Home-Made Chocolate Fudge Cake
Ingredients
Serves: 10
For the Cake
400 grams plain flour
250 grams golden caster sugar
50 grams best-quality cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
½ teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
142 millilitres cream
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
175 grams unsalted butter (melted and cooled)
125 millilitres of vegetable oil
For the Fudge Icing
175 grams dark chocolate (minimum 70% cocoa solids)
250 grams unsalted butter (softened)
275 grams icing sugar (sifted)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Method
Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas mark 4/350ºF.
Butter and line the bottom of two 20cm / 8 inch sandwich tins.
In a large bowl, mix together the flour, sugars, cocoa, baking powder, bicarb and salt. In another bowl or wide-necked measuring jug whisk together the eggs, cream and vanilla until blended. Using a freestanding or handheld electric mixer, beat together the melted butter and oil until just blended (you’ll need another large bowl for this if using the hand whisk; the freestanding mixer comes with its own bowl), then beat in the water. Add the dry ingredients all at once and mix together on a slow speed. Add the egg mixture, and mix again until everything is blended and then pour into the prepared tins.
Bake the cakes for 50-55 minutes, or until a cake-tester comes out clean. Cool the cakes in their tins on a wire rack for 15 minutes, and then turn the cakes out onto the rack to cool completely.
To make the icing, melt the chocolate in the microwave – 2-3 minutes on medium should do it – or in a bowl sitting over a pan of simmering water, and let cool slightly.
In another bowl beat the butter until it’s soft and creamy and then add the sieved icing sugar and beat again until everything’s light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and chocolate and mix together until it is smooth.
Sandwich the middle of the cake with about a quarter of the icing, and then ice the top and sides too, spreading and smoothing with a rubber spatula.
Serve and enjoy!