Michelle Darmody: How to bake the perfect chocolate cake
Pic: iStock
Welcome to my new baking masterclass!
Each week I will be guiding you through a classic recipe, with step-by-step guidance and clever tips for troubleshooting any little problems that you might encounter along the way.
Once you master each main recipe you'll find delicious suggestions beneath it too for tweaking the recipe to create a twist on the classic.
Whether you're an experienced home baker or just starting out, I hope this new How to Bake column will encourage you to join me every week and develop a signature repertoire of home-baked treats.
So, what better way to start a baking class than with a lush, rich chocolate cake?
My favourite thing about a cake is that is it made to share. There is great pleasure in seeing someone eat their first mouthful with a smile.
Cakes are also baked to show how much we care, whether it is staying up late the night before to ensure it is made just right for a child’s birthday, or baking for a neighbour who has lost someone they love, we bake to show our consideration and kindness.
Baking is exacting, but it can be enjoyable and fun if you relax into it. If younger family members are helping do not worry if the result is not perfect, icing can hide a multitude of mishaps.
This chocolate cake not only lasts well for a few days, it is so rich it can be divvied up between quite a few people.
You can simply slice it and serve as is, or decorate it as elaborately as you wish. Slathering them in chocolate ganache is a favourite, but covering it in coffee buttercream makes for a delicious variation.
Classic Chocolate Cake
This recipe makes 10-20 slices.
Preparation Time
25 minsCooking Time
1 hours 20 minsTotal Time
1 hours 45 minsCourse
MainIngredients
200g butter, cubed
200g dark chocolate, broken into small even sized pieces
30mls very strong coffee, like an espresso
95ml water
85g plain flour
85g self-raising flour
25g cocoa powder
200g brown sugar
190g caster sugar
¼ tsp bread soda
75ml buttermilk
3 eggs, lightly beaten
For the ganache
150ml cream
150g of dark chocolate, broken into small even sized pieces
Method
Preheat your oven to 160ºC/gas mark 3.
Line an 8-inch round cake tin with parchment.
Put the butter, chocolate pieces, espresso and water into a heavy based saucepan over a low heat until everything is melted.
Sieve both of the flours and the cocoa powder into a large bowl and stir in the two sugars.
Lightly beat the bread soda and butter milk into the eggs with a fork.
Make a well in the centre of the flour and add in the chocolate mixture and stir it to combine. Mix in the buttermilk and eggs until that mixture is also combined.
Pour the cake batter into the prepared tin and place it in the centre of your heated oven.
Bake it for an hour and twenty minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.
Allow to cool in the tin then gently turn it upside down onto a plate. Ice it with ganache if you wish.
To make the ganache heat the milk until it is shivering, just before it boils.
Take it off the heat and stir in the chocolate chips until melted. Allow to cool to room temperature.
Always ice the underside of the cake, rather than the top of the sponge which may have risen or fallen.
The base will be perfectly flat having been moulded by the tin. You may need to gently trim the top of the cake with a knife so it sits flatly onto a plate or cake stand.
If your cake rises too quickly and then falls in the centre there was most likely too much bread soda added. This can also happen if the batter is put into a tin that is too small.
An underbaked cake will also lead to a dip in the centre. Make sure to use a skewer and check your cake is thoroughly baked before taking it from the oven.
Ovens can vary quite a lot in temperature, so the really sure-fire way is to check the centre of the cake by sticking in a skewer.
It should come out clean with no sticky cake mix attached.
If it is not clean give the cake another 3 to 5 minutes in the oven retest it again, and continue until it is fully baked.
If you see your that cake is browning too quickly remove it from the oven and covering the cake with foil or parchment paper before placing it back in.
It may also be useful to get a thermometer to check your oven for future baking.
I always recommend using either a spring-form or loose-based tin for baking this chocolate cake.
It can be very frustrating if you go to the trouble of baking it and the cake breaks as you are removing it from its tin.
To take the cake out of either a spring-form or loose-based tin put a plate which is larger than the tin on top, and then flip it over gently. Now remove the tin and peel off the parchment.
Ensure the cake is completely cold before starting to ice it.
Add the zest of four oranges to the batter. If you are doing this I would substitute the coffee for an orange liqueur.
You can also decorate the cake with an orange buttercream icing for an extra citrus twist.
I suggest mascarpone instead of fresh cream as the cake is quite dense, even if the cream is fully whipped it will squash out the sides if a layer or two of cake is placed on top.
The mascarpone holds its shape a bit better. You can whip it with some vanilla and honey and layer it with fresh raspberries.
For a truly spectacular result you can bake two of the chocolate cakes and cut each one into two discs, giving you four layers of cake. The cake will be quite tall so you can use posts to support it.
Most baking suppliers will sell cake posts that you can insert into layered cakes to help them hold their shape.
You can use brandy or whiskey in place of the coffee. You can also pour a shot of either over the cake when it has cooled slightly but is still in the tin.
The alcohol will soak into the rich chocolate and give it a nice kick. You can cover the cake in ganache or serve with a brandy buttercream.
To make a lighter ganache, wait until the ganache has come to room temperature and is the consistency of firm butter. Whisk to aerate it until it has lightened in colour. This will also lighten the flavour.
