By Caitlin Addlesperger
The Sheridan Press

For every birthday in our family, my mom bakes a cake. Not just any cake — a decadent chocolate-on-chocolate affair.

The presentation has changed with our family over the decades. Twenty years ago, the chocolate cake made a splash as a whale for my sister’s 8th birthday. Fifteen years ago, it transformed into a Pikachu for my brother’s 9th. Just last month, for my 31st, the cake was an artistic vision in ripe raspberries and colorful cosmos, all circling a long violet candle.

So yes, creativity is a key ingredient in birthday cake. But flavor reins supreme once the candles are out, and this cake has it by the forkful.

Like many of the best recipes, it is simple: the cockeyed cake. My mom improved the classic by doubling the quantities for a festive two-layered treat and substituting the richest, highest quality version of the main ingredients — whole-wheat flour for white, extra virgin olive oil for canola, dark-roast coffee for water and so on. She still has a recipe card complete with her edits and with my chocolatey fingerprints from the days when I was her sous chef/resident taster.

Today is my mom’s birthday, so I am baking her the only cake our family recognizes. I can only hope to channel her creativity in the decoration department. Wish me luck — and wish my mom happy birthday!

Get the recipe.

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The Sheridan Press has served Sheridan County, Wyoming, since 1887. The award-winning independent newspaper offers print and online news delivery platforms to the thriving community, which boasts a college; a lively arts, culture, and music scene; a bustling downtown; and many other amenities, including unlimited outdoor recreational opportunities. To subscribe to The Sheridan Press, click here.