What goes in the cake:
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup shortening
1 cup buttermilk
2 eggs
2 1/2 cups cake flour
2 Tbsp. cocoa
1 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
2 oz. bottle of red food coloring
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Cream the shortening and sugar together. Add the eggs and mix thoroughly.
Make a paste of the cocoa and food coloring. Add to the creamed mixture.
Mix the salt and vanilla with the buttermilk. Add alternately with the flour to the creamed mixture, mixing well after each addition.
Mix the baking soda and vinegar together. Gently fold into the batter mixture (remember that this mixture will foam and grow so prepare it in a large enough container).
Bake for 40 minutes at 350 degrees.
Allow to completely cool and then frost with the recipe that follows.
Frosting:
1 cup butter
1 cup milk
1 cup sugar
5 Tbsp. flour
1 tsp. vanilla
Cook the flour and milk in a saucepan until thick. Let cool. Cream the butter, sugar and vanilla. Add to the cold flour mixture and beat until light and fluffy.
Make sure your flour mixture is completely cold or it will melt your butter and make the frosting runny.
- or -
(What I do) Just go buy the damn frosting! After all of this are you sure you want to chance it with the frosting?