Triple-chocolate crackle
crunch cake
SERVES 12 PREP AND COOK TIME1 HOUR 40
MINUTES (+ COOLING AND REFRIGERATION TIME)
½ cup (50g) Dutch-processed cocoa
½ cup (125ml) boiling water
185g butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1½ cups (330g) caster sugar
3 eggs
150g dark chocolate, melted, cooled
1½ cups (225g) self-raising flour
½ cup (75g) plain flour
¾ cup (180ml) buttermilk
¼ cup (25g) Milo
WHIPPED GANACHE
2 cups (500ml) cream
600gmilk chocolate, chopped finely
CRACKLE CRUNCH
200g dark chocolate, chopped coarsely
100gbutter, chopped
¼ cup (40g) icing sugar
3 cups (100g) Rice Bubbles
¾ cup (60g) desiccated coconut
1 WHIPPED GANACHEHeat cream in
asmall saucepan untilalmostboiling. Add
chocolate; remove from heat. Stir until
smooth. Cool to room temperature, about
2 hours, stirring occasionally. Transfer
mixture to a small bowl of an electric mixer;
beat ganache for 3 minutes or until fluffy
and lighter in colour – do not overbeat or
mixture will split. Refrigerate for 1 hour
or until thickened and spreadable.
2 CRACKLE CRUNCHLine a large oven
tray with baking paper. Melt chocolate
and butter in a small, heavy-based
saucepan over low heat. Sift icing sugar
into a large bowl; stir in Rice Bubbles,
coconut and chocolate mixture until
combined. Press the mixture onto tray
until 1cm thick. Refrigerate for 1 hour or
until firm. Break half of the crackle slab
into large shards for the top of the cake.
Coarsely crumble the remaining crackle.
3 Meanwhile, preheat oven to 180°C
(160°C fan-forced). Grease two deep 20cm
round cake pans; line bases and sides
with baking paper.4 Stir cocoa and the boiling water in a
small heatproof jug until smooth. Cool.
5 Beat butter, extract and sugar in
a medium bowl with an electric mixer
until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at
a time, then cocoa mixture and melted
chocolate until combined (mixture may
look curdled at this stage). Beat in flours
and buttermilk, in two batches, on low
speed, until smooth. Divide mixture
between pans; smooth the surface.
6 Bake cakes for 40 minutes or until
a skewer inserted into the centre
comes out clean. Leave cakes in pans
for 5 minutes before turning, top-side
up, onto wire racks to cool.
7 Split cakes in half. Place one cake layer
on a plate or stand. Spread with one-fifth of
the ganache,then a third of the crumbled
crackle; sprinkle with a third of the Milo.
Repeat layering, finishing with a ganache
layer. Spread remaining ganache around
the side. Top with large crackle shards.
Undecorated cakessuitable to freeze.
Not suitable to microwave.