Classic Chocolate Cake

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour three 6-cup muffin pans (for filled cakes), two 8-inch-round cake pans (for layer cake; pictured), or 2 mini Bundt pans (for Mini Pumpkin Cakes). Set aside. Combine the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, and set aside.

Beat the butter and sugars together in a bowl using an electric mixer on medium-high speed. Beat in the eggs. Reduce speed to medium-low. Stir the sour cream, vanilla, and milk together and add it in thirds, alternating with the flour mixture. Beat until batter is smooth, about 3 more minutes.

Divide the batter equally between the prepared pans and bake until a wooden skewer inserted into the center tests clean. For layer cake, it should take about 25 minutes; filled cakes, 20 minutes; and Mini Pumpkin Cakes, 25 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

Trim cooled cake layers, if necessary, to make level and frost and decorate as desired.

Nutritional information is based on 1 muffin-size cake.

To create a wickedly good web (as pictured): Pour Chocolate Glaze over the top of an un-iced layer cake. Spread the glaze over the cake's edges and smooth the sides. Fill a small piping bag with three to four tablespoons of melted white chocolate, then starting at the center of the top of the cake, pipe the white chocolate in a spiral. Drag a toothpick from the center of the spiral to the cake's edge. Repeat every 1 1/2 inches to create a web effect.