T H E C H O C O L AT E D O M I N G O , M Y T O P

FAVO R I T E C H O C O L AT E C A K E
MAKES One 9 inch layer • SERVES 8 to 10 • OVEN TEMPERATURE 350˚F/175˚C
BAKING TIME 30 to 40 minutes

The sour cream base of this chocolate cake and the large amount of butter give it an
exceptionally fine melt-­in-­the-­mouth texture and fabulous flavor. I dedicated this cake to
Plácido Domingo in the tradition of creating a special recipe for a favorite opera star. I
thought I couldn’t improve on my idea of perfection, but in recent years I tried replacing a
little of the sour cream with boiling water to release the maximum flavor from the cocoa.
Now it is truly the tenor of chocolate butter cakes.

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This is the cake base I use for the Chocolate Chip Cookie Comfort Cake and the Large
Chocolate Domingo for Special Occasions sheet cake (see Variation).

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SPECIAL EQUIPMENT One 9 × 2 inch round pan, encircled with a cake strip, coated with
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shortening, topped with a parchment round, then coated with baking spray with flour
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BATTER: 860 GRAMS / EGGS AND BUTTER AT ROOM TEMPERATURE (65˚ TO 75˚F/19˚ TO 23˚C)

2 large eggs, see page 631:

2 (to 3) yolks 40 grams 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons (40 ml)
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2 whites 60 grams 1/4 cup (59 ml)

pure vanilla extract 7 grams 11/2 teaspoons (7.5 ml)
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unsweetened alkalized cocoa 42 grams 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon (sifted before
powder measuring)
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boiling water 45 grams 3 tablespoons (45 ml)

full-­fat sour cream 121 grams 1/2 cup
11/2 cups (sifted into the cup and leveled off)
bleached cake flour 156 grams
plus 1 tablespoon
sugar, preferably superfine 200 grams 1 cup
baking powder 3.4 grams 3/4 teaspoon
baking soda . 1/4 teaspoon
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fine sea salt 3 grams 1/2 teaspoon

unsalted butter 200 grams 14 tablespoons (13/4 sticks)

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 PREHEAT THE OVEN Twenty minutes or longer before baking, set an oven rack in the lower
third of the oven. Set the oven at 350˚F/175˚C.
MIX THE LIQUID INGREDIENTS In a 1 cup/237 ml glass measure with a spout, lightly
whisk the measured egg yolks and egg whites. Add the vanilla and whisk until lightly
combined.
MAKE THE COCOA MIXTURE In a 4 cup/1 liter glass measure with a spout, with a silicone
spatula, stir together the cocoa and boiling water until all the cocoa is moistened. It will be
a thick paste. Immediately, to prevent evaporation, stir in the egg mixture until well mixed.
Add the sour cream and whisk until incorporated. It will be a slightly lumpy mixture.
MAKE THE BATTER In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the flat beater, beat the flour,
sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt on low speed for 30 seconds.
Add the butter and half the cocoa mixture. Mix on low speed until the dry ingredients
are moistened. Raise the speed to medium and beat for 11/2 minutes to aerate and develop the

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cake’s structure. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.

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Starting on medium-­low speed, gradually add the remaining cocoa mixture in two parts,
beating on medium speed for 30 seconds after each addition to incorporate the ingredients
smoothly. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
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Scrape the batter into the prepared pan, being sure to press the thick and fluffy
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batter against the sides of the pan, and smooth the surface evenly with a small offset
spatula. The pan will be half full.
BAKE THE CAKE Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, or until a wire cake tester inserted near the
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center comes out clean and the cake springs back when pressed lightly in the center.
The cake should start to shrink from the sides of the pan only after removal from the
oven. The cake domes but cools totally flat.
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COOL AND UNMOLD THE CAKE Let the cake cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes.
Run a small metal spatula between the sides of the pan, pressing firmly against the pan, and
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invert the cake onto a wire rack that has been lightly coated with nonstick cooking spray.
Peel off the parchment and, to prevent splitting, reinvert the cake so that the top is facing up.

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Cool completely.
FINISHED HEIGHT
• 11/2 inches
STORE Airtight: room temperature, 3 days; refrigerated, 1 week; frozen, 3 months

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 UNDERSTANDING
I originally created this cake, which became my favorite of all chocolate cakes
containing flour, at the request of my protégé David Shamah, suggesting that
sour cream could do as much for a chocolate cake as it does for a yellow cake.
It evolved from the Sour Cream Butter Cake, with an almost identical ratio of
ingredients except for the replacement of a near equal weight of flour with cocoa
and the addition of 30 grams more butter, which makes it slightly fudgy and
easy to slice without crumbs.
Originally it had an equal weight of sour cream as the Sour Cream Butter
Cake, but a little of it was sacrificed in favor of boiling water to give more flavor
to the cocoa. Also, less baking soda allows more tang from the sour cream to
enhance the chocolate flavor, but the increased total leavening power of the

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combined baking soda and baking powder balances the strengthening of texture

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from the water.
COMPLEMENTARY ADORNMENTS
• One recipe: buttercream, ganache, or glaze or
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Variation
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L A R G E C H O C O L AT E D O M I N G O F O R S P E C I A L O C C A S I O N S
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SERVES 40 to 50
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This is the cake I made for my fiftieth High School of Music & Art reunion, frosted with
Wicked Good Ganache. I overheard fellow classmates saying, “It sings in the mouth,”
which was just what I had intended. I told Danny Domb, my former classmate who went
on to become a world-­famous cellist and conductor of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra,
that my first choice would have been to be an opera singer, but since I wasn’t gifted with
that kind of voice, cake baking was my way of singing.
Make the Chocolate Domingo recipe with the following pan, chart, and modifications:
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SPECIAL EQUIPMENT One 18 × 12 × 2 inch cake pan encircled with a cake strip, coated
with shortening, topped with parchment, then coated with baking spray with flour

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 MAKES: 3280 GRAMS / EGGS AND BUTTER AT ROOM TEMPERATURE (65˚ TO 75˚F/19˚ TO 23˚C)

8 (to 12) large eggs, see page 631:

8 (to 12) yolks 160 grams 2/3 cup (158 ml)
7 whites 210 grams 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons (207 ml)
pure vanilla extract 30 grams 2 tablespoons (30 ml)
unsweetened alkalized cocoa 159 grams 2 cups plus 2 tablespoons
powder (sifted before measuring)
boiling water 177 grams 3/4 cup (177 ml)
full-­fat sour cream 454 grams 23/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons
bleached cake flour 587 grams 53/4 cups (sifted into the cup and leveled
off ) plus 2 tablespoons
sugar, preferably superfine 750 grams 33/4 cups

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baking powder 13.5 grams 1 tablespoon

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baking soda 5.5 grams 1 teaspoon
fine sea salt
unsalted butter
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12 grams
752 grams
2 teaspoons
61/4 sticks plus 1 tablespoon
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• Use a 4 cup/1 liter glass measure with a spout for the measured egg yolks, egg
whites, and vanilla mixture.
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• When mixing the batter, add the remaining cocoa mixture in three parts, beating
for 20 seconds after each addition.
• Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, rotating the pan halfway around after 30 minutes.
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• Let the cake cool in the pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes.
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COMPLEMENTARY ADORNMENT

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• One recipe: Wicked Good Ganache (page 449)

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