa + 210 gms Flour = 1 cup)
Baking powder - 1 tsp
Eggs - 4
Vanilla - 1 1/2 tsp
Milk - 1/2 cup

Method:
Preheat oven at 375 degrees. Spray a cake tin with non-stick spray. Sieve flour, cocoa and baking powder together and keep aside covered.

Cream butter and sugar till it becomes light and fluffy. Add the eggs one by one, creaming each of them thoroughly into the batter. A light glaze comes over the batter. Add vanilla essence and mix thoroughly. Add the flour mix and milk alternatively in small quantities into the batter. Each time, blend slowly with a wooden spoon.

Pour the batter into the cake tin and smoothen the top with a spatula. Place the tin in the middle of the oven. Bake for about 30 minutes or till done. Let the cake sit for 5-10 minutes before cutting a slice. Tastes great when warm, even better when cool. The sweetness actually sets in after the cake has cooled down.

To turn the cake upside down, let the cake cool for about 2-3 hours. Place a serving plate on top of the cake and invert the cake tin along with the serving plate. Shake the cake tin loose, away from the cake.