Reeses Peanut Butter Cup Cake

Wowzers, this cake is sumpin else entirely. Be sure to have some cold milk and a good pot of coffee ready when this one's done. You will want both. *_*

The recipe was a generational internet hand me down, value added. That is to say, it originally came from a website - Parents Magazine I think, then Bakerella snagged it and did her wizardry on it and ohhhhhweeeee here it is:

devils food cake mix
3 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3 cups chopped Reeses pb cups, plus more to cover top of cake
8 ounces dark chocolate, chopped
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter

Heat oven to 350*. Coat two 9" round cake pans with nonstick spray.

In a large bowl beat cake mix, egs, buttermilk and oil on low for 30 seconds. Increase speed to med-high and beat for 2 mins., scraping down side of bowl after 1 minute. Fold in 3 cups of chopped Reeses.

Divide batter between prepared pans. Bake at 350 degrees F for about 34 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let layers cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Turn out cakes onto wire racks and cool completely.

Place chopped dark chocolate in a medium-size bowl. Bring cream just to a boil and pour over chocolate. Whisk until chocolate melts. Add peanut butter and whisk until smooth.

Trim top of cake layers flat with a serrated knife. Put 1 cake layer on cooling rack and place on a baking sheet. Pour 1 cup frosting on top; spread evenly with a spatula. Top with remaining cake layer. Pour remaining frosting over the top, allowing it to spill over the sides. Smooth top and sides with spatula. Refrigerate 1 hour to set. Transfer cake to serving plate and garnish with chopped candy, if desired.

I made this in a sheet pan for a couple of reasons. A. I do not make layer cakes well. They're fussy, and I don't do fussy. 2. I'm making it for a large party.
It turned out to be a good thing, because you get a good ratio of cake to icing (I'm all about that) plus you don't have to be so careful about icing the cake. You can pour the icing over the cake and sort of schmear it and let it drizzle around and go where it wants to settle. I'm all about that too.

Ok, last point. There is no easier or better icing - the two most important qualifications - than this one. There are two ingredients. Two. And they're the best two in the world. Chocolate. Heavy Cream. 'Nuff said. Actually not enough - the consistency? Ahhhohhhhh - it will make you want to float.

Have your milk and coffee ready I tell ya.

Enjoy!

Tiedye