Ritner Family Mayonnaise Cake With Raspberries

Total Time: 1 hr 10 mins Preparation Time: 40 mins Cook Time: 30 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 8
• 3 cups flour
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 2/3 cup cocoa powder
• 2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 1/2 cups mayonnaise (we always use hellman's or best foods)
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 2 teaspoons instant coffee, dissolved in the 1 1/2 cups water (this is my "secret ingredient!)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1 pint raspberries
• 1 cup water
• 1 cup sugar

Recipe

• 1 mayonnaise cake - preheat oven to 350°f grease and flour two 8 inch cake pans or one 9x13 cake pan. set cake pans aside.
• 2 in a large bowl, sift together flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder and baking soda.
• 3 add the water/instant coffee mixture, and stir until moistened.
• 4 add the mayonnaise and the vanilla, and mix well. mixture will be thick and"goopy". pour into prepared cake pans and bake for 25-30 minutes.
• 5 a toothpick inserted into the cake should come out with no raw batter on it, but with some moist crumbs when the cake is done.
• 6 remove cake from oven and allow to cool completely on a wire rack before topping.
• 7 raspberry sauce - in a small saucepan, combine sugar and water. bring to a boil over medium-high heat. reduce heat.
• 8 add 1/8 cup of the raspberries, well mashed, to the sugar/water mixture.
• 9 simmer over medium-low heat until mixture has reduced by 2/3. the finished syrup will easily coat the back of a spoon, and be very sticky when it cools.
• 10 remove syrup from stove and allow to cool slightly. strain through a seive to remove the seeds.
• 11 assembling the cake - using a pastry brush or a spoon, brush the bottom of each layer of the cooled cake with the raspberry syrup.
• 12 place the bottom layer upside down on a plate.
• 13 for a two layer cake, crush half the remaining raspberries and spoon over the bottom layer of the cake.
• 14 top with the remaining layer of the cake, placing it upside down.
• 15 for the top layer, or a single layer cake, follow the directions from this point:.
• 16 on the side of the cake coated with raspberry syrup, arrange the remaining whole raspberries in a pleasing pattern.
• 17 brush or spoon each whole raspberry with some of the raspberry syrup.
• 18 allow the cake to sit for 30 minutes before serving.