1 cup butter
2 cups sugar
4 eggs, well beaten
2 cups cake flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
2/3 cup buttermilk
3 squares bitter chocolate
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Heat oven to 325 F. Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and beat well. Mix flour with salt. Mix baking soda with buttermilk. Add flour to the butter mixture alternately with buttermilk; begin and end with flour. Beat well. Using a double boiler, stir chocolate till melted. While hot, add to cake batter. Add vanilla and beat well. Bake in two greased 8-inch pans for 45 minutes. Cool before frosting with fudge icing.

Fudge Icing

1 1/2 cups sugar
6 tablespoons butter
6 tablespoons cocoa
6 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups black walnuts

Combine all ingredients, except for black walnuts, in a boiler. Boil 4 minutes, stirring constantly. Place one layer of cake on a cake stand. Cover the top with icing and sprinkle generously with black walnuts. Add second layer of cake on top. Ice the top and sides of the cake with remaining icing before topping generously with black walnuts.