As published in InStyle Magazine July 2011 – recipe and food styling by Jody Vassallo. Serves 8.
Nov30
Best ever chocolate cake
Ingredients:
Cake:
125g dark chocolate, chopped
1/3 cup cocoa
1 cup boiling water
250g butter
2 cups brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 eggs
2 ½ cups plain flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon bicarbonate soda
1 cup buttermilk
*
Chocolate cream
50g butter, softened
250g cream cheese
1 cup icing sugar, sifted
¼ cup cocoa, sifted
1 teaspoon cinnamon
*
Garnish
slivered pistachios
fresh pomegranate pearls
dark pink roses
*
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 180C. 350F Gas 4. Grease and line 2 x 24cm round spring form tins. Put the chocolate, cocoa and boiling water into a small saucepan, stir over a low heat until the chocolate melts. Set aside and allow to cool.
Beat the butter and sugar until thick and creamy, add the vanilla and the eggs, a little at a time, beaten well after each addition. Stir in the cooled melted chocolate mixture. Fold in the flour and buttermilk alternately, starting and finishing with the flour.
Divide the batter in two and spoon the batter into the prepared tins. Bake on the third shelf of your oven for 35-40 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean when inserted into the center. Allow to cool for 10 minutes in the tins then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
To make the chocolate cream, beat the butter, crème fraiche, icing sugar, cocoa and cinnamon until smooth.
To assemble place one cake top side down, onto a plate (if your cakes haven risen during cooking use a serrated knife to trim off the tops so your cake will sit flat).
Spread the top with some of the chocolate cream, top with the other cake top side down and cover the top and sides of the cake with the remaining chocolate cream. Decorate with pistachio slivers, pomegranate pearls and rose petals.
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