Ok a little bit of a disclaimer with this one, it doesn’t quite fall under the category of healthy even though the raspberries do help and I did reduce the sugar, but it’s also a blog with mostly healthy in the bio, meaning definitely give this recipe a go if you’re looking for that ultimate chocolate cake treat! I loved making this cake and loved eating it too! I actually received this recipe in such a special way as the recipe came in a box with all the ingredients as a present from my good friend Maisie, from The Great British Bake Off. Not exactly from the show but from a really lovely idea they’ve thought up whereby you can be sent recipes from the show with a box full of the ingredients, and this lovely cake stand, making it super easy to make and really fun too!
The recipe is really easy to follow and since making this the first time, I have made this cake five more times! It always goes down a treat at parties as the chocolate ganache gives it a lovely shine and just chocolate fudge cake, you can’t go wrong really. It reminds me of Bruce Bogtrotter’s Cake from Matilda, another recipe I’ll have to give a go soon and compare the two!
I pretty much stuck to the recipe the first time, however since making it since I have reduced the sugar slightly and it works just as well so have used that recipe here. It may look like a lot of ingredients at first glance but if you’re a fan of baking, you’ll probably find you have most of them in your cupboard already.
The recipe below is taken from the recipe cards provided. Give it a go and see what you think. It’s definitely made me want to try many more bake off recipes, they’re delicious!
Chocolate Cake with Raspberries
Prep: 30 mins
Cook: 30 – 35 mins
Total time: 55 mins
Serves: 10 Slices
Ingredients
Chocolate Cake
- 245g plain flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 350g caster sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 80g cocoa powder
- 250ml whole milk
- 130ml vegetable oil
- 230ml warm water
- 2 medium eggs
Chocolate Ganache
- 200g dark chocolate finely chopped
- 10g unsalted butter
- 300 ml double cream
- 2 tsp caster sugar
Decoration
- 300 g fresh raspberries
Instructions
Chocolate Cake
- Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/Gas 4. Grease two 20cm solid-base sponge tins with a little oil and line the bases with baking paper.
- Sift the plain flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, sugar, salt and cocoa powder into a mixing bowl and set aside.
- In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together the milk, oil and warm water, then lightly beat in the eggs.
- One third at a time, add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mixing well between each addition. Make sure the mixture is smooth with no pockets of flour.
- Divide your mixture equally between the two sponge tins. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until a skewer inserted into the centres comes out clean.
- Once baked, cool in the tins for 10 minutes.
- Carefully turn the sponges out onto a wire rack, remove the baking paper and leave to cool completely.
Chocolate Ganache
- Place the chocolate and butter in a clean mixing bowl and set aside.
- Pour the cream into a medium saucepan with 2 teaspoons of sugar, stir with a wooden spoon, and slowly bring just to the boil.
- Remove the cream mixture from the heat and pour it over the chocolate and butter. Leave the chocolate to melt for 1 minute, without stirring.
- Stir with a wooden spoon until smooth and glossy. Leave to cool and thicken (at least 20 minutes) before decorating.
Decoration
- Place one sponge on your cake stand and spread about 4 tablespoons of ganache over the top, smoothing with the back of a large metal spoon or palette knife.
- Place the second sponge on top, with the flat side facing upwards, and gently press down. Cover the top and sides with the remaining ganache.
- Make swirls in the ganache with your knife to create some texture (I chose keep my sides smooth), then arrange the raspberries on top of the cake to cover.
- Leave to set for 30 minutes before serving.
