• Preheat oven to 350°.
• Combine flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt in a bowl and set aside.
• In a separate bowl, whisk eggs together and then add syrup and vanilla.
• Combine wet and dry ingredients and mix with an electric mixer.
• Line one 9" or two 6" round cake pans with parchment paper (see notes) and then pour batter evenly into the pan.
• Place cake in the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Leave cake in the pan for 10 minutes before carefully inverting it onto a cooling rack. Wait until cakes have completely cooled before icing them.

for the icing:

• Combine chocolate and oil in a saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally until chocolate has melted; set aside.
• Add butter to a bowl and then pour the melted chocolate overtop; let this sit for 3-5 minutes, then mix with an electric mixer before adding the powdered sugar. Continue mixing until icing has formed--icing should be fairly thick. If it seems too thick, add the milk.

to assemble:

• Once the cake has cooled, place a large dollop of icing on top, then use an offset knife or spatula to smooth icing overtop. Cut and enjoy!