They're not quite brownies, not quite cake. These are dense and fudgy, rich and chocolately. The raspberries on top add a little tartness and complement the dark chocolate flavour really well. A few extra chocolate chunks are just the cherry on top, they are softened from baking so melt in the mouth for a totally "mmmm"-inducing mouthful.
Recipe:
1/2 cup caster sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup coffee, brewed and slightly cooled
1 egg
1/2 cup greek/natural yogurt
1/4 cup sunflower oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups self-raising flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
Method:
Preheat the oven to fan 160. Line a 12 x 8 inch tray.
Mix the sugars, coffee, yogurt, egg, oil and vanilla together in a large mixing bowl until everything is evenyl combined.
Fold in the flour and cocoa powder until you have a smooth, lump-free batter.
Pour into the tray and bake for 25 minutes.
How easy was that!?
Cool in the tin for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. These cut into 10 reasonable sized slices.
Last night we have these piled high with extra fruit; strawberries, blueberries and raspberries. But I reckon these would be delightfully indulgent warmed through in the oven for 5 minutes and served with a scoop of good vanilla ice cream.
Just a quick post today.
After making the pavlova I had loads of yolks leftover so I went on a hunt for a yolky recipe that was a little different to the standard creme brulee or custard. Many websites and recipes later I decided I'd done enough reading to give a yolk-only cake recipe a go.
Cake Ingredients:
85g butter
3/4 cup caster sugar
3 egg yolks
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups plain flour
2 tsps baking powder
pinch of salt
1/2 cup milk
Method:
Preheat the oven to fan 160.
Grease and line two 7-inch tins.
Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
Add the egg yolks and beat until fully combined.
Mix the baking powder and salt into the flour then add one third of it and fold in gently. Add half the milk and stir. Add another third of the flour, followed by the remaining milk and then the remaining flour.
Divide the mixture between the two tins and bake for 20-25 minutes until lightly golden and the cake begins to shrink away from the sides of the tin.
Cool in the tins for 5 minutes before removing and leaving to cool on a wire rack.
Vanilla Buttercream Filling:
75g butter
150g icing sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp milk
Beat the butter until softened. Add the icing in thirds and beat until fully incorporated. Add the vanilla for flavour and as much or as little milk as needed for your preferred consistency.
Turn one of the cakes upside down and put on a plate or cake stand. Spread the buttercream over it in an even layer.
Chocolate Ganache:
100ml double cream
100g dark chocolate
Finely chop the dark chocolate and place in a small mixing bowl.
Heat the cream in a small saucepan until just starting to bubble at the edges. Pour over the chocolate and stir until all the chocolate is melted and everything is mixed together.
Place the other cake, right side up, on top of the buttercream layer. Top with the ganache. If you want, leave the cake out of the fridge for half an hour and let the ganache slowly drip down the sides of the cake for a more dramatic finish. I threw mine straight in the fridge because it was such a hot day so all the ganache stayed on top.
First of all, I want to apologise for being so distant recently. I was visiting family in Leeds all last week and I've been really ill with a horrible infection this week. Luckily, the antibiotics are working their magic and yesterday I found myself back in the kitchen.
Whilst I've been ill my appetite has been way down and barely any food has actually appealed to me. One thing I have wanted however, is cookie dough. So it seemed only appropriate that my return to the kitchen involved making something cookie related. I wanted to be a bit experimental and do something new so my littlest brother and I decided on chocolate chip and caramel cookie bars.
These are not delicate and elegant.
These do not look like some beautiful masterpiece you could find in a french patisserie.
These are delicious.
These are dangerously moreish.
These are like the best kind of sweet sandwich you could imagine. The bread is gooey chocolate chip cookie dough. The filling is melted soft toffees which turn into a beautiful sauce. You bake that sandwich and let it cool and all of a sudden you have some tasty magic begging to be eaten.
Let's get down to the recipe.
Ingredients:
170g butter, melted
1 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup caster sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk
2 tsps vanilla extract
2 1/8 cups plain flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
2 cups chocolate chips (milk or dark depending on your preference)
225g soft toffees, melted (I used werther's originals)
Method:
Preheat the oven to fan 150. Grease and line an 8 x 12 inch pan.
Put the melted butter and two sugars in a large mixing bowl and stir until combined.
Add the egg and egg yolk (if you have recently melted the butter, be careful the mixture isn't too hot or you'll end up with scrambled egg) and beat along with the vanilla extract.
Fold in the flour and baking powder and fully incorporated. Stir in the chocolate chips.
Spread half the batter into the pan.
Melt the toffees either in a pan over a low heat or in the microwave using short bursts of 30 seconds.
Pour the melted toffees over the cookie dough layer then top with the remaining cookie dough. Bake for 30 minutes until lightly golden.
Cool in the tin on a wire rack. Once cooled place in the fridge for about an hour for the caramel layer to firm up then cut into slices.
With my brothers at home for the holidays I am literally baking every other day to keep up with the amount they eat. This means that not only do I get to spend a seriously pleasing amount of time baking but also that I can experiment a little with new flavour combinations.
This time I didn't feel like doing any old chocolate cake (not that there's anything wrong with the classic). I felt like adding a little something different to give the cake a kick. So i sploshed in, with a slightly heavy hand, a good ol' glug of cassis to the cake batter. And it tastes good. Not only does the blackcurrant liqueur add a prominant fruityness which compliments the bitter chocolate really well but it also gives the cake an adult kick since it's alcoholic.
At the minute I'm also really enjoying cooking fruit to add to my baking. For this recipe I cooked about 150g of cherries with just a splash of water and a sprinkling of sugar to help them soften and then let the simmer for 10 minutes to reduce the juices until I had an intensely flavoured cherry syrup.
I used this a filling between my two cake layers as it added a perfect brake of sweet fruitiness to the otherwise rich and decadent cake.
To any of you thinking "chocolate cake and bikini season don't go well together", I think you should note at this point that I've pretty much just provided 2 of your 5 a day in this cake - cherries and blackcurrants (despite being in an alcoholic form). To deny yourself this cake would be to deny your body of much needed vitamins and minerals - I'm only thinking about your health.
Side note - I used to HATE recipes in cups. I would avoid them at all costs in the belief that cups were really difficult to use and quintessentially un-British. I was wrong. Cups are the easiest things in the world to use and without scales this recipe is crazy quick. You could honestly have this batter ready in under 10 minutes. So, if you are an avid cup avoider like I used to be, give them a go.
Chocolate Cassis Cake Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups plain flour
1/2 cup caster sugar
1/4 light brown sugar
1/3 cup cocoa powder
2 tsps coffee granules
1 tsp baking powder
2 tbsps vinegar or lemon juice
1/3 cup sunflower oil
1/3 cup creme de cassis (for a strong flavour, 1/4 cup if children will be eating)
2/3 cup water
Method:
Preheat the oven to fan 160. Grease and line two 7-inch baking tins.
Measure out the flour, sugars, cocoa powder, coffee and baking powder and add to a large mixing bowl.
In a seperate bowl combine the remaining ingredients.
Add the wet to the dry and mix until fully incorporated. Separate the batter between the two tins and bake for 15 minutes.
Cool in the tins for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to finish cooling.
Cherry filling ingredients:
150g fresh cherries
1-2 tbsp water
1 tbsp caster sugar
Method:
Slice the cherries in half and remove the stones.
Throw them in a pan with the water and sugar and cook over a low heat for 10-15 minutes until they have softened and any juices produced have reduced to a sticky syrup.
Chocolate ganache ingredients:
100g dark chocolate
50ml double cream
2 tbsps water
25g greek yogurt
Method:
Melt the chocolate in a bain-marie or a microwave. Stir in the cream, water and greek yogurt until you have a thick, glossy mixture.
Construction:
Place on of the cake layers upside-down on a serving plate/cake stand.
Top with the cooked cherries and drizzle over the cherry syrup.
Spoon about 1/3 of the chocolate ganache mixture on top of the cherries.
Add the second cake layer, right side up.
Spoon over the remaining ganache and spread until the cake is evenly covered.
Top with a few more sliced cherries for an elegant finish.
It might seem that a lot is involved in making this cake but it hardly takes any time at all. You can whip this up super speedily and make like me and be back out in the sun in no time - promise
