Easy Chocolate Cake Recipe

This was my grandmother's easy chocolate cake recipe.

1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup cocoa
1/2 cup hot water
1/2 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2/3 cup buttermilk
2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1tsp baking soda

Mix the 1/2 cup sugar, the cocoa and the hot water in a bowl and set it aside. In another bowl cream the shortening and 1 cup sugar. After that, mix in the eggs, vanilla and buttermilk. Add the cocoa mixture and mix everything together. Add the flour, salt and soda and mix well. Pour batter into two, 8-inch pie pans and bake at 350 degrees until a toothpick comes out clean. It should take 35 to 40 minutes.