OLD FASHIONED CHOCOLATE CAKE WITH GLOSSY CHOCOLATE ICING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350o F with rack in the center. Spray two 8" round cake pans with nonstick spray. Whisk dry ingredients together in a mixing bowl (sift everything too). Combine water, oil, vinegar, instant coffee and vanilla in a large measuring cup. Add to the dry ingredients and whisk just until combined - a few lumps are okay. Divide batter among pans (3 cups in each), then bake until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 35 minutes. Cool cakes for 20 minutes on a rack, then invert them onto the rack. Leave cakes upside down to cool completely (this flattens domed cakes), then frost. For the icing, melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Sir in sugar, cocoa and salt. Mixture will be extremely thick and grainy. Combine heavy cream, sour cream and instant coffee in a large measuring cup, mixing until smooth. Cook until sugar has dissolved and mixture is smooth and hot to the touch. Do not boil. Off heat, add vanilla. Cool icing at room temperature until spreadable, about three hours. The icing is quite soft. If it seems too thin to stay put on the cake, stir in powdered sugar 1 Tablespoon at a time until it's easily spreadable. Spread 1 cup icing all the way to the edges of the first layer of the cake. Top first layer with second cake and spread with 1 cup of icing. Blob more icing on the sides, then spread around.