Chocolate Chip Cake or Cupcakes

I made Chocolate Chip Cupcakes a few weeks ago to take to a friends house. There were some left over so I took them in to work, hoping that everyone would finish them off. Coincidentally my boss was holding her sons birthday party the next weekend and asked if I could make a cake for the party. She had already bought a topper to put on the cake, so I didn't even have to decorate. Since she had sampled the chocolate chip cupcakes, she asked if I could do that. So I used the same recipe for the cake as I did the cupcakes.

Cake/Cupcake Ingredients:

* 3 1/4 Cups Cake Flour
* 1 1/2 Tablespoons Baking Powder
* 1/4 Teaspoon Salt
* 1 3/4 Sticks of Butter
* 1 3/4 Cups Sugar
* 1 Cup Milk
* 1 Tablespoon Vanilla
* 5 Large Egg Whites
* 2 Cups Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

***If you don't have Cake Flour, substitute 2 Tablespoons of Flour with Cornstarch for every Cup of Flour.***

* Preheat oven to 350 Degrees F.

* If making Cupcakes, line 2 muffin pans; If making Cake, Grease and Flour 3 Round Cake Pans.

* In a bowl, combine the Flour, Baking Powder, and Salt. Set Aside.

* In the bowl of your mixer, cream the Butter and Sugar.

* Mix together Milk and Vanilla.

* Add dry ingredients to Butter Mix in 3 additions, alternating with the Milk in 2 additions.

* In a clean bowl of your mixer, Beat the egg Whites until stiff peaks form.

* Carefully fold the Egg Whites into the rest of the batter.

* Stir in Chocolate Chips.

* Divide Batter into Cake Pans, or Muffin Pans.

* Bake for approx. 30 minutes for Cake; Bake for approx. 22 minutes for Cupcakes.

* Cool before Frosting.

Buttercream Frosting Ingredients:

* 1 Cup Butter
* 3 Cups Powdered Sugar
* 1 Teaspoon Vanilla

* In the bowl of your Mixer, beat butter until smooth.

* Add Powdered Sugar, one cup at a time, beating well after each addition.

* Add Vanilla and beat until light and fluffy.

* At this point you can frost the Cake or Cupcakes.

* This was all I did for the cupcakes. The cake I added chocolate frosting between the layers.

Chocolate Frosting:

* 4 Ounces Unsweetened Chocolate
* 2/3 Cup Butter
* 1 1/3 Cup Powdered Sugar
* 1 1/2 Teaspoons Vanilla

* Melt the Chocolate in a heat proof bowl and set aside to cool.

* Beat the Butter until smooth.

* Add the Sugar and beat until light and fluffy.

* Add the Chocolate and Vanilla and beat until incorporated.

* Frost Cake!

* Enjoy!