Chikalicious. East Village, NYC. Sunday, August 1st.

Cake yearns to be free, you know.

I don't believe that cake is only meant for special occasions. After all, it's relatively easy to make, and it goes with absolutely everything. But, for some reason, we as a society seem to think of it as something meant for birthdays and dinner parties. I'm here to tell you it doesn't have to be like that.

That's right. I want you to liberate cake from its a-couple-of-times-a-year shackles. Loose it from its guests-for-dinner chains. Work with me, people.

To help you along, I thought I'd share one of my favorite everyday cake recipes. It's a simple buttermilk cake, and it bakes up like a light and fluffy version of pound cake. (Don't have buttermilk on hand? Use some plain yogurt instead.) It goes well with everything from macerated fruit to hot fudge to ice cream to whipped cream. When I made it last week, I had a slice with a bit of lightly sweetened whipped cream for dessert, and then brought the rest in to work, where people ate it plain - and loved every bite.

The best part? It takes about ten minutes to prep. All you need to do is remember to soften the butter a bit ahead of time. Seriously. It's so easy.

So, please - won't you help me save cake from a lifetime of celebrations and usher it into your regular routine? You won't be sorry.

Everyday Buttermilk Cake
Adapted from Gourmet

2 cups flour, sifted
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk (I use low-fat), well-shaken

Place a rack in the middle of the oven and pre-heat to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Butter a 9-inch, round cake pan and line the bottom with a round of parchment paper. Butter the parchment paper and set the pan aside.

Sift together the flour, baking powder and baking soda. Stir in the salt.

Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment - or a large bowl and a hand-held electric mixer fitted with the beaters - beat together the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

With the mixer or beaters on low speed, beat in the buttermilk until just combined. Add the flour in three batches, mixing well with a wooden spoon after each addition, until the mixture is just combined.

Spread the batter in the prepared pan and smooth the top with a spatula, or the back of a wooden spoon. Rap the pan on the counter several times to get rid of any air bubbles.

Place the cake in the oven and bake until it is golden and a wooden pick inserted into its center comes out clean, about 30-40 minutes.

Place the pan on a rack and cool for 10 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of the cake to loosen, and then invert the cake onto a plate. Invert the cake back onto the rack to cool completely.

Serve slightly warm or at room temperature. Keeps well wrapped tightly in plastic wrap for up to two days.

Serves 8.

Many times a lady.

Lady M is a remarkably dainty little pastry shop in the heart of the Upper East Side. (Seriously. 78th and Madison - this is society matron territory at its best.) Its location helps to explain its bustling weekday afternoon trade (It also helps that there's little like it in the neighborhood, so
even working stiffs tend to visit for a quick coffee break.) as well as its absolutely obscene prices.

You'll pay $7.00 for a cappuccino here, and I can admit that it's a good cappuccino. But the real star of the show is the pastry, and the cakes in particular.

The shop's aesthetic mirrors that of its product: spare but luxe, light but creamy, elegant but decadent. Their signature cake is called the Mille Crêpes, and it's essentially 20 (not a thousand, as the name suggests) paper-thin crêpes stacked one on top of the other. Pastry cream is mixed with whipped cream and sandwiched in between each layer, and the top is covered in a fine, bruléed sugar crust. It is, in a word, delicious. (It's also pretty easy to copy; check out my recipe for it over here. That's a photo of it below.)

Last week, I decided to branch out from my usual crêpes cake routine to try the lemon meringue cake, a typical Lady M spin on a classic. Fluffy lemon cake replaces the lemon curd pie filling. A thin schmear of lemon custard separates the two cake layers, and the whole thing is topped by a perfect mountain of slightly toasted meringue.

It's a pretty good dessert, though I think the cake could be a bit tarter, which would make it a far better foil for the sweet-sweet-sweet meringue. All in all, it can't ever replace the Mille Crêpes in my estimation, but it's still pretty dang tasty.

The cake!

Finally! I found a decent picture of the (unsliced) cake from Caroline's shower. This creation was a labor of love on the part of Ellie's mom, Mrs. Maletta. Isn't it gorgeous? And, I hasten to add, it was delicious. Three layers of plain yellow cake (Caroline's favorite) with one layer of dulce de lece and one of nutella in between.

I die.

Perfection is a piece of cake.

For me, a killer chocolate cake is one of the essential pillars of a culinary repertoire. Very little makes people swoon with such minimal effort. With one under your hat, you'll be well-prepared for every birthday, celebration or office potluck that comes your way - and, trust me, you'll make many friends as a result.

Last weekend, for my brother's birthday, I had the opportunity to take my favorite chocolate cake recipe out for a spin. Rich, impossibly moist and seriously easy to make, it came to me courtesy of that goddess of low-key hostessing, the great Ina Garten (better known as the Barefoot Contessa).

Ina is my go-to source for sophisticated-but-still-easy-to-make versions of French and American classics, and this cake is no exception. The secret ingredient is a cup of hot coffee, which, along with buttermilk, gives the cake its exceptionally tender crumb and adds a hint of smokiness to the chocolate. The buttercream also has a little coffee in it - a pinch of instant espresso powder.

The cake takes a morning or afternoon to put together, but most of that is cooling time. (It is very important that the cake cool completely before you frost it, unless you like your frosting to melt and soak into the cake.) You'll spend about 15 minutes actually making the batter, and about the same amount of time on the buttercream frosting. In other words, it will take you about 15 minutes longer than using cake mix and frosting from a can.

Trust me - it's worth the 15 minutes.

Ina's Chocolate Cake
Adapted from Barefoot Contessa At Home

For the cake:
Butter, for greasing the pans
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pans
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup good cocoa powder
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. kosher salt
1 cup buttermilk, shaken
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon good vanilla extract
1 cup freshly brewed hot coffee

For the buttercream frosting:
6 ounces semisweet chocolate (I use Guittard!)
1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 extra-large egg yolk, at room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
1 tablespoon instant espresso powder

Position the racks in the top and bottom thirds of your oven, and preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Butter 2 round cake pans (8- or 9-inch both work.). Line the bottoms of the pans with parchment paper, then butter and flour the pans.

Sift together the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and baking powder into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Add the salt and mix on low speed until combined.

In another bowl, combine the buttermilk, oil, eggs, and vanilla. With the mixer on low, gradually add the wet ingredients to the dry. Add the coffee and stir just to combine, scraping the sides & bottom of the bowl with a spatula.

Divide the batter evenly between the pans and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, swapping pans from top to bottom about halfway through, until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool in the pans for 30 minutes, then turn them out onto a cooling rack (parchment paper side down) and cool completely.

Peel off the parchment paper and place 1 layer, flat side up, on a flat plate or cake pedestal. With a knife or offset spatula, spread the top with frosting. Place the second layer on top, rounded side up, and spread the frosting evenly on the top and sides of the cake.

For the frosting:

Chop the chocolate and place it in a heat-proof bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Stir until just melted and set aside until cooled to room temperature.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium-high speed until light yellow and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the egg yolk and vanilla and continue beating for 3 minutes.

Turn the mixer down to low, and gradually add the confectioners' sugar. Beat at medium speed, scraping down the bowl as necessary, until smooth and creamy. Dissolve the coffee powder in 2 teaspoons of very hot tap water. On low speed, add the chocolate and coffee to the butter mixture and mix until blended - but don't whip! Now you're ready to frost!

Happy Birthday, Bear!

Today, dear readers, is my little brother Jeremy's (hence the "Bear" - as in, "Jer Bear") 27th birthday. That's right: on this day in 1982, my life changed forever, thanks to a 10-pound (yes, you read that right) bundle of mischief and love.

This weekend, we celebrated things right, with an outing to Dinosaur Barbecue on Friday night and a homemade clambake (full culinary report later this week) on Saturday. We topped things off with a homemade chocolate birthday cake, a special request from the birthday boy himself (though this brown sugar-blackberry cake was a close runner-up).

Tonight, after he spends some alone time with his lovely wife, Miriam, we'll meet up for a celebratory Scotch.

Am I proud that my little brother chose to celebrate his birthday with a series of fabulous foods and friends? You bet your ass I am.

Happy birthday, Bear!