Never has cake decorating been this easy or this creative! The latest title in the full-color Essential Cookbook Series, this exhaustive guide includes all cake types, from those suitable for birthdays and elegant dinner parties to over-the-top wedding cakes. Step-by-step photographs and easy-to-follow recipes
Dark chocolate, white chocolate and whipped cream... this is an ultra 'wicked' cake for a special occasion or for sheer indulgence at teatime. It's easy to make, with a little bit of piping that doesn't need to be perfect.
Cake:
165 g (5 1/2 oz) plain flour
90 g (3 oz) cocoa powder
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
250 g (8 oz) caster sugar
2 eggs, lightly beaten
250 ml (8 fl oz) buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
125 g (4 oz) butter, softened
Chocolate Icing:
60 g (2 oz) unsalted butter
60 g (2 oz) dark chocolate, melted
125 ml (4 fl oz) thick (double) cream, whipped
60 g (2 oz) white chocolate, chopped
Equipment:
20 cm (8 inch) round cake tin.
Baking the Cake: Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C (350 degrees F/Gas 4). Brush a 20 cm (8 inch) round cake tin with melted butter or oil and line the base and side with non-stick baking paper.
Sift the flour, cocoa, and soda into a large mixing bowl. Add the sugar. Pour the combined eggs, buttermilk, essence and butter onto the dry ingredients. Using electric beaters, beat on low speed for 3 minutes or just until moistened.
Beat the mixture on high speed for 5 minutes or until free of lumps and increased in volume. Pour the mixture into the tin and smooth the surface.
Bake for 45-50 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. Leave the cake in the tin for 15 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Chocolate Icing: To make the icing, combine the butter and dark chocolate in a small pan. Stir over low heat until melted, then remove from the heat and leave to cool. Trim the dome from the cake top to level the surface. Slice the cake in half horizontally, spread the bottom layer with the whipped cream and then sandwich back together. Spread the icing over the top with a palette knife.
Piping the White Chocolate: Place the white chocolate in a small heatproof bowl and place over a pan of barely simmering water until melted. Remove from the heat and leave to cool slightly. Spoon the melted chocolate into a small paper piping bag. Snip off the tip and pipe a small circle in the centre of the cake. Pipe another circle around it and then carry on until you have covered the top of the cake (you will probably pipe about eight circles). Before the chocolate sets, drag a skewer from the centre circle to the outside of the cake. Clean the skewer and repeat the process, making the lines evenly spaced and working around the cake like the hands of a clock.
Note: Store for three days unfilled in an airtight container or up to three months in the freezer, unfilled and un-iced. The filled cake is best assembled and eaten on the same day.
