The Times Magazine 41Eat!
PAUL HOLLYWOOD
CHOCOLATE FUDGE CAKE
10 slices
If you love chocolate cake, then
you have to try this one. It is a
real crowd-pleaser: not particularly
rich but sweet, gooey and
delicious. Using margarine rather
than butter keeps it light, and
the brown sugar adds colour
and a hint of caramel. It makes
a fantastic birthday cake too – just
stick a candle in the middle and
both kids and adults will want an
extra slice once they’ve tried it.
- 175g soft margarine, plus
extra to grease the tins - 225g soft light brown sugar
- 200g caster sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 250g plain flour
- 125g cocoa powder
- 1½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp fine salt
- 375ml soured cream
For the chocolate frosting
- 150g dark chocolate, broken
into small pieces - 100g cocoa powder
- 225g unsalted butter, softened
- 6 tbsp icing sugar
- Heat your oven to 160C (180C
non-fan). Grease three 20cm
loose-bottomed sandwich tins
and line the bases with baking
paper. Using a stand mixer fitted
with the whisk attachment, beat
the margarine and sugars together
until the mixture is pale and fluffy;
this will take around 5 minutes.
Scrape down the sides of the bowl
with a spatula and whisk again. - In a separate bowl, beat the
eggs with the vanilla extract.
With the mixer still running on
a low-medium speed, slowly pour
the beaten eggs into the mixture. - Sift the flour with the cocoa
powder, baking powder and salt.
Add a large spoonful to the
whisked mixture and stir in, then
mix in a large spoonful of the
soured cream. Repeat until all
the flour and soured cream are
incorporated. Beat until you
have a smooth batter. - Divide the batter equally
between the prepared tins. Bake
for 20-25 minutes until the cakes
are risen and slightly shrunk away
from the sides of the tin. Leave to
cool in the tins before transferring
to a wire rack to cool completely.- To make the chocolate frosting,
melt the chocolate in a heatproof
bowl set over a pan of simmering
water, making sure the base of
the bowl is not in contact with
the water. Stir until smooth
and set aside to cool. In another
bowl, mix the cocoa powder with
100ml boiling water to make a
thick paste.- In a large bowl, beat the butter
until soft and fluffy, then add
the icing sugar and whisk until
pale and fluffy. Add the melted
chocolate and cocoa paste and
beat until the frosting is smooth. - To assemble the cake, place one
cake layer on your serving plate
and spread with a quarter of
the frosting. Place a second cake
layer on top and spread with
another quarter of the frosting.
Position the final cake layer on
top and cover the top and sides
with the remaining frosting.
Leave the frosting to set before
cutting the cake.