Ingredients

• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup water
• 3 tbsps unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup buttermilk ( see notes below)
• 3/4 tsp vanilla
• FOR THE CHOCOLATE GANACHE
• 1/2 pint minus 1/4 cup Heavy Cream - use this for the white chocolate ganache
• 8 oz semi sweet dark chocolate ( chopped)
• FOR THE WHITE CHOCOLATE GANACHE:
• 1/4 cup Heavy Cream
• 1 cup white chocolate chips

Instructions

• Grease a lightly grease 6 " or 8 X 1 1/2 baking pan.In a mixer bowl, stir together flour,sugar,baking soda and salt. Set aside.
• Pre heat oven at 350 F. In a saucepan, combine butter,water and cocoa powder. Bring to just boiling and stir constantly. Remove from heat and add cocoa mixture to flour mixture; beat with electric mixer on slow speed until just combined. Add egg, buttermilk and vanilla; beat on low speed for 1 minute. Turn batter into the prepared pans and bake until toothpick inserted in the center will come out clean .I usually start checking at 25 minutes from the start of baking process. Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes and on the rack before frosting.
• FOR THE CHOCOLATE GANACHE:
• Place chopped dark chocolate in a heat safe bowl and the white chocolate chips in a different bowl. Set aside. In a small sauce pan, heat 1/2 pint heavy cream until boiling and pour 1/4 cup to the white chocolates and the remaining cream to the dark semi sweet chocolates. Mix bowl until chocolates are melted. Let it cool and fudgy before using to frost. NOTE: You can heat the cream separately if you want. This ganache will cover a 1 layer 6" round cake pan and some left over for the strawberry decoration and some for your kids to enjoy.
• TO DECORATE THE CAKE USING STRAWBERRIES: Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and dip berries into the melted ganache and place them on the parchment paper. Let it dry and cool before decorating with the white ganache. ( If the ganache is fudgy, just reheat it and it will melt again.)
• FOR THE WHITE STRIPES: Place cooled, fudgy and set white ganache into a cake decorating bag with a tip # 5 and make strips on the strawberries and some for your cake.