Chocolate Mud Cake

This chocolate cake recipe has been something that has been tried and tested on many family and friends. I love a good chocolate cake but think after a day or two they always go dry and they need to be moist and gooey. When i think of chocolate cake I always think of the Miss Trunchbull's chocolate cake in Roald Dahl's 'Matilda'. So I promise this is a chocolate cake that is moist, worthy of any Roald Dahl novel and only gets better the longer you leave it!

At the weekend my little sister turned 21 and, being a talented baker herself, i knew a Victoria Sponge just wouldn't cut it. This cake is very dense like a brownie so only needs a bit of icing on the outside. I covered the cake in a glossy chocolate fudge icing and decorated with; cherries, strawberries, truffles, macadamia nuts, lavender and homemade pineapple flowers. 

For the sponge you will need:

9" round tin,

220g unsalted butter,

220g Dark chocolate,

25g instant coffee granules,

125g Self Raising flour,

125g Plain flour,

50g Cocoa powder,

1/2 tsp Bicarbonate powder,

480g Golden caster sugar,

4 Eggs Beaten,

7 tspns Full of Vegetable oil,

100ml Butter milk. 

For the icing:

115g butter

85g cocoa 

340g icing sugar

150ml skimmed milk

1. Place your butter and dark chocolate in a glass bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Add 160ml of hot water to your coffee granules and then add the coffee to your chocolate and butter mixture until everything is melted and mixed in.

2. Combine all of your dry ingredients and make a well in the middle and pour in your coffee chocolate mixture. Gentle mix until everything is mixed in and resembles a batter consistency. Seperately beat your eggs, vegetable oil and buttermilk mixture together and then add to your cake batter.  Once the mixture is smooth and all ingredients are combined pour into your pre-lined tin.

3. I would recommended lining your cake tin with two layers of baking parchment and on the outside tie a layer of newspaper round your tin with string. The reason for this is your cake has a large amount of sugar and this means the cake is prone to burning but by lining your cake in this way it should prevent the cake from catching.

4. Bake your cake at 165° for 45 minutes and turn your cake to prevent burning. Bake for a further 35 minutes or until cooked all the way through. Test this by using a metal skewer, you will know your cake is cooked when your skewer comes out clean when piercing into the center of the cake. Now leave until the cake is completely cooked.

5. In the meantime to make your icing, add your melted butter to your cocoa powder and icing sugar and gradually add your milk until the mixture is smooth and thick but not too thin. You want a heavy thick consistency that you can spread and push over your cake until it is completely covered. Whilst the icing is still wet add whatever toppings you would like to cover your cake, because the icing is still wet it will allow your toppings of your cake to stick on firmly. 

As part of making this cake I made my own pineapple flowers which are very pretty and easy to make. The recipe for these will be appearing on my blog shortly! As ever this recipe is very simple to make and is sure to make an impression on anyone who eats it. After discovering this recipe i have never been tempted to use any other recipe to make chocolate cake. Any questions please feel free to get in touch and would love to hear from anyone who has had a go, Happy Baking!