Bake a great homemade cake in just an hour!

Heat the oven to 400° F. Lightly coat an 8-inch cake pan with butter and dust with all-purpose flour. Sift the cake flour, baking powder, and salt into a large mixing bowl. Beat in the butter one heaping 1/4 teaspoonful at a time, using an electric mixer set on low speed, until the mixture resembles coarse sand. Beat in the sugar a tablespoon at a time, until the mixture resembles fine damp sand. Beat in the eggs one at a time. Add the vanilla and milk, beat on medium-high, just until blended. Do not over beat. Pour into the prepared pan and bake until a wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out clean — 30 to 35 minutes. Cool cake in the pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Unmold and cool completely. Ice with Browned-Butter Glaze.

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes

Browned-Butter Glaze
Use this old-fashioned glaze to give our Basic Vanilla Cake a lovely nutty flavor.

Melt the butter over medium-low heat until golden brown. Whisk the sugar, salt, milk, lemon juice, and zest together. Add the melted butter in a stream while whisking until smooth.

Yields: 3/4 cup
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes

Heat the oven to 400° F. Lightly coat an 8-inch round cake pan with softened butter and dust with all-purpose flour. Set aside. Whisk the cake flour, cocoa, baking soda, sugar, and salt together in a large bowl and set aside. Stir the coffee, oil, vanilla, and vinegar together and whisk into the flour mixture just until smooth. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake in the center rack of the oven until a wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out clean — 25 to 30 minutes. Cool completely in the pan on a wire rack. Serve the cake, iced with about 1 cup Deep Chocolate Glaze. Cake can also be served plain alongside whipped cream or coffee ice cream.

Prep Time:10 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes

Deep Chocolate Glaze
The key to a glistening glaze is to pour while it's warm, guiding it with a spoon toward the cake's sides, where it can drip in slow motion.

Place the chocolate, butter, and corn syrup in a medium-size heatproof bowl. Bring the cream to a boil and pour it over the chocolate. Gently stir, using a whisk, until smooth. Use immediately.

Tip: Make ahead and rewarm before glazing over a pan of simmering water.

Yields: 2 cups
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes