4 c Orange juice;
- room temperature
4 oz Unsweetened chocolate;
- finely chopped
6 c Cake flour; sifted
1 1/3 c Unsweetened cocoa powder
4 ts Baking soda
2 ts Salt
1 ts Baking powder
2 c Unsalted butter;
- room temperature
6 c Sugar
8 lg Eggs; room temperature
2 tb Orange peel; grated, packed
2 tb Vanilla extract
2 c Miniature semisweet
- chocolate chips
Cake Layers:
Position 1 rack in center and 1 rack in bottom 3rd of oven and
preheat to 350°F. Butter one 5"-diameter cake pan with 2"-high
sides, one 8"-diameter cake pan with 2"-high sides and one
12"-diameter cake pan with 2"-high sides. Dust pans with flour;
line bottoms with parchment. Combine 1/3 cup orange juice and 2 oz
unsweetened chocolate in heavy small saucepan. Stir mixture over
medium-low heat until chocolate melts. Remove from heat. Gradually
mix in 1-2/3 cups orange juice.
Sift 3 cups flour, 2/3 cup cocoa, 2 ts baking soda, 1 ts salt, and
1/2 ts baking powder into medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat
1 cup butter and 3 cups sugar in large bowl until blended. Mixture
will look grainy. Add 4 eggs, 1 at a time, beating to blend after
each. Beat in 1 tb orange peel and 1 tb vanilla extract. Add dry
ingredients alternately with orange juice mixture in 3 additions
each, beating well after each addition. Mix in 1 cup chocolate
chips.
Transfer 1 cup plus 2 tb batter to prepared 5" pan, 3 cups batter
to prepared 8" pan and remaining batter (about 6 cups) to 12" pan.
Place 5" and 8" pans on center rack of oven. Place 12" pan on lower
rack of oven. Bake cakes until tester inserted into center comes
out clean, about 35 minutes. Transfer cakes in pans to racks and
cool completely.
Mark 4" diameter circle on one 6"-diameter cardboard cake round.
Cut out marked circle. Mark 7"-diameter circle on one 8"-diameter
cardboard cake round. Cut out marked circle. Mark 11"-diameter
circle on one 12"-diameter cardboard cake round. Cut out marked
circle. Cut around sides of 5"-cake to loosen. Place 4" cardboard
over pan. Hold cardboard and pan together; turn cake out onto
cardboard. Peel off parchment.Wrap cakes on its cardboard in foil.
Repeat turning out, peeling off parchment and wrapping cakes in
foil, using 7" cardboard for 8" cake and 11" cardboard for
12" cake.
Using remaining ingredients, make 1 more batch of cake batter and
bake 3 more cake layers as described above. Cool cakes in pans.
Cover cakes in pans tightly with foil. Can be prepared ahead. Let
stand at room temperature up to 1 day or double-wrap all cake
layers and freeze up to 1 week. Bring cake layers to room
temperature before using.
