Chocolate Fudge Cake

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Chocolate cake on plate and tea towel

I Love To Bake by Tana Ramsay

Indulge this weekend with Tana Ramsay’s family favourite gooey chocolate cake.

‘I have created chocolate cake recipes before, but you can never adapt or try out too many ideas on this theme. This is a great one, with a light sponge and a relatively light filling and icing to match. You may have to make it twice just to test if it’s as good as you remembered the first time!’ Tana Ramsay.

Serves 6-8

Cooking time: 1 hour 

For the sponge:

  • 175g (6oz) unsalted butter, softened, plus extra for greasing
  • 150g (51/2oz) self-raising flour, sifted
  • 30g (1oz) cocoa powder, sifted
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 175g (6oz) soft dark brown sugar
  • 3 large free-range eggs, beaten
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 55g (2oz) plain dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids), roughly chopped

For the fudge icing

  • 200g (7oz) unsalted butter, softened
  • 200g (7oz) icing sugar, sifted
  • 200g (7oz) plain dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids), melted

What To Do:

1. Preheat the oven to 200°/fan 180°/gas mark 6. Lightly grease a 20cm (8in) round cake tin and line the base with parchment paper.

2. Place all the ingredients for the sponge in a food processor, or a large mixing bowl, and process, or beat with a wooden spoon, until smooth and slightly pale in colour.

3. Turn the sponge mixture into the prepared tin and lightly tap on the work surface to level it out. Bake in the oven for 55 minutes–1 hour, until the sponge springs back to the touch of a fingertip and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.

4. Remove the cake from the oven, allow to cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then turn out on to a wire rack and leave to cool completely.

5. Meanwhile, make the icing. Put the butter and icing sugar in a large mixing bowl and use a hand whisk or electric whisk to beat together well. Add the melted chocolate and whisk to incorporate it evenly.

6. Cut the cooled sponge in half horizontally. Spread half the icing on top of one cake half, top with the other sponge half and then finish off by spreading the remaining icing thickly over the top of the cake, making decorative swirls in the deliciously naughty chocolate icing. Serve only in large chunks!

 

Recipe from ‘I Love To Bake’ by Tana Ramsay

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