So this chocolate cake is something worth blogging about. It is DELICIOUS. Dee fucking licious. YUM. (Thank you http://www.foodess.com. It’s like a Spanish friend used to say: “You change my life forever in this moment, baby.”)
Have I mentioned this is EASY? Very.
Set the oven to 180 deg C, actually just below. The original recipe calls for 350 deg F.
Line 2 23cm cake pans with butter. I used my spring form pan for the first cake I baked on my birthday, it’s just as yummy when you use one pan, but with 2 cakes it’s easier to ganache the middle, sandwich the two and then ganache the whole beauty.
Ingredients:
- 1¾ cups flour*
- 2 cups granulated sugar (I used brown)**
- ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder***
- 1½ tsp bicarb
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup buttermilk
- ½ cup butter, melted
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup hot coffee ( I brewed a strong one in the cafetierre but if you must use instant – 2 tsp in 1 cup boiling water)
- In the large bowl of a standing mixer, stir together flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. Add eggs, buttermilk, melted butter and vanilla extract and beat until smooth (about 3 minutes). Remove bowl from mixer and stir in hot coffee with a rubber spatula. Batter will be very runny.
- Pour batter evenly between the two pans and bake on middle rack of oven for about 35 minutes, until toothpick inserted in centre comes out clean with just a few moist crumbs attached.
- Allow to cool 15 minutes in pans, then run a butter knife around the edges of each cake. Place a wire cooling rack over top of each pan. Wearing oven mitts, use both hands to hold the racks in place while flipping the cakes over onto the racks. Set the racks down and gently thump on the bottom of the pans until the cakes release. Cool completely before handling or frosting.
I frost my cake thus:
- Put about 2/3 to all of a 250ml container cream in a bowl large enough to stir your ganache in. I use less cream as I prefer a stronger set ganache.
- Take a family size Cadbury’s whole nut, break into blocks and add to the cream.****
- Microwave on high for 3 minutes, taking it out after the 2nd minute to stir. If you still have clumps of chocolate in the cream, microwave at 1 minute intervals and stir. If you hate a microwave, like I do usually, shlep with a double boiler until you have warm cream and melted chocolate. I just could not be arsed.
- Leave your ganache to cool completely, then refrigerate it until it’s a nice and firm consistency to work with.
- Frost the cakes where you want them to join – both. Don’t include the hazel nuts in this step. Then ganache the baby jesus out of the whole cake and go to HEAVEN.
*As you all well know who know me: I am over gluten. So I’m working very hard on finding a coconut flour supplier. The next one I bake of these will be gluten free. If you read this and you sell coconut flour that is not the price of gold, let me know.
** Sugar is a carcinogen. I’m also sourcing agave and coconut sugar. Just sane, sweet options really.
*** and **** I’m experimenting with raw chocolate making. My cacao supplier is a Swede from Madagascar. We are still haggling.
And why am I getting all of this in large supply? Because I’m starting an online shop soon! http://www.anelo.co.za
xxx
anelos 
Yum!