SWEET LIKE CHOCOLATE CAKE

I'm not exactly always in the ktichen, in fact, sometimes I barely want to venture into it. Sometimes it's just all too daunting. But then the phone rings. It's a friend and they're thinking about coming over in the afternoon. Trained by my mother that a full friend is a happy one (and trained by Max Brenner that chocolate definitely makes you feel better) I always* knock up this chocolate cake for guests.

*A NOTE TO GUESTS WHO COME TO MY HOUSE - I may not always make this chocolate cake, so please don't visit me expecting a slice of it straight out of the oven.  But you might be lucky. Maybe.

SWEET LIKE CHOCOLATE CAKE
(Serves 8 - or 4 really hungry greedy chocolate addicts)

• 150g butter, softened
• 1½ cups of brown sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1½ teaspoon of bicarb soda
• 350mls of milk
• 2¼ cups of sifted plain flour
• 3 teaspoons baking powder also sifted
• ½ cup of dark chocolate cocoa powder sifted (I used Hershey's)
  
  Cream Icing
  (If you're serving this in the afternoon I like to use a fresh cream topping instead of an icing sugar-based one because 
• 3/4 cup of thickened cream
• 1/2 cup of sugar
• 4 tsps cocoa powder
• 2 tbsps peanut butter (This gives it a nutty taste)
• Crushed hazelnuts (or your favourite nuts) to decorate
  
  
  

So this batter is a real lick-the-bowl kind of thing but don't lck too much of it or you won't have enough to fill the tin. Preheat your oven to about 170ºC.


Chuck the butter in the microwave for 30 seconds until the butter softens a bit, put it in a bowl with your sugar and beat together until creamy. Into your cup of milk add your bicarb soda and mix in until it froths then pour into the butter and sugar mix.

Sift your flour, cocoa powder and baking powder in a big bowl then add the milk and butter mix and then beat it together until lovely and combined. Your mix should look a little chocolate mousse.

Get a deep round cake tin and coat with cooking spray, spoon your mix into the tin and then put in the oven. Bake for a 45-50 minutes. The best thing you can do to check if it's cooked after about 40 minutes is to put a skewer in the middle. If it comes out dirty it's still a bit undercooked, if it comes out relatively clean then you're good to go.

Let the cake cool on a rack for a good 30 minutes. For your icing, whip the cream with sugar together and cocoa powder until thick (add peanut butter here if you want an extra nutty taste). Spread the topping on the cake so it's thick and creamy and then add crushed nuts on top.  An alternate topping (as pictured right up the top) is without peanut butter and instead has chocolate curls.