Some people say less is more, but not me! I say more is more, and with this cake — you definitely want more!

Here’s what you need for the cake:

I mix the ingredients in my KitchenAid mixer with paddle attachment in this order: (Or you can do it by hand. — If using a mixer, you may want to stop from time to time in order to scrape down the sides of the bowl.)

1/4 cup + 1 Tbsp Canola oil (Or vegetable oil, or XLOO — Whatever you prefer.)

1 cup = 1 Tbsp sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 large egg

3/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

3/4 cup brewed coffee — cooled.  (I brew extra in the morning and save it for the cake.)

1 cup all-purpose unbleached flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Once ingredients are mixed well, pour the batter into a lightly oiled 9″ round cake pan. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until you can poke the center with a toothpick, and have out come out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan for about 10 minutes before transferring to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.

Here’s what you need for the icing:

Combine in mixer with whisk attachment:

 1/4 cup brewed coffee – cooled

2 TBSP Meringue Powder (or powdered eggs – both are found in most grocery store baking aisles and are fairly inexpensive.)

1 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder

2 cups powdered sugar

Once the cake has cooled, frost it accordingly. You may need to stir the icing again before hand, as it is a hard-set icing.

Here’s what you need for the caramel sauce:

Combine in small sauce pan on medium heat:

1/4 c brewed coffee

1 cup sugar

1 Tbsp bourbon

1 tsp vanilla

Simmer on medium heat about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon.

remove from heat and add:

1 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder

1/4 cup milk. (I use skim, but use what you like.)

Once you have blended the cocoa and milk to the mixture, put it back on medium heat for about 2 more minutes. It will likely bubble a bit — this is fine, just be careful to stir it to avoid having it bubble over the pan.

Remove from the heat, and let it sit for about 5 minutes to cool and thicken.

Once it has cooled, drizzle the sauce over the top of the cake, and save the rest to drizzle over individual pieces.

Enjoy!