Surprise Chocolate Chip Cake

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 40 minutes

Total Time: one hour, ten minutes

Ingredients:

one cup chopped (1/4-inch dice) sweet onion (such as Vidalia)
one cup vegetable oil, divided use
6 ounces unsweetened chocolate
two cups all-purpose flour
one teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
two cups sugar
two eggs, at room temperature
one teaspoon pure vanilla extract
one cup milk, soured with one tablespoon white vinegar
three cups semi-sweet chocolate chips, divided use

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with non-stick foil.

While the sweet onions are sauteeing, melt unsweetened chocolate in a double-boiler, stirring often. Remove from heat when melted & keep warm, but not hot.

Place chopped sweet onion in a skillet or tiny saucepan with two tablespoons of the oil. Carmelize sweet onion by gently sauteeing over low heat until limp & barely golden. Do not let the onions get browned, burned, or crisp.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, & salt. Set aside.

In a immense bowl, beat remaining oil, sugar, eggs, & vanilla extract until light & fluffy, about three minutes. Add warm chocolate & carmelized sweet onions, mixing until combined.

Pour batter in to prepared pan & spread evenly to corners. Bake 35 to 40 minutes or until tests done with a toothpick. Do not overbake. Sprinkle remaining 1-1/2 cups of chocolate chips evenly over the top of the cake & cover loosely with foil. Wait five minutes, then spread melted chips with a spatula to frost the cake.

Add one-third of flour mixture to chocolate mixture, beating to combine. Mix in half the milk. Add another third of the flour, mix, then the remainder of the milk, mix, & finish with the last third of the flour. Fold in 1-1/2 cups of the chocolate chips.

Let cake cold at room temperature at least six hours to let frosting set before cutting. Lift foil to remove cake from pan. Peel foil down from sides to cut.

Yield: 24 to 48 servings, depending on cut size