A nice rich chocolate cake is sometimes a treat that is well worth the effort. For mine I made two reasonably thin chocolate cakes and layered them with some cherry jam and a lovely, rich, chocolate cream. Then I finished it all off with a silky chocolate ganache.
So this is definitely a cake for lovers of chocolate and cream. It does takes some time to make, but is not difficult. It is just a matter of waiting for things to cool or to set and then everything has come together to make a fantastic treat.
As long as you get organised making the cakes first, and allowing them to cool completely. it is then just a case of whipping up some sugar, cream and cocoa powder to make a lovely filling and topping. Then more cream with chocolate to make the ganache and that is all there is to it.
Mine turned out very nicely and it tastes fantastic, though it is quite rich so a small slice may be enough for most people.
I made a video of this recipe, but forgot to turn the camera on for pouring the ganache, so that part is missing and I just give a brief explanation. It seems that filming can be just as tricky as baking.
Ingredients:
for the cake:
- 175g self-raising flour
- 50g cocoa powder
- 90ml boiling water
- 3 medium eggs
- 60ml milk
- 100g/soft unsalted butter
- 300g caster sugar
- (if you want an extra rise in the cake you can include a heaped teaspoon of baking powder as well)
For a syrup:
- 100ml water
- 100g sugar
- 2tbsp dark rum
- 500ml double cream(heavy cream is fine)
- 200g condensed milk
- 45g cocoa powder, sifted
- 250g dark chocolate in chips or chopped into small pieces
- 250ml double cream(heavy cream is fine)
- Preheat the oven to 180C/160C Fan/350F and grease two 8 inch cake tins, with loose bottoms. Line the bottoms with baking parchment.
- In a stand mixer(you can do this all by hand) put the cocoa powder and pour in the boiling water.
- Mix with the paddle attachment to make a nice thick paste.
- Add all the other cake ingredients and beat until fully combined, but to not overmix.
- Divide the batter evenly into the two cakes tins and bake for 25 minutes, until the cake has started to come away from the edge of the tin and the top is springy to the touch.
- Allow to cool in the tins for at least 10 minutes and then turn out on to a cooling racka nd leave to cool completely.
- For the syrup bring the water and sugar to a boil in a small saucepan.
- Let is bubble for a couple of minutes and then pour into a bowl.
- Add the rum and stir.
- Set aside for later.
- In a stand mixer(or by hand) whisk the 500ml of cream with the condensed milk and the 45g cocoa powder until it is very thick.
- Place in the fridge to firm it up, for about an hour.
- Brush some of the syrup all over each of the cakes and let it soak in.
- One one of the cakes spread a layer of cherry jam.
- Then spread one third of the cream filling on top of the jam.
- Place the second cake on top and use the remaining cream filling to cover the top and sides of the whole cake.
- Place in the fridge for at least three hours to allow the cream to firm up.
- Place the 250 ml of cream into a small saucepan and heat until just simmering.
- Pour the cream over the chocolate and stir until it has melted into a nice, smooth and silky liquid.
- This is going to be poured over the cake, so if it is too thick for pouring add a tablespoon or two of warm milk to thin it out a little.
- Remove the cake from the fridge and place on a wire rack, over a baking tray.
- Pour the chocolate ganache over the top of the cake and use a spatula to level it off, letting ganache run down the sides to fully coat the cake.
- Place the cake back in the fridge for a few hours more to allow the ganache to firm up.
- The ganache that has dripped into the baking tray can be put into an piping bag and allowed to cool for piping onto the top of the cake as an extra adornment, if required.
- When the ganache has firmed up remove the cake from the fridge and cut a slice, using a sharp knife dipped into hot water(and then dried) so that it cuts cleanly through the ganache.
Thank you for sharing your recipe, I tried it and it was splendid.