Grandma Loner's Nameless Cake

We are having an office party of sorts today and we are all supposed to bring something - so I made nameless cake - without the walnuts because I have a co-worker who is allergic.

My dad gets nameless cake every year for his birthday, and there were a lot of years where I got one too. They are heavy, laden with walnuts and spices. They are the stuff of stories, including how my Grandma entered a contest with this cake, which is the roundabout way it got it's name - and how one year Tippy, our dog, licked all the icing off one side, and my mom and I just spread what was left over the cake, because when you make icing from scratch, it isn't a quick repair.

Nameless cake has become a family tradition, though we have taken the easy way on occasion and doctored a box mix to come up with a close resemblance. It is a chocolate cake - but also has hints of buttermilk, cinnamon and allspice. The frosting...mmmmmmmm..... the frosting - has butter, cinnamon, cocoa and a wee bit of coffee just for zing. There are about a gazillion calories in this cake, but this is the one time of year that it is worth it. When we cut it this afternoon, I'll take a picture so you can see it. But in the meantime, I am going to try to stop thinking about cake and do my work.