Chocolate Frosting

The first time I made this chocolate frosting, I was 9 years old ! I made it to frost a birthday cake for my mother, it was her 30th birthday. This was way back in 1982 in Canada. My parents, in the evening had a part-time job, cleaning offices. They would go, after my father came home from his consruction job, and after we all had dinner. Off they would go leaving me in charge of the four of us ( the other three being, 7, 4 & 3,  the world was  very different then, we drank water from the garden hose, and did not wear seat belts or perhaps they just trusted that at 8, I was already responsible). That one evening I decided I would bake my mother a birthday cake (kids please do not try this at home). The cake itself was a butter cake,  I used a recipe from my mothers very big red portuguese cookbook ( a book every married woman had to have I suppose, because all my aunt's have the same book) I remember using my mothers kitchen scales, the old heavy kind.  I baked the cake, and decided it also needed frosting. I made a chocolate frosting, the one on the back of the cocoa package. The cake was missing one thing, candles,  I used a big red taper candle. We had just enough time, to hide when we heard my father's car pull into the drive way.  When they came into the kitchen the four of us jumped out and yelled SURPRISE ! my mother began to cry, I thought I had upset her, because I had used the oven, and that perhaps I was in trouble. She was crying because she was happy. Today when she tells the story, we both cry.

Chocolate Frosting

1/2 melted butter

2/3 cup cocoa

3 cups icing sugar

1/3 cup milk ( I use coffee)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Mix melted butter and cocoa, add the icing sugar, coffee and vanilla, beat till fluffy.

Enjoy, Diana