Favorite Chocolate Birthday Cake

I have made a million chocolate cakes from scratch and none have been as good as this one. It starts with a devil's food cake mix and then gets doctored up from there. It is so dense and moist. I keep it in the refrigerator (because of the heavy cream in the frosting) and I swear it gets better with time. The recipe below is for cupcakes, but if making a cake, use two 9 inch pans and bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes. 

I have also included two of my favorite frosting recipes: Adin's favorite classic chocolate frosting and vanilla buttercream.

Cake:

Ingredients:

1 box devil’s food cake mix

3.9 oz. package of instant chocolate pudding mix

1 cup sour cream

2 sticks melted butter

4 large eggs

1/2 cup milk

1 tsp. vanilla

Pinch salt

Directions:

1. preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. beat together all ingredients until smooth batter forms, remembering to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl
3. line the cupcake pan with cupcake liners and spoon the batter evenly into the cupcake papers
4. Bake according to cupcake directions on box (probably around 20 minutes) 

Adin’s chocolate frosting:

1. place one bag of semi sweet chocolate chips and 2 tbsp butter in mixing bowl
2. heat 1 1/4 cup heavy cream until almost boiling
3. Pour heavy cream over chocolate and allow to sit 5 minutes without stirring
4. whisk until shiny
5. cool to room temp (could take over an hour) 
6. Whip until light & fluffy
7. when icing the cupcakes/cake, it may seem too thin. It will thicken in refrigerator.

Vanilla Buttercream frosting:

Ingredients:

3 cups confectioners sugar

1 cup butter (2 sticks) softened

1 teaspoon vanilla

1-2 tablespoons heavy cream

Directions:

1. in a standing mixer, beat the butter for 2 minutes until light and fluffy. 
2. add sugar 1/2 cup at a time, beating for 3 minutes after each addition
3. add vanilla and cream and beat for another 2 minutes
4. add more cream if necessary for spreading consistency