{"id":95893,"date":"2025-06-16T04:24:04","date_gmt":"2025-06-16T04:24:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/2025\/06\/16\/i-couldnt-stop-thinking-about-this-cake-so-i-tracked-down-the-recipe\/"},"modified":"2025-06-16T04:24:04","modified_gmt":"2025-06-16T04:24:04","slug":"i-couldnt-stop-thinking-about-this-cake-so-i-tracked-down-the-recipe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/2025\/06\/16\/i-couldnt-stop-thinking-about-this-cake-so-i-tracked-down-the-recipe\/","title":{"rendered":"I Couldn’t Stop Thinking About This Cake, So I Tracked Down The Recipe"},"content":{"rendered":"


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\"Nigella<\/div>\n

\"Nigella<\/p>\n

Photo by Vanessa<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

My favorite kind of bar is one that serves snacks: peanuts, potato chips, an emergency hot dog, whatever. They\u2019re almost as important as the drinks. At the cozy Brooklyn spot Dynaco<\/a>, there\u2019s usually a freshly made cake behind the bar. Recently, while my girlfriend and I played cards, I had a slice I hadn\u2019t yet tried: a gingery chocolate cake with a whipped bouffant of cream cheese frosting. I haven\u2019t stopped thinking about it.<\/p>\n

\"Dynamo<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s just assume I won this round of Spite & Malice<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

Eventually, I tracked down Catherine Lloyd Burns<\/a>, whose husband started the bar with his brother back in 2013. Catherine bakes all the cakes for Dynaco and fielded an email I\u2019m sure she\u2019s seen many times over the years. \u201cLots of people have asked for the recipe and I haven\u2019t given it out yet,\u201d she wrote me. \u201cI don\u2019t know if I ever will.\u201d But! She was still very helpful. She told me she started with a Nigella recipe and then \u201cdid some altering because I don\u2019t like to just make someone else\u2019s cakes.\u201d But \u201cthat particular Nigella cake is perfect\u201d and, she promised, I would be very happy with it.<\/p>\n

The next weekend, I grabbed a Guinness from the bodega and gave it a spin. I can\u2019t even remember the last time I baked a cake, so making one is an indicator of how much I loved Catherine\u2019s cake at Dynaco and also how approachable Nigella\u2019s recipe is. Catherine is right about Nigella\u2019s cake; it\u2019s really, really good. Because I\u2019m no star baker, mine looked a little like a children\u2019s bake sale cake, but that did not detract from how good it tasted. The next morning, I had a slice with my coffee.<\/p>\n

\"Nigella<\/p>\n

Breakfast of champions.<\/em><\/p>\n

As I was sampling the Nigella cake, I wondered if one of Catherine\u2019s modifications was adding a bit of fresh ginger, but both cakes are fantastic. I\u2019m definitely going to make it again. And probably head to Dynaco to see what seasonal cake they\u2019re serving now.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019d like to make it yourself, here\u2019s the recipe<\/a> (NYTimes gift link). \u201cThis cake is magnificent in its damp blackness,\u201d says Nigella<\/a>. \u201cI wanted to make a cream cheese frosting, but it is perfectly acceptable to leave the cake un-iced: in fact, it tastes gorgeous plain.\u201d<\/p>\n

Have you ever tracked down a recipe from a restaurant? Or tried to reverse-engineer one?<\/strong> Thank you, Catherine<\/a>, for tipping us off to this great recipe. New York non-bakers can order one of Catherine\u2019s stout cakes by emailing her directly. It\u2019s $80 and, as I\u2019ve said, wildly delicious. <\/p>\n

P.S. The best strawberry cake<\/a>, Dorie Greenspan\u2019s everything cake<\/a>, and pound cake with apples, French style<\/a>.<\/p>\n

(Top photo by Vanessa of Kitchen Feasts<\/a>.)<\/p>\n

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